City of Appleton Common Council Meeting December 6, 2023
Common Council Meeting - December 6, 2023
The Appleton Common Council met on December 6, 2023, at 7:00 PM in Council Chambers. The meeting included approval of previous minutes, appointment of election inspectors, discussion and approval of two street reconstruction design parameters and the 2024 Special Assessment Policy, referral of a resolution for a parking study, and a closed session regarding the U.S. Venture development project. Mayor Woodford also provided an update on the City Park Christmas tree lighting.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of Previous Minutes (23-1420): The minutes from November 15, 2023, were approved unanimously (13-0, with Mayor Woodford abstaining).
- Appointment of Election Inspectors (23-1421): The appointments for the 2024-2025 election cycle were approved (12-0, with Alderperson Hartzheim and Mayor Woodford abstaining). A late nomination list from the local Republican party was received during the meeting but did not meet the statutory submission deadline; the City Clerk noted that affected individuals could still sign up as unaffiliated election workers.
- Balance of the Agenda: All remaining committee report action items, including Morrison Street design parameters (23-1397), Boldt Company street occupancy permit extension (23-1398), and acceptance of an interest-free loan from the WI Department of Revenue (23-1437), were approved in a single motion (13-0).
Public Comments & Testimony
No members of the public signed up to speak.
Discussion Items
- City Park Christmas Tree Update: Mayor Woodford reported that the city's DPW discovered missing pieces and non‑working light strands on the City Park Christmas tree. Initially the lighting was in question, but due to constituent feedback, the city is working to replace the faulty strings and still aims to light the tree this year.
- Perkins Street Reconstruction (23-1396): The council approved the roadway design parameters for Perkins Street from Prospect Avenue to the railroad tracks. The project includes concrete pavement narrowed from 40 ft to 31 ft (back of curb to back of curb), a new 5‑ft concrete sidewalk, curb extensions at Charles Street for traffic calming, and restriction of on‑street parking on the east side. During discussion, Alderperson Schultz raised a concern about corner‑lot residents who would receive a new sidewalk but could not directly access it from their garages. Director Block confirmed that the city would work with each corner‑lot homeowner to extend a connecting sidewalk, subject to the special assessment policy. The motion passed 13-0.
- 2024 Special Assessment Policy (23-1403): The council approved the 2024 Special Assessment Policy as presented, and also approved that the Amethyst Drive concrete project (Blue Topaz to Aquamarine) be subject to the 2023 policy. Alderperson Hartzheim and Alderperson Van Zeeland expressed support, thanking staff. The motion passed 13-0.
Key Outcomes
- Perkins Street design parameters approved (13-0).
- 2024 Special Assessment Policy approved (13-0), with Amethyst Drive project grandfathered under the 2023 policy.
- Resolution for Parking Facility & Management Study: Alderperson Doran introduced Resolution #15‑R‑23 directing staff to prepare a request for proposals for a parking strategic plan, including assessment of city‑owned parking assets, best practices, and possible sale or lease options. The resolution was referred to the Municipal Services Committee.
- Closed Session: The council entered closed session at 7:15 PM under Wisconsin Statute §19.85(1)(e) to discuss purchasing of public properties and investing of public funds regarding the U.S. Venture development project. The council reconvened into open session at 8:15 PM and adjourned at 8:16 PM.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening. I now call to order the Wednesday, December 6th, 2023 meeting of the Apple and Common Council. Tonight's invocation will be delivered by Alder Jones. We gather together to listen and share, learn and educate, and to be granted wisdom and grace as we move Appleton forward in the best interest of our community. Please join me in the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance. Individual with liberty and justice. Roll call of Alders. All are represented with the exception of Alderperson Del Toro and Alderperson Alfheim who are excused. Thank you. Alder uh excuse me, roll call of officers and department heads. And all are represented. Thank you. All right. Need a motion to approve the minutes of the previous meeting. We have a motion and a second to approve. Is there any discussion of the minutes? Hearing none, please cast your votes. This is a suspenseful one. Motion passes 13 to 0. The minutes have been approved. Under business presented by the mayor, one item for your approval. This is item 23-1421. Appointment of election inspectors for the 2024-2025 election cycle. Thank you, Chair. Um, when I came in this evening, there was um a list of names from the local county Republican party on my desk. Um I'll just I guess I'll just hand these to Clerk Lynch. It just says uh nomination list. Um it does look like it varies just a little bit from the list that we have on file. Um I'm not sure. Um if there would be a problem with approving the list as it stands, or I'm actually not sure what I should do with this, but I wanted to make everyone aware that it's here. Clerk Lynch. So there's um statutory requirements for the submittal of lists. They have to be received by um November 30th or postmarked by that date. Um, I've been in communication with all of the representatives from the parties that have submitted lists about what we've gotten, and I haven't gotten any updates. Um, so I would suggest just approving what is on here. Um, however, if you would provide me that copy, we can still reach out to those individuals that may have been missed if case they want to sign up as an unaffiliated election worker. Okay, great. Thank you. Thanks. All right. Any further discussion. We have a motion and a second to approve. Please cast your votes. Uh 12 to zero, and Alder Hartzheim will note your abstention. Uh, just before we leave Mayor's business, I want to uh share an update about the City Park Christmas tree. Uh I know there's been uh been a number of questions about the the lighting of the tree in City Park, so I want to provide an update here, and hopefully you can get back to your your constituents and we're also in the process of following up with constituents. Uh so as the uh DPW team was going through the decorations for the the tree in City Park, uh it was discovered that uh there are some pieces missing and and also uh the the lights some of the strings of lights are are no longer working. And uh so may seem like a simple task, but lighting a tree that size uh is no small undertaking. So uh our our colleagues in DPW are are evaluating that, figuring out what they'll need to do to uh replace the either the strands of lights that are that are down for the count or if we need to replace them uh all we're we're working on sorting through that.
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