Appleton Common Council Meeting - July 17, 2024
Appleton Common Council Meeting - July 17, 2024
The Appleton Common Council met on Wednesday, July 17, 2024, at 7:00 PM in the Council Chambers. The meeting included presentation of Flag Day Parade awards, proclamations, a public hearing on a rezoning, and action on several committee recommendations. Key decisions included rescinding the No Mow May ordinance in favor of an educational 'Slow Mow Summer' program, approval of a $256,000 endpoint switches contract, and adoption of wheel tax ordinances.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of previous meeting minutes (June 19, 2024).
- Flag Day Parade Award Winners and proclamations (Make Music Day, Children's Week, Glioblastoma Awareness Day, Parks & Recreation Month) were presented and accepted.
- Rezoning #5-24 (1313 E. Amelia Street and 1319 N. Owaissa Street from R-1B to R-1C) – public hearing held with no speakers; item proceeded to committee report.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Kim Williams (owner of Corner Pub) spoke in support of a two-month extension to complete renovations, citing difficulty finding contractors and presenting photos of furnace compliance.
- Crystal Williams (daughter-in-law of owners) also requested a two-month or six-week extension, citing family hardships including stage four cancer, illness, and multiple deaths.
Discussion Items
- Item 24-0766: Rescind No Mow May Ordinance – After extensive debate and multiple amendments, the council approved a resolution that:
- Rescinds the No Mow May program and restores the city's long grass ordinance (8-inch maximum) for the entire growing season.
- Directs staff to implement a 'Slow Mow Summer' educational program based on the Thousand Islands Environmental Center model, including branded website graphics, monthly social media posts from May through November, and inclusion of pollinator support information in the city's Public Works Guide.
- Item 24-0834: Corner Pub Non-Renewal – Referred back to Safety and Licensing Committee by Alder Crote to allow further discussion due to potential miscommunication.
- Item 24-0897: Endpoint Switches – Approved $256,000 contract; Alder Crote abstained to avoid a perceived conflict of interest.
- Ordinances #96-24, #97-24, #98-24 (Wheel Tax) – Approved without discussion.
- Resolution Submitted by Alder Crote – Introduced a resolution requiring a supermajority vote (two-thirds) for any wheel tax or related fee changes.
Key Outcomes
- No Mow May Ordinance Rescinded – Motion passed 13-0. The final resolution includes an 8-inch grass height limit and a 'Slow Mow Summer' educational campaign.
- Corner Pub License Referral – Item referred back to Safety and Licensing Committee for further review.
- Endpoint Switches Contract Approved – Motion passed 12-0 (1 abstention).
- Balance of Agenda Approved – Motion passed 13-0.
- Wheel Tax Ordinances Adopted – Motion passed 13-0.
- Other Business – Alder Hartzheim thanked DPW for stormwater pond horticulture management. Alder Smith announced that Japanese students from Appleton's sister city will visit on July 31, 2024, at 10:00 AM for a mock council session.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening. I now call to order the Wednesday, July seventeenth, two thousand twenty-four meeting of the Apple and Common Council. For tonight's invocation, please rise and join me in a moment of silent reflection. And all are represented. Is there any discussion of the minutes? Tonight we have a special presentation with our friends from the parade committee. So at this time, I'd like to welcome up Corey Otis. So at this time, I'd like to welcome up Corey Otis to hand out the Flag Day Parade Awards. We can use this one here, Corey. That's fine. Welcome. Thank you. All right, I'm joined tonight by Carl Kaufman, uh longtime member of the Appleton Parade Committee. Megan Warner, who is also a member of the committee, and my longtime sister. Younger sister, yeah, sorry. Um, and this young gentleman right here is Grady Warner, Megan's son and future parade committee member. He just learned that tonight. Uh on oops sorry, Saturday, June 8th, 2024. We held the 73rd Appleton Flag Day Parade. The theme was rockin' in the USA. No G on Rocking, Rock In the USA. Um, Grand Marshal is always the U.S. flag. The escort to the flag this year was Chip Waters, a Vietnam era veteran of the United States Army, which was our spotlighted uh branch this year. I want to thank just a few uh groups and people, and then we'll hand out the parades. Uh, we want to send out a special thank you to our parade partners. Um without them, we it wouldn't be possible, especially WFRV. Um, over 30 years we've had a partnership with Channel 5. Our volunteers, uh, some of them help on all the parades. We get up early in the morning, eat a hearty breakfast, and then start preparing the staging area. Uh, again, without them, this one happened the city of Appleton, that includes you folks on the common council. Sherry Hartzheim is on our committee, and she's a great advocate for our parades. Uh, the Department of Public Works, the Appleton Police Department, uh, special thanks to those groups as well. Also, I'd be remiss if I didn't thank the mayor, Mayor Jake Woodford. Thank you for your support. I want to thank uh members of our committee, all of our committee, Carl, Megan, Eric Stadler. We have about a dozen people, and I feel really blessed and fortunate to work with such a dedicated group of individuals. I want to thank our weather chairman who serves up above. Uh, this is probably I've been in this role five years, and I think it's four out of five. We had we got a little wet. Uh, but it's almost magical. It was about noon, parade started at two, the clouds parted, the sun came down, there was a beam right on the start of the uh parade, and I heard a little kid go, oh. So I knew it was gonna be a good day. Um, I also want to thank our spectators out in the crowd. Uh it's all for you. And I want to thank our participants, and we'll thank some of them specifically in a moment. In fact, we'll do that right now. The first award is the Bud Otis Memorial Award. It's named after a weather chairman, named after the chairman of the parade committee, my grandfather, Megan's grandfather, your great grandfather. This one is for the best non-commercial entry, and it goes to the city of Appleton, which I know we're not supposed to do.
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