Appleton Common Council District 6 Update for September 20, 2023

Greetings District 6 Neighbors, 

I hope your day is going better than mine so far. I ran to Meijer after exercise class to pick up a couple of things and, while scanning at the self-check, my container of pineapple basically exploded all over the scanner. In my defense, the top was not on securely and the bar code was on the top, requiring the container to be turned over or at least sideways to scan it. 

Other than that, it’s a beautiful day. 

Before we get into the agenda for the council meeting tonight, a reminder that, if you haven’t had trash pickup yet this week, it’s the last day for bulk item pickup until the spring. Public Works folks will transition into leaf and fall yard waste pickup soon, followed by (NO!!!!) snow removal. 

We’re also into the last couple of days for the open book at the city assessor’s office. If you have issues with your recent assessment, now is the time to present evidence supporting the difference in the assessment and what you believe to be valid. 

  

Tonight’s council meeting will begin with some mayoral appointments, but no proclamations. All of the members of the Police Chief’s Community Advisory Board are being presented for reappointment, as is a member of the Board of Zoning Appeals. 

It is always difficult to judge what items alders will elect to separate for individual discussion and votes, but there are a few that resulted in split votes at committee. 

Both the City Clerk’s office and the Fire Department proposed some increases in fees for licenses and permits that would be more in line with neighboring communities and come closer to recovering the administrative costs for processing those licenses and permits. The Clerk’s office in particular notes that even the increased fees will not cover the administrative costs completely. There was one vote against the increased Class “A” (off premises consumption) liquor license fee ($300 to $450).  

I fully expect the neighbors of the proposed Fourth Addition to the Clearwater Creek subdivision to be present as the rezoning and preliminary plat approval for the 14 additional lots and two out lots comes before the full council after again being approved unanimously by the City Plan Commission. I am comfortable that the issues raised by the community have been addressed – the majority of which apply to the current situation and would not be changed by the addition of 14 new homes.  

It is possible that the authors of the resolution specifically calling for the allocation of the additional shared revenue funding from the State of Wisconsin to be used only to offset borrowing for public works and infrastructure or public safety projects will want to discuss it again after if was recommended for denial by the Finance Committee. The recommendation for denial was based on the fact that state law clearly defines the allowed uses for those funds. 

The Bird Glass resolution was discussed in the Community and Economic Development Committee meeting last week. As I noted in the last update, there were legal problems with the resolution as written and I had wanted to discuss amending with the authors. Getting only one response, which was a request to hold until after budget adoption, I was prepared to move for denial (which would send the item to the full council with a recommendation to deny). However, we had only four members present at the committee meeting, and a motion to hold was made, but withdrawn when the authors, all of whom were present (Alder Del Toro sits on the CEDC) expressed a desire to amend to a form that would not a violation of state law. After much discussion, the amended resolution, which now directs the city to provide information to the owners of buildings and that remediation measures be taken on city buildings when funding and staff time allow, passed. 

As I thought about the resolution, I have concluded that I will not vote for it, even as amended. I think we can do better with specific policies, and I want to work with staff to study the various options and to determine what the cost impact would be for the changes to city buildings. Based on the work done by staff to identify buildings that pose a risk, there are not many, and I would hope that some of the less expensive options would be effective. I think it is best to come back next year with a better thought-out version. 

The final item that might be separated is the resolution promoting mental health and services. I wrote last week that I wasn’t sure what action this resolution was calling for, and was rightly called out by a constituent for what was an unintentional but still apparent minimizing of the need for additional attention to the mental health crisis in our community and the need for more services. I understood that there was a good discussion of the item at the Board of Health meeting, which I was unable to attend. Unfortunately, the video of the meeting is not available online, so I have reached out to Health Officer Sepers to get his feedback. 

For reference – here are the “be it resolved” portions of the resolution: 

 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the Common Council of the City of Appleton, that recognizes the importance of mental health and the impact of mental illness on individuals, families, and communities.  

Be it further resolved, the city of Appleton commits to promoting mental health awareness and reducing stigma associated with mental illness through public education campaigns, community events, and partnerships with local mental health organizations.  

Be it further resolved, the city of Appleton supports increased access to mental health services and encourages the expansion of mental health services, including telemedicine and other innovative approaches to increase access. 

My initial concern was that the resolution doesn’t propose any concrete measures or funding to make these changes.  

I doubt that any of the other committee items will be separated, but you never know.  

Have a great week enjoying this gorgeous fall weather.