Appleton Common Council District 6 Update, August 23, 2021

 

Hibiscus Along the Newberry Trail

Much as we might try to make it last, summer is coming to an end. High school football has already started and AASD students are back in school next week. The Packers have played two preseason games and baseball’s pennant races are heating up. Here’s hoping that the Brew Crew is playing late into the fall!

I walked past the Erb Park Pool yesterday and saw that it was packed with people enjoying the last day of the season (I think the Mead Pool closed on Friday). It was so good to have the pools open again this summer.

It was a busy week/weekend for me, too. I ran the Sole Burner 5K from City Park Saturday as part of the City of Appleton team. This was another event that was back in person this year after being virtual in 2020. City employees who participated raised over $1200 for the American Cancer Society. Immediately after the race, Alderperson Vered Meltzer and I rushed to Menasha’s Jefferson Park for the Celebrate Diversity Fox Cities cookout, where a number of individuals and organizations were recognized for their efforts to “make the Fox Valley Area more welcoming, safe and inclusive for all during the COVID Pandemic and beyond.” Among the honorees were our colleague Alderperson Maiyoua Thao for her work on the resolution condemning xenophobia, racism, and violence against the Asian American and Pacific Islander Community. Mayor Woodford was honored for his efforts during the pandemic and former Diversity and Inclusion Coordinator Karen Nelson was honored for her work with many local organizations as she ends her time in Appleton.

The Common Council meeting last Wednesday began with Mayor Woodford offering a proclamation recognizing Breastfeeding Month and noting the contributions of the Public Health Nurses and Lactation Consultants.

We received the customary (again) COVID-19 update from Interim Health Officer Sonja Jensen. Case numbers continue to rise in Appleton, keeping us at the HIGH level of burden and also at the HIGH level of community spread. As of that meeting, 53.5% of Appleton residents were fully vaccinated and 56.86% of residents had received at least one dose of vaccine. For vaccine-eligible residents (age 12 and above) the figures were 63.4% and 67.4%. We had asked at the previous meeting for some information about breakthrough cases. In the first two weeks of August, about 24% of the positive COVID tests in the Fox Valley were in fully vaccinated people. However, per ThedaCare, only one fully vaccinated person was hospitalized with COVID, and none have died.

With the news today that the Pfizer vaccine has been fully approved by the FDA, I hope that our vaccination rates continue to climb. The Outagamie County Vaccine Clinic will be operating at Fox River Mall today, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. No appointments, payment or ID needed. The Outagamie County Public Health Center is also offering free vaccines at the location on the 3^rd floor, 320 S. Walnut St. from 9:00 to 3:00 daily. Walk-ins are welcome, but you can also make an appointment by calling 920-832-5100. Local pharmacies are offering vaccines by appointment.

There were only a couple of items that were separated for individual discussion/votes during the balance of the meeting.

The first was the reconstruction of Summit Street between Prospect and 4^th Street. This proposed reconstruction had resulted in a large amount of public comment and emails from the residents of the two-block portion, largely because the proposal was to narrow the existing street by two feet and remove parking on one side of the street. At the Municipal Services Committee meeting the week before, we heard from city staff about the need to replace water, sanitary and storm sewer lines that dated back to the 1920s and received information about the water main breaks in the area. Over one-third of the pavement would have to be removed to replace the water and sewer mains regardless of whether or not the street was reconstructed, resulting in a patchwork – Appleton Street going into the library/downtown was noted as an example of a street after the water/sewer replacement.  The city forester visited the area and confirmed that two trees that had originally been set for removal could be saved. The residents’ concern about removing street parking and about the reduced width of the street certainly seem valid, but they also pointed to the character of the neighborhood, which would certainly change if the 19 trees that would be saved by narrowing the street were removed. In the end, I voted for the reconstruction since the utility work is vital and I think the character of the neighborhood is better served by keeping the trees. The item passed narrowly, 7 to 6.

We also voted to approve the development agreement with Merge, LLC. to build a mixed-use complex at E. Washington and S. Oneida St. in Tax Increment Financing District 11. As discussed in the last update, the first development will be for a building with 56 small loft and one-bedroom units, with office and retail on the ground floor. Those tenants would use parking in the Yellow Ramp. This is an exciting part of the development of the neighborhood around the library and seems to be a good use of the TIF.

The last item discussed individually was the resolution submitted by Alderpersons Hartzheim, Doran, Martin and Reed that purported to urge the mayor and the Human Resources Department to prioritize the hiring of a new Health Officer but seemed to be more focused on preventing the city from enacting any COVID mitigation policies until a permanent Health Officer is hired. The Board of Health ended up amending the resolution to the point that the meaning was the opposite of the original. At the Common Council meeting, Alderperson Hartzheim attempted to remove the original authors’ names from the amended resolution but was advised by the City Attorney that this was not allowed under Robert’s Rules of Order since the resolution had been acted on in committee. The authors then attempted to suspend the rules of council in order to withdraw the resolution. That vote failed 7-6 and the resolution as amended passed 8-5. I honestly felt a little queasy about voting on a resolution amended to have exactly the opposite meaning as the original, but I think that it was a good lesson for those who were attempting to make some kind of statement by bringing forth a resolution that misstated facts (the health officer position is not vacant – we have an interim health officer whose appointment met the approval of the state to keep our rating as a Level III Health Department) and implied that the Human Resources Department was not engaged in a very intense recruitment process for a new health officer.

 

 

Items that will be discussed in committee meetings this week:

Municipal Services Committee – Monday, August 23, 4:30 p.m.

• ·       Resolution #10-R-21 Scavenging of Solid Waste/Recyclables – the resolution originally called for the ordinance to be repealed altogether but there were some questions about liability to the city for an accident, concerns about people scavenging in bins. The attorney’s office has recommended that the ordinance be amended to continue to prohibit going into the trash or recycling bins but to allow people to pick bulky items off of the terrace. After hearing a number of concerns from you, I am fully supportive of this change.
• ·       Information item - Road Reconstruction 101 – we will learn about the many factors that go into DPWs decisions on prioritizing, process, and funding. Please let me know if you would like to have the full presentation e-mailed to you.

Finance Committee – Monday, August 23, 5:30 p.m.

• ·       Request to award contract to The Boldt Company for Construction Manager at Risk services for the library for a contract of $1,186,730 and $25,000 for reimbursable expenses for a contract totaling $1,211,730. This contract is for the construction management – other contracts will be awarded based on separate bidding processes and Boldt would only get those contracts for which they win the bid.
• ·       Rejection of all bids for the redundant raw water line. The approved budget for 2021 was $8,280,000.00 and all three bids that were submitted were over $10,925,000.00. The Department of Public Works intends to carry over the budgeted funds and re-bid the project with an adjusted scope that will meet the project objectives while staying within the funding limits.
• ·       Request to approve a budget amendment to pay the developer of a project in TID 6 early because of how well the district has performed. This will save the city about $40,000 in interest and allow the final payment in 2022 so that the process to close out the TID can be started.

Parks and Recreation Committee – Monday, August 23, 6:30 p.m.

·       Resolution #11-R-21 to connect the sidewalks around the entire perimeter of Linwood Park

·       Request from Sculpture Valley to extend the lease for the “Stairway to the Stars” sculpture in Pierce Park for 10 years.

       

    

 

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·       Information Item – Reid Golf Course Revenue and Expense Report

Revenue is up $128,000 over 2020 and expenses are within budget YTD.

 

Fox Cities Transit Commission – Tuesday, August 24, 3:00 p.m.

·      Authorization to Award Northern Winnebago Dial A Ride Contract to Running Inc.

·      Information items include the July financial report and ridership and revenue report

Utilities Committee – Tuesday, August 24, 5:00 p.m.

• ·      Awarding the stormwater Consulting Services Contract for Apple Creek Road / Haymeadow Avenue Study and 30% Design with McMahon Associates in an amount not to exceed $40,217.
• ·      Awarding an extension of the biosolids transportation, application, and incorporation contract for 2022-2024 to Beneficial Reuse Management. This is for the transportation and application of 90% of city biosolids to agricultural sites.

·      Information items include a presentation on PFAS in the environment and biosolids compost and a report on the Appleton Parks and Recreation Department Stormwater Summer Camp. 

• Community and Economic Development and Human Resources and Information Technology meetings are canceled for this week.

Don’t forget the Library Project listening session tomorrow night – Zoom link here:

https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=https%3a%2f%2floom.ly%2ff21moy4&c=E,1,Rm4G1vPHDMid0NqvhzyVEJKo8axEzKpyw8qo9v6IWip1EQ663RaIu8JqR3INRHDD60AdsL-Olsg-PHuZiZTP-XGG0n9CjTiiMNB61l0eHwjKiZdUC6le4kQ,&typo=1

And sign up for one of the listening sessions on the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds by calling 920-832-5814. Sessions will be held Wednesday, August 24 at 6:00 p.m. and Friday, August 27 at 7:30 a.m.