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Appleton Common Council District 6 Update for August 24, 2026

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Greetings, District 6 Neighbors, What a glorious day this was! I started my walk this morning in a light jacket, but when I passed by the Erb Pool on my way home this afternoon, it was clear that the cooler weather didn’t deter the folks determined to keep summer going until the last moment. Last week’s council meeting went as I expected it, with only the special event permit for Appleton Area NOW’s Rally for Equality and the occupancy permit for the vegetation on Superior St. being separated for individual discussion and voting – both by me as I abstained from both votes. I am a member of the organization that applied for the special event permit, and I am personally acquainted with the person who applied for the occupancy permit. I noticed that one of the local television stations ran a story on the special event application and there were a lot of comments implying that the council approves or denies late applications based on the organization requesting them. This is simply n...
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Appleton Common Council District 6 Update for August 19, 2026

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  Greetings, District 6 Neighbors, Although the weather hasn’t indicated it, we are definitely approaching the end of summer. The Mead Pool closed to humans on August 14 before dog day on August 15, and Sunday, August 23, is the last day for Erb Pool. While we are on Parks and Recreation topics, APRD would love for you to fill out their survey about their programs. 2026 Appleton Parks and Recreation - Recreation Interest Survey While this is a full council week, we have a few other meetings scheduled. The Library Board meets today (Tuesday, August 18) at 5:00. The board will introduce two new trustees, including a new non-voting teen member of the board. Action items include approval of the July bill register and the August budget amendment to record the disbursement from the Friends of Appleton Public Library to the library budget. The board will also vote on approving the updates to the procurement and contract management policy approved by the Finance Committee last week and upd...
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Appleton Common Council District 6 Update for August 10, 2026

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Greetings District 6 Neighbors, At last week’s Common Council meeting, we got a bit of an update on the progress of the recovery from the July 27 storms from Mayor Woodford. As of last week, the Department of Public Works had collected the equivalent of THREE YEARS’ worth of debris. A handful of City of Appleton building inspectors have joined the City of Menasha’s team. They’re supplementing their inspections team to help with inspecting structures that are being repaired and rebuilt, allowing folks to return to their homes and businesses. The two cities signed an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) to allow for our team to join theirs for the foreseeable future. Debris collection started today for the areas most affected by the storm – the parts of the city west of Richmond and north of Northland. Preparation Guidelines • Tree sections must be cut to 8 feet or shorter and no more than 12 inches in diameter. • Smaller branches (up to 2 inches in diameter), twigs, and yard waste must be ...
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Appleton Common Council District 6 Update for August 5, 2026

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Outagamie St. photo from the Post-Crescent Greetings District 6 Neighbors, It seems like while since I have written an “official” newsletter, though I’ve been trying to keep people updated on storm cleanup. The city has created a special webpage to post news and links to resources, etc. during this time: Tornado | July 27, 2026 You have probably heard that the volunteer center has stopped asking for general volunteers as of yesterday; they are working with more specialized resources for the cleanup in Menasha and other hard-hit areas. 2026 Storm Response - Volunteer Fox Cities Sadly, there are scammers preying on both the victims of the storm and on generous people who want to help. If you want to donate, make sure that it is through a trusted organization. Volunteer Fox Cities is partnering with United Way Fox Cities   https://unitedwayfoxcities.org/tornado/   Closer to home, the Glendale yard waste site reverted to normal hours (Friday through Monday 8:00 to 5:00) as of Mond...
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Appleton Common Council District 6 Update for July 22, 2026

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Greetings, District 6 Neighbors, While there is certainly less haze and smoke smell in the air, the air quality index is still indicating that the conditions outside are “unhealthy for sensitive groups.” I’m hopeful that the rain forecast for later today will get some of the smoke out of the air and with the end of the extreme heat we can go back to doing things outside. As forecast in last week’s update, the council meeting last Wednesday was eventful. We had three very big items before us and had a large number of people speaking during the public participation period. We did not begin addressing the action items on the agenda until after 9:00 p.m. Most of the people were present to voice their objection to Resolution #9-R-26 Establishing Public Oversight and Accountability Standards for ALPR Cameras & Mass Surveillance Technologies submitted by Alder Van Zeeland and me. Many of them spoke in support of the “citizen drafted ordinance” which is also being presented to the Oshkosh ...
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