Appleton Common Council Meeting - November 5, 2025
Appleton Common Council Meeting - November 5, 2025
The Appleton Common Council met on Wednesday, November 5, 2025, at 7:00 PM in the Council Chambers. The meeting was called to order by Mayor Jake Woodford, with 14 alderpersons present and 2 excused. The meeting adjourned at 7:41 PM. Key actions included approval of a special use permit for a homeless shelter, a sustainability master planning contract, updates to the park naming policy, and approval of the Veterans Park renaming process.
Consent Calendar
- Approved the minutes of the October 15, 2025, Common Council meeting (13-0).
- Approved proclamations for Lung Cancer Awareness Month, Youth HOPE Month, Appleton DECA Week, Native American Heritage Month, and Family Caregivers Month.
- Approved Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee appointments (13-0).
- Approved Appleton Redevelopment Authority reappointment (13-0).
- Approved all items not separately pulled from the consent agenda, including:
- Municipal Services Committee items: Lawe Street SMA revision, temporary occupancy permit at 318 W College Ave, contract amendment with Alta Planning + Design ($9,990 increase), relocation order for right-of-way at Richmond Street and Ridgeview Lane.
- Safety and Licensing Committee items (except the alcohol license for Appleton Parlour Collective): taxicab license renewals for Evergreen Campsites & Resort and L&M Carriage Service, alcohol license for West Edison Rivery, changes of agent for Appleton Motomart #4403 and Festival Foods, secondhand dealer license for Jessie Mae's This and That.
- Parks and Recreation Committee items (except the park naming policy and Veterans Park renaming process): lease for J Restaurant patio in Vulcan Heritage Park, revised Miracle League Field rental and fee schedule policy.
- Finance Committee items (except the sustainability contract): Parks and Recreation Facility Renovation Project contract to Blue Sky Contractors ($1,158,951 with budget amendment), revised Park and Open Space Special Revenue Fund Policy, resolution appointing redemption agent for water/storm water bonds, write-off of obsolete wastewater inventory ($6,912.36), WisDOT forms for I-41/STH 441 and I-41/CTH OO Interchange.
- Community Development Committee items: third amendment to development agreement with Merge, LLC (Phase II), preliminary 2026PY CDBG funding allocations, offer to purchase from Consolidated Construction Co. for Lot 41 in Southpoint Commerce Park.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Steve Wuerger (813 W Bent Oak Ln) spoke in favor of Item 25-1239, the special use permit for a shelter facility at St. Joseph Parish (404 W Lawrence Street). He described the shelter as an emergency overflow shelter for unhoused individuals when temperatures drop to 10°F or below, operated by volunteers from multiple faith communities. He noted ongoing dialogue with neighboring businesses to address security and litter concerns.
Discussion Items
- Special Use Permit #5-25 for Shelter (25-1239): Alder Fenton expressed gratitude to the applicant and neighbors for dialogue. The permit was approved 13-0.
- Sustainability and Resiliency Master Planning Contract (25-1323): Awarded to paleBLUEdot, LLC for $98,966 plus 8.7% contingency ($8,659), total not to exceed $107,625. Alder Hartzheim voted against, citing preference for using funds on immediate flood mitigation. Others argued the plan would pay for itself through long-term savings. Approved 12-1.
- Park Naming Policy (25-1331): Alder Hartzheim moved to revert to the original policy, arguing the existing policy has been successful since the 1990s. The amendment failed 6-7. Alder Lambrecht then moved to approve the policy as amended by the Parks and Recreation Committee, which includes classifications for historical groups and qualifying elements. Staff expressed no concerns. Approved 8-5.
- Veterans Park Renaming Process (25-0979): Approved 13-0, with implementation to include public outreach and communication with the council.
- Alcohol License for Appleton Parlour Collective (25-1296): Class B Beer and Reserve Class B Liquor license at 501 N Richmond St. Approved 12-0 (Alder Wolff abstained).
Key Outcomes
- Special Use Permit #5-25 for a shelter at 404 W Lawrence Street approved. (13-0)
- Sustainability and Resiliency Master Planning contract awarded to paleBLUEdot, LLC for up to $107,625. (12-1)
- Park Naming Policy amended to allow naming for historical groups and qualifying descriptors, as per committee version. (8-5)
- Veterans Park renaming process approved. (13-0)
- Alcohol license for Appleton Parlour Collective approved. (12-0, 1 abstention)
- Balance of agenda approved. (13-0)
The next meeting was noted for budget adoption on November 12, 2025.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening. I now call to order the Wednesday, November 5th, 2025 meeting of the Apple and Common Council. Please rise for the invocation, which will be delivered by Alder Lambricht. So this year is the 35th anniversary of a photo that I distributed to the Alders and some of the uh department heads. I can make sure that the audience gets a chance to see it as well. Um and this photo is known as the pale blue dot. And so I'm gonna read a little bit of um some comments. Carl Sagan uh wrote in his book from 1994 titled The Pale Blue Dot, talking about the greater significance of the photograph. From this distant vantage point, the earth might not seem of any particular interest, but for us, it's different. Consider again that dot. That's here, that's home, that's us. On it, everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you've heard of, every human being whoever was lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor, and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every superstar, every supreme leader, every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there on a moat of dust suspended in a sunbeam. The earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena. Think of the rivers of blood spilled by all those generals and emperors so that in glory and triumph, they could become the momentary masters of a fraction of a dot. Think of the endless cruelties visited by the inhabitants of one corner of this pixel on these scarcely distinguishable inhabitants of some other corner, how frequent their misunderstandings, how eager they are to kill one another, how fervent their hatreds. Our posturings, our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the universe are challenged by this point of pale light. Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness, there's no hint that help will come from somewhere else to save us from ourselves. The earth is the only world known so far to harbor life. There is nowhere else, at least in the near future, to which our species species could migrate. Visit, yes. Settle, not yet. Like it or not, for the moment, the earth is where we make our stand. It's been said that astronomy is a humbling and character building experience. There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world. To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we've ever known. Please join me in the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the United States of America. Under God. Okay, and roll call of officers and department notes. All are represented. 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. That motion passes 13 to zero. The minutes have been approved. Text of these proclamations is included in your materials. Next is uh 25-1346, bicycle and pedestrian advisory committee appointments. Uh, need a motion to approve. We have a motion and a second to approve. Is there any discussion? Hearing none, please cast your votes. That motion passes 13 to zero. Thank you for approving these appointments, and we look forward to welcoming Lori and Karen to serve volunteer service on the bicycle and pedestrian advisory committee. And we thank them for being willing to be a part of it. Next, we have 25-1343, Appleton Redevelopment Authority Reappointment. For a motion, we have a motion and a second to approve. Any discussion.
openpublica.com