Appleton District 6

 Good afternoon District 6, It’s definitely nice to have the NCAA basketball tournament back after last year’s cancellation, although the schedule change is a bit odd with back-to-back games on a Monday. While we were sorry to see the Badgers come up short yesterday, it was great to see the Wisconsin women’s hockey team capture the national championship after having their season cancelled last year as well. It’s nice to feel the warm weather and to know that baseball starts on time in just a couple of weeks, too. Once we get some more shots in arms, including mine, I’m looking forward to catching some Timber Rattler and Brewer games, but I am definitely going to have a tough time calling the ballpark “American Family Field.”    Now that the sportscast is over, back to the business from City Hall. The COVID-19 update showed that cases continued to be about where they were before the spike last September. We are still listed in the HIGH category based on the total num...

  Little Italy Branch Library, Chicago (Skidmore, Owings & Merrill) Good afternoon District 6, I normally send updates after the Common Council meeting, but I wanted to make sure that everyone is aware of a couple of items of interest in tomorrow’s council meeting. As expected, the Finance Committee recommended approval of awarding the contract for design and engineering services for the library building to Skidmore, Owings & Merrill in the amount of $2,721,389 with a 5% contingency of $136,070 for a project total not to exceed $2,857,459. Close budget-watchers might remember that the 2021 budget included $2,400,000 for the design. The following explanation is from Director Gazza: “The 2021 Budget includes $2,400,000 for library design services. It was anticipated design would begin in 2021 and construction would begin in 2022. This contract also includes construction administration services to be completed in 2022. Rather than creating two separate contracts, it is stand...

  Good afternoon District 6, While I know that we often get a big snowstorm in April, I can’t help but sense that spring is coming when I look out my window and see all the grass and when I look at forecasts in the 50s for this week. I’ll enjoy it while I can, but I’m not packing my snow boots away just yet. In the Common Council meeting last week, we approved two new appointments to city boards and commissions – Deborah Wurth, a retired school nurse who has worked with the Health Department on a number of issues,   will be joining us on the Board of Health, and former State Assembly Representative Penny Bernard Schaber will be joining the Task Force on Resiliency, Climate Mitigation and Adaptation. The mayor also issued a proclamation for Be Active Wisconsin Month. The Parks and Recreation Department is inviting everyone to participate in the Community Fitness Challenge where we will compete against 39 other Wisconsin communities to achieve the greatest number of active...

 Good afternoon District 6, I am enjoying the beginning of the big thaw to start the week, and being relieved that my family in Texas and Arkansas are mostly recovering from their experience with the brutal cold of last week. I hope that some of you got downtown over the weekend to check out the ice sculptures on College Avenue, as I have heard that some are already gone, and I suspect that the warm weather will take its toll on the rest in the next day or so. In the Common Council meeting last Wednesday, the mayor reissued the proclamation supporting the use of face coverings indoors and outdoors when social distancing cannot be maintained. The mayor issued the proclamation as the state legislature was voting to end the governor’s mask mandate. There was also a proclamation observing Caregivers’ Day. We also voted to confirm the mayor’s appointment of the teen member of the Library Board. The COVID-19 update was cause for some optimism last week. New cases were at the lowest...

Good afternoon District 6, I hope everyone is bearing up reasonably well in the deep freeze that is the Fox Valley this week. I’m seeing a lot of discussion on social media about the road conditions on social media, along with many, many reports of accidents from the Appleton Police Department. It seemed to be worse on the south side of town, so my colleague in District 5 reached out to the Department of Public Works for some input. Basically, when the temperatures are below zero, especially with the strong winds, some of the normal methods for keeping the streets clear just don’t work as well. Salt will lower the freezing point of water, but not below the extreme temperatures we have been experiencing. Sand helps a bit but will eventually just freeze into the ice. We’re advised to stay off the roads if we can and be ultra-cautious if we have to drive. Remember that we should have the sidewalks cleared 36 hours after the snowfall ends. Now that school is back in session, we have stud...

  Good afternoon District 6, I hope everyone is recovering from the painful loss by the Packers yesterday. I am aware of my responsibilities as a nonpartisan representative, but if you are a Tom Brady/Bucs fan, I’m going to need a little time before I can be completely unbiased toward you. 😊 At the Common Council meeting last Wednesday, the mayor issued proclamations regarding Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Kiwanis Week, and Human Trafficking Awareness. Police Chief Thomas gave a short education presentation – I have linked the handout as I found it highly i nformative. Proclamations We voted to approve the mayor’s appointments to a number of boards and commissions, including former District 57 State Assembly Representative Amanda Stuck to the Appleton Redevelopment Authority and District 6 resident Kathleen Fuchs to the Board of Health. I am grateful to our citizens who take the time to serve their community on these bodies. Health Officer Eggebrecht gave us some reason for o...

  Good afternoon District 6, I hope everyone had an enjoyable holiday and is beginning 2021 with optimism. As expected, the agenda for the Common Council meeting last week was light, as most committees did not meet during the holiday week. During the COVID 19 update, Health Officer Eggebrecht discussed the hiring of Julie Lederhaus as the vaccine coordinator for the City of Appleton. She served as the public health preparedness coordinator from 2003 to 2007, bringing experience with the development of the department’s mass vaccination plan at during that period. As I was writing this, I got notice that the city has begun vaccinating eligible city employees, including police, fire, emergency medical service providers and unaffiliated health care providers. We had seen a flattening in the number of new cases at our last meeting, but we have since seen the expected increase that has been attributed to holiday gatherings. You may have already heard that the COVID testing site i...