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Record of Proceedings

Appleton Common Council Meeting - April 16, 2025: Annexation, Licenses, and Proclamations

Common Council — Wednesday, April 16, 2025
BodyAppleton, Wisconsin
SessionCommon Council
DateWednesday, April 16, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 34:41

Transcript — Verbatim
0:03

Good evening.

0:04

I now call to order the Wednesday, April 16th, 2025 meeting of the Appleton Common Council.

0:10

Do we have an invocation?

0:11

I didn't check.

0:12

Doesn't look like it.

0:13

All right.

0:13

Well, please rise and join me for a brief moment of silence.

0:26

Thank you.

0:27

Please join me in the Pledge of Allegiance.

0:30

I pledge allegiance.

0:37

One nation.

0:48

Roll call of Alders.

0:50

All are represented.

0:51

Roll call of officers and department heads.

0:54

All are represented.

0:55

Right.

1:00

We have a motion and a second to approve.

1:02

Is there any discussion of the minutes?

1:06

Alder Ferkus.

1:07

I don't think I'm joined into the meeting, but I would like to amend the minutes for the April 2nd meeting to add the following to the legislative history for the finance item 25-030.

1:20

Part three.

1:21

The special consideration items in the amount of 1, 15, 502 dollars.

1:29

All but the facilities.

1:30

Capital project amount of 127,631 dollars is approved.

1:36

Okay.

1:37

We have a motion to amend.

1:40

And a second.

1:42

Any discussion on the amendment.

1:48

Right.

1:49

Hearing none, please cast your votes.

1:51

This is on the amendment.

2:04

All right, motion passes 15 to 0.

2:06

The minutes have been amended.

2:07

Any further discussion on the minutes.

2:12

Hearing none, please cast your votes.

2:24

That motion passes 15 to 0.

2:25

The minutes have been approved.

2:28

On to business presented by the mayor.

2:32

It is that time of year again as we gear up for the sidewalk poetry program.

2:38

And uh gonna welcome Peter Katarba from the library, who's uh gonna tell us about the program, and uh we're gonna hear some poems.

2:45

Welcome, Peter.

2:46

Great, thank you.

2:47

Um, as Mayor Woodford said, um, my name is Peter Katarba.

2:51

I'm an adult services and engagement librarian at the public library.

2:56

I'm here to talk about sidewalk poetry.

2:58

Um, I'm happy to report that it's been a successful year.

3:02

Um, we had 94 submissions.

3:05

Um, from those 94 submissions, our team of poets and poetry enthusiasts carefully narrowed that down to a selection of 13.

3:15

Um, those 13 poems were then presented to the public.

3:19

The public um provided community input on them, and from that input, we selected our five winners.

3:26

Um, so the five winners are here tonight to read their poems.

3:29

Um, I'll invite them to come up and um kind of line up now.

3:33

And then um, as they come up, I just want to thank the community of Appleton for so supporting such a wonderful project.

3:41

Um, also I want to um thank our curators, um those poets and poetry enthusiasts who narrowed all of those poems down to 13.

3:51

Um, I really appreciate their thoughtfulness in our discussions and um providing the best poems for the public.

4:00

Um, also I want to thank everyone who submitted a poem to this project.

4:04

Um it's a wonderful thing for the community to come together and try to get their their words stamped onto the concrete.

4:11

Um so with that, we'll have our first poet to read.

4:16

Yes.

4:20

My name is Colleen Van Roy.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural█████████████████████████████████████████████69%
Arts And Culture███████11%
Transportation Safety████6%
Cannabis Regulation████6%
Community Engagement███4%
Disability Rights█2%
Public Health█2%
Summary of Proceedings

Appleton Common Council Meeting - April 16, 2025

The Appleton Common Council met on Wednesday, April 16, 2025, at 7:00 PM in Council Chambers, adjourning at 7:35 PM. The meeting featured presentations of the 2025 Sidewalk Poetry winners, multiple proclamations, and several key votes including approval of the Dorn Annexation (approximately 95.949 acres), a loading zone for the Trout Museum of Art, and a controversial change of agent for Tandem Wine and Beer. A consent agenda was used for routine items.

Business Presented by the Mayor

  • Sidewalk Poetry Presentation: Peter Kotarba, Adult Services & Engagement Librarian, reported 94 submissions narrowed to 13 finalists by a team of poets, with community input selecting 5 winners. The winning poets read their poems: Colleen Van Roy ("Reflections"), Margie Fent (from "Sweatshirt Love"), Dawn Christensen ("A Daisy a Day"), Katie Chiquett (untitled), and Paulina Vera (untitled). The council expressed appreciation for the program.
  • Proclamations: The mayor read proclamations recognizing Arbor Day, Autism Acceptance Month, Earth Day, Golden Rule Day, Hemophilia Awareness Day, and Public Health Week.
  • Fox Cities Area Room Tax Commission Reappointments: Approved unanimously (15-0, Mayor abstained).

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No members of the public spoke.

Discussion Items

  • Trout Museum of Art Loading Zone (Item 25-0295): The council discussed a loading zone request at 325 E. College Street. Alderperson Fenton thanked the Department of Public Works and Alderperson Meltzer for proposing a six-month trial period. Traffic engineer LOM provided data showing parking availability within a block. The request was approved with a six-month evaluation period upon the museum's opening.
  • Tandem Wine and Beer Change of Agent (Item 25-0258): The item came from the Safety and Licensing Committee with a recommendation for denial due to application issues. Alderperson Croatt requested a vote notwithstanding. An amended application corrected the deficiencies, including clarity on the reason for transfer and the current agent's signature. Staff confirmed the application was in order. Concerns about the current agent's record were deemed more relevant to license renewal, not transfer. The council approved the change of agent to Karter Thompson. Vote: 13-0 with 3 abstentions (Alderpersons Smith and Schultz, and Mayor Woodford).
  • Dorn Annexation (Item 25-0328): Alderperson Hayden expressed constituent concerns about speeding on Apple Creek Road and connections to Highway 47, requesting police monitoring. No objections to the annexation itself. The annexation of approximately 95.949 acres at 4700 N. Richmond Street from the Town of Grand Chute was approved. Vote: 15-0 with Mayor abstaining.

Consent Calendar (Balance of the Agenda)

All remaining items under Committee Reports were approved under a single motion (15-0, Mayor abstained). These included:

  • Municipal Services Committee: Traffic signal design engineering contract with raSmith ($68,855); Parking ramp security contract with Star Protection and Patrol ($62,400).
  • Safety and Licensing Committee: Denial of Class A beer/liquor license for Jai Sung Mah Pool Club (recommended due to applicant's non-law-abiding history); Approval of Class C wine license for Memorial Florists & Greenhouses; Fire Department request to apply for 2025 Elevate Communities Grant.
  • City Plan Commission: Special Use Permit for landscape business at 727 W. Weiland Avenue; Rezoning at 1930 W. College Avenue from M-2 to C-2; Pavilion design approval for Lundgaard Park.
  • Finance Committee: Sole source contract with Truity Partners LLC ($40,000); Site improvements contract with MCC, Inc. ($153,858.96 plus 5.2% contingency).
  • Fox Cities Transit Commission: Four-year contract with Star Protection and Patrol for Downtown Transit Center security.

Key Outcomes

  • Trout Museum Loading Zone: Approved (14-0, 2 abstentions: Alderperson Schultz and Mayor Woodford).
  • Tandem Wine and Beer Change of Agent: Approved (13-0, 3 abstentions: Alderpersons Smith and Schultz, and Mayor Woodford).
  • Dorn Annexation: Approved (15-0, Mayor abstained).
  • Ordinances #42-25 to #47-25 (Dorn Annexation): Approved (15-0, Mayor abstained).
  • Balance of Agenda (Consent Calendar): Approved (15-0, Mayor abstained).
  • Meeting Adjourned at 7:35 PM (15-0, Mayor abstained).

Meeting Transcript

Good evening. I now call to order the Wednesday, April 16th, 2025 meeting of the Appleton Common Council. Do we have an invocation? I didn't check. Doesn't look like it. All right. Well, please rise and join me for a brief moment of silence. Thank you. Please join me in the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance. One nation. Roll call of Alders. All are represented. Roll call of officers and department heads. All are represented. Right. We have a motion and a second to approve. Is there any discussion of the minutes? Alder Ferkus. I don't think I'm joined into the meeting, but I would like to amend the minutes for the April 2nd meeting to add the following to the legislative history for the finance item 25-030. Part three. The special consideration items in the amount of 1, 15, 502 dollars. All but the facilities. Capital project amount of 127,631 dollars is approved. Okay. We have a motion to amend. And a second. Any discussion on the amendment. Right. Hearing none, please cast your votes. This is on the amendment. All right, motion passes 15 to 0. The minutes have been amended. Any further discussion on the minutes. Hearing none, please cast your votes. That motion passes 15 to 0. The minutes have been approved. On to business presented by the mayor. It is that time of year again as we gear up for the sidewalk poetry program. And uh gonna welcome Peter Katarba from the library, who's uh gonna tell us about the program, and uh we're gonna hear some poems. Welcome, Peter. Great, thank you. Um, as Mayor Woodford said, um, my name is Peter Katarba. I'm an adult services and engagement librarian at the public library. I'm here to talk about sidewalk poetry. Um, I'm happy to report that it's been a successful year. Um, we had 94 submissions. Um, from those 94 submissions, our team of poets and poetry enthusiasts carefully narrowed that down to a selection of 13. Um, those 13 poems were then presented to the public. The public um provided community input on them, and from that input, we selected our five winners.

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