District 6 Update, July 12, 2021
The last update was written while I was in Arkansas with one
daughter’s family welcoming a newborn granddaughter; this one is being written
with the other daughter’s family, including our three-year-old granddaughter,
visiting us. It’s been fun showing them the sights and experiencing our city
from a young family’s perspective – the playground at Erb Park has been a big
hit and I’m sure we’ll hit the one at Memorial before the visit is done. We’ve
been to the Building for Kids (makes me want to borrow a child just so I can keep
going back), the Thursday concert at Jones Park, the Farm Market, Butterfly
Gardens of Wisconsin (shoutout to Jack and Marty Voight again – if you haven’t
been up there, it’s really wonderful). We had brunch on the river yesterday and
are took the riverboat cruise in the afternoon, and the young folks had a night
on the town Friday while the toddler hung out with the grandparents. Yes – this
does sound like a tourist brochure, but I really am pretty amazed at everything
we can find to do within a short walk or ride from home.
Back to business, we had the first Common Council meeting of
July Wednesday after having no meetings the previous “fifth week.” Mayor
Woodford was excused from the meeting, which was chaired by Council President
Reed.
There was a public hearing on the ordinance changes to allow
Accessory Dwelling Units under the current building code and one citizen
expressed her concerns. I’ll address the full discussion when we get to the
action item.
The first item separated out for individual consideration
was a proposed change in the building code to prohibit accessory buildings
(sheds/garages) made from metal shipping containers. During the discussion at
the Municipal Services Committee meeting last week, all members agreed that
this is not something that we thought should be allowed in the city. However,
there was less agreement over the proposed prohibition of pole buildings, as
some thought that there were attractive options for this type of building. The
item was referred back to the Municipal Services Committee for more discussion.
The proposed reconstruction of Alvin Street from Wisconsin
Avenue to Marquette Street (the portion from Glendale to Marquette is in our
district) was also referred back to committee after an amendment to prohibit
parking on the two blocks north of Wisconsin was proposed. I understand that this
would be at attempt to address some problems neighbors are having with protesters
and counter protesters around the Planned Parenthood facility.
Another proposed change to the municipal code was referred
back to the Municipal Services Committee. This item is related to the
installation of solar voltaic installations (solar panels). It was to change the
code to require such work to be performed by a licensed electrician. Alderperson
Schultz questioned if the change refers to solar installations of any scope, so
the item was referred back to get more information.
A resolution to ban political signs on property leased from
the city (such signs are already banned on property owned and operated by the
city) was amended in the Finance Committee meeting to call for contracts to be
negotiated with these provisions. There was much discussion about this item,
with some alderpersons believing that it is an infringement of the rights of
the lessee. However, as I pointed out in the meeting, people enter into
contracts to purchase homes with deed restrictions that prohibit certain types
of signs (or architectural styles and paint colors, for that matter) and sign
leases for rental property with those same restrictions. If the language is in
the contract, then potential lessees can choose not to lease the property if
they do not wish to comply with the restrictions. Right now this applies to
only five properties in the city:
Basil’s (Patio) Expires: 12/31/2022
Appleton Yacht Club Expires: 1/31/2023, automatically
renewing every 5 years thereafter
Supple Group (Heritage Park) Expires: 10/2025
USA Youth Expires: 4/30/2026, automatically renewing for
15 years
Appleton Family Ice Center Expires: 6/30/2038
In an item that might provide a glimpse into the future, a
request from U.S. Venture for a street occupancy permit for part of Lawrence Street
was approved. They plan to build a temporary parking lot and some of the stalls
would be on this part of the street. They had previously turned over this
section for the widening of Lawrence Street. The permit would allow parking there
until that street construction begins in 2023.
The final item of those separate for individual consideration
was the change to allow accessory dwelling units. This change has been
discussed in this space a couple of times as it has been in the works for over
a year. City staff took great pains to make sure that all aspects of the
building code were addressed, including setback regulations and even the issue
of addresses for emergency services. There were multiple meetings between city
staff and those of us who signed on to the resolution to make sure that our
concerns were addressed as well. Most of the negative input I heard during the
time this was being considered related to a fear that these units would be used
for short term rentals. Some neighborhoods in our city have had complaints
about short term rentals, but we already have a framework for licensing these
units, and staff is working on some possible further regulations that could
address the problems in these neighborhoods. I believe that passing this resolution
gives us another tool to address our increasing shortage of affordable housing.
Committee meetings are back in full swing this week:
Municipal Services Committee – Monday, July 12, 4:30 p.m.
·
Reconsidering the prohibition of certain types
of accessory buildings referred back from the Common Council meeting (specifically
pole buildings)
·
Reconsidering the reconstruction of Alvin Street
with the amendment to prohibit street parking on the two blocks north of
Wisconsin Avenue.
·
Reconsidering code changes related to the installation
of solar voltaic equipment.
·
A couple of requests from Creative Downtown
Appleton, Inc. that seem interesting:
o
Installing string lights on the College Avenue
planter railings. These would operate from dusk until dawn, with CDA being responsible
for the purchase, installation and maintenance of the lights.
o
Creating a parklet from two parking stalls on
State St. adjacent to the Mile of Music
mural. From the request:
Both of these seem like ideas
that will make downtown more inviting – especially the parklet on State Street.
·
Modified operations plan for the Department of Public
Works – this has been the subject of much discussion since it first came to the
Municipal Services Committee as an information item a few weeks ago. As I have
written, the proposed policy change was brought about by two factors. First,
the Department of Natural Resources no longer approves of the current method of
leaf collection – having residents put the leaves into the street where DPW
then collects them with bucket trucks. This method was allowing too much
phosphorus to leach into the storm drains and therefore into the waterways.
This phosphorus causes algae bloom that is dangerous to aquatic animals and
humans. Therefore, we need to move to collecting leaves from the terrace with
vacuum trucks and collect the brush separately. Second, the company which has been performing
snow removal on the sidewalks maintained by the cities (along parks, roundabouts,
etc.) is closing their business after twenty years. They have been the only
bidder for this contract. The city will have to retrofit and purchase equipment
to collect leaves from the terrace and will need to manually collect the brush.
Reducing the bulky item collection (after much public comment, the original
plan to charge a nominal fee for these items was scrapped) will allow the same personnel
to do the brush collection and the sidewalk snow removal that we will have to
bring in-house. In addition to the budgetary considerations to keep a level of
service without having to greatly increase the DPW labor budget, there was hope
that reducing the amount of bulky item collection could eliminate some of the
items going to the landfill by getting residents to consider alternate methods
of disposal. I did a quick search and found a number of charitable
organizations that will pick up furniture, etc., that is donated. DPW estimated
that charging a small fee for bulky items could reduce the amount going to the
landfill by over half a million pounds a year, thereby reducing the tipping
fees we pay to the county. We are
already nearing the capacity of the Outagamie County landfill – the expansion
is facing opposition by residents near the landfill. Once we reach capacity there,
we will incur further costs by having to truck waste to Brown County. The
modified plan is summarized below and I am attaching the complete document
prepared by DPW. I plan to vote for the plan for the reasons listed above. If
you have thoughts on this, please share with me. Regardless of the recommendation
of the Municipal Services Committee, this will go to the full Common Council for
a vote next week.
Finance Committee – Monday, July 12, 5:30 p.m.
·
Presentation from Robert W Baird & Co. on
the 2021 General Obligation Notes and Water and Sewerage System Revenue
Refunding Bonds Sales
The city will be issuing bonds for
capital improvements and water and sewage system revenue bonds. Additional
amounts of will be issued to re-fund $3,400,000
of the 2011 water and sewer bonds at the current lower interest rate for a
total interest savings of $515,080.
·
Resolution #8-R-20 City of Appleton Brand Study –
this resolution was submitted in April of 2020 by outgoing alderperson Chris
Croatt to perform a study which “should include logo redesign, development of a
graphic standards manual for the entire organization, further definition of
mission, value proposition, key marketing strategies, and a detailed
recommendation of brand-strengthening activities that can be planned and
budgeted for.”
The resolution was submitted to staff and a Request for Proposal was drafted
including this language:
“As the City embarks on the second decade of the 21st Century, it
needs a new logo and overall branding. Appleton’s current logo was commissioned
by Mayor Richard De Broux, designed, and adopted in 1994 as City Hall moved
into its current location in City Center. While the themes of the existing logo
around economic vitality and sustainability remain important aspects of the
community, our City has grown and changed over the last 27 years in ways that
would be better represented by new imagery and typography. Leaving the City’s
brand unchanged could put the City of Appleton at a competitive disadvantage.
Branding is more than just the logo; it touches every aspect of the
City’s visual representation and the ways in which the City describes itself.
Inconsistent use of the existing logo, including misuse of design elements such
as color palette, not only weaken the City’s brand identity, it can create
doubt around official documents and City representatives. Presently, there are
at least a half dozen graphic representations of the City of Appleton in
official use that incorporate inconsistent design elements such as apples,
trees, colors, etc.
A clear, consistent brand
should support the City’s strategic priorities. It should also improve service
to residents by stating and reinforcing the City’s values. Finally, the City’s
brand should serve as a point of pride for the taxpayers of Appleton.”
·
Request to approve the allocation of excess
General Fund balance at December 31, 2020 and the following related 2021 Budget
amendments
The Finance Committee will be allocating surplus funds from the 2020
budget in the amount of $5,115,000. Per rule, 75% of this balance will go to
reducing the city’s debt.
Utilities
Committee – Tuesday, July 13, 5:00 p.m.
· Adopt
Authorized Representative Resolution for the Environmental Improvement Fund
This is a resolution authorizing the city Finance Director to be the
delegate for filing applications for funds from the State of Wisconsin Environmental
Improvement Fund.
· Approve
Department of Public Works Modified Operations Plan effective April 1, 2022
This is the same plan discussed under the Municipal Services Committee
agenda.
City
Plan Commission – Wednesday, July 14, 3:30 p.m.
· Request
to approve a permit for a restaurant at 205 N. Richmond St. – Jimmy’s Chicken
and Fish. This permit is to establish alcohol sales at the existing restaurant
site. The alcohol sales license will be addressed at the Safety and Licensing
Committee meeting later on Wednesday.
· Request
to approve the M&J Weyenberg Properties, LLC Annexation consisting of
approximately 1.696 acres generally located at the southeast corner of Ballard
Road and Ridge Haven Lane, currently in the Town of Grand Chute.
· Request
to approve Certified Survey Map #10-21, which crosses a plat boundary, to
combine two existing parcels, 6600 North Ballard Road (Tax Id #31-1-9203-09)
and North Tiburon Lane (Tax Id #31-1-9203-10), into one new parcel.
Safety and Licensing Committee – Wednesday, July 14, 5:30
p.m.
· In
addition to normal license renewals, there are a number of special permits for
Mile of Music (August 4-8)
· Under
Information Items – check out all these events for the remainder of the summer
43rd Annual Appleton Car Show and
Swap Meet, Appleton Fox Cities Kiwanis Club, Pierce Park, July 18, 2021
Appleton Vintage Bicycle
Swap/Show, Active Bike and Fitness LLC, 1131 N Badger Ave, July 25, 2021
Children's Parade, Building for
Kids Children's Museum, College Ave, July 28, 2021
Movie on the Hill, Appleton Parks
& Recreation, Memorial ParkJuly 22 and August 12, 2021
Heid Music Summer Concert Series,
Appleton Downtown Inc, Jones Park, Thursdays from July 1-Sept 30, 2021
2021 Sole Burner 5K Walk/Run,
American Cancer Society, City Park, August 21, 2021
Human Resources and Information Technology Committee – Wednesday,
July 14, 6:30 p.m.
· Request
to approve Public Works HVAC position overhire
This will allow training for a person replacing a Building Inspector who
is retiring on September 1 after 37 years with the city. Salary impact is
approximately $8000 which is accommodated in the existing budget.
· Request
to approve change to seasonal pay plan to move election worker positions to a
fixed hourly rate.
This change is due to the sporadic nature ( 0 to several elections in a
year) of these jobs.
· Request
to approve Worker's Compensation third party administrator change
The administrator would be Cities and Villages Mutual Insurance Company
(CVMIC), which had the lowest bid in the RFP. The city already has a strong
relationship with this company as well.
· Request
to approve changes to Health Department table of organization
This change is to make a permanent Deputy Director position and appoint
the Public Health Nurse Supervisor (who is currently serving as Interim Health
Officer) to that position. The current budget will support this change, which
more closely aligns the Health Department with other city departments.
As
always, you can view committee and Common Council agendas, as well as
livestreams of meetings here:
https://cityofappleton.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx
Enjoy
the week!
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