Appleton Common Council Regular Meeting – May 6, 2026
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Appleton Common Council Regular Meeting – May 6, 2026
The Appleton Common Council met on Wednesday, May 6, 2026, at 7:00 PM in Council Chambers, adjourning at 8:04 PM. The meeting included ceremonial presentations, public comment on a paving project, approval of numerous routine items, and a debate on a resolution supporting ranked-choice voting, which was ultimately denied.
Presentations
- Council President Gavel Presentation: Mayor Woodford presented a commemorative gavel to Alderperson Katie Van Zeeland, recognizing her as the longest-serving consecutive Council President in city history.
- Civilian Medals of Gallantry: Police Chief Olsen awarded medals to Mason Knott and Tori Schoen for saving a life on July 26, 2025, by intervening with an individual in crisis on a parking ramp.
Consent Calendar
The following items were approved unanimously (with the Mayor abstaining) as part of a single motion on the balance of the agenda, unless noted otherwise:
- Approval of minutes from April 15 and April 22, 2026.
- Library Board and City Plan Commission appointments.
- Design approvals for 2028 paving of Bartell Drive, Commercial Street, and Pine Street.
- Long-term temporary occupancy permit for a dumpster at 1225 N Fernmeadow Drive.
- State-Municipal Maintenance Agreement revision for I-41 interchanges.
- Premises amendments for Tomaso's and Sangria's Mexican Grill liquor licenses.
- Heid Music secondhand article dealer license late renewal.
- New tobacco/vaping license for Euphoric Ventures LLC.
- Renewal of 2026-2027 cigarette, tobacco, and vaping device licenses.
- Renewal of 2026-2027 alcohol licenses (contingent on departmental approval by June 30, 2026).
- Habitat for Humanity Gillett Street extraterritorial final plat in Grand Chute.
- Acceptance of Wisconsin Department of Military Affairs Radio Grant.
- Change Order #1 for sidewalk and concrete repairs ($25,000 increase).
- Resolution for WISCOM Interoperable Radio Program.
- Wisconsin DOT SISP FY28 Grant application.
- Change Order #1 for sewer and water reconstruction ($20,721 increase).
- Three mowing contracts to B&V Maintenance (approx. $33,951).
- Sanitary and storm sewer cleaning contract to Green Bay Pipe & TV LLC ($352,500).
- Update to General Safety Policy and elimination of aerial bucket and forklift policies.
- Participation in State of Wisconsin Wireless Contract.
- Cancellation of July 1, 2026 and January 6, 2027 Common Council meetings.
Public Comments
Three residents spoke regarding the Roosevelt Street paving reconstruction (Item 26-0494):
- Nikki Opsteen (112 E Roosevelt St) requested confirmation of street width measurements, thanked the council for compromising on an additional foot (27 ft instead of 26 ft), and urged consideration of prohibiting on-street parking to improve emergency access. She noted that a petition signed by 100% of street residents opposed the narrowing.
- Adam Marshall (115 E Roosevelt St) echoed safety concerns, describing difficulty for emergency vehicles and congestion during pool season. He requested a stop sign at the end of the street to slow traffic.
- Ken Peacock (131 E Roosevelt St) questioned why new curbs were recently installed if the street would be reconstructed, and reported frequent speeding (50-60 mph) and tight parking conditions. He recommended additional safety measures.
Discussion Items
- Roosevelt Street Paving Design (26-0494): Alderperson Fenton, at staff request, moved to refer the item back to the Municipal Services Committee. There were no objections, so the item will be reconsidered at the next committee meeting (Monday, May 11 at 4:30 PM). The design had been amended by the committee to 27 ft width.
- Edison Family Fun Run Special Event (26-0533): Council approved the late application (submitted one day past the deadline) after discussion clarifying that the vote was to accept the application, not to approve the event itself. Departmental approvals are still required; General Manager McDonald confirmed Valley Transit had given verbal approval.
- Community Development Block Grant Allocations (26-0519): Approved 14-0-2 (Alderperson Jones and Mayor Woodford abstained).
- Chase Bank Development Agreement Amendment (26-0517): Approved 14-1-1 (Alderperson Wolff nay, Mayor Woodford abstained). The amendment extends the completion and assessed value deadline to January 1, 2027.
- Ranked-Choice Voting Resolution (26-0433): After extensive debate, the resolution was denied. The vote was 6 in favor (Alderpersons Lambrecht, Meltzer, Heffernan, Schultz, Stancil-Martin, Wolff) and 9 opposed (Alderpersons Firkus, Smith, Van Zeeland, Fenton, Hayden, Jones, Hartzheim, Croatt, Dougherty), with Mayor Woodford abstaining. Proponents argued for local control and proactive governance; opponents cited lack of constituent demand, procedural concerns, and desire to focus on local issues.
Key Outcomes
- Roosevelt Street paving design referred back to the Municipal Services Committee for further review.
- Ranked-choice voting resolution denied.
- All other agenda items approved as described.
- Council meeting schedule modified to cancel the July 1, 2026 and January 6, 2027 meetings.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening. I now call to order the Wednesday, May 6th, 2026 meeting of the Appleton Common Council. Please rise for the invocation, which will be delivered by Alder Meltzer. Thank you. My invocation tonight is chapter 13 of the Doubtaging as translated by Stephen Mitchell. Success is as dangerous as failure. Hope is as hollow as fear. What does it mean that success is as dangerous as failure? Whether you go up the ladder or down it, your position is shaky. When you stand with your two feet on the ground, you will always keep your balance. What does it mean that hope is as hollow as fear? Hope and fear are both phantoms that arise from thinking of the self. When we don't see the self as self, what do we have to fear? See the world as yourself, have faith in the way things are, love the world as yourself, then you can care for all things. Thank you. Please join me in the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. And to the Republic for which it stands. One nation, under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Roll call of Alders. All are represented. Right. And we'll note Alder Hartzheim is appearing virtually. Roll call of officers and department heads. All are represented. Thank you. Need a motion to approve the minutes of the previous meeting. And we'll note there are two sets of minutes in this item. We have a motion. And a second to approve any discussion of the minutes. Hearing none, please cast your votes. That's interesting. Hmm. Stand by. It looks like we're missing. Yeah. Okay. Great. All right. Well, uh, bear with us because we'll uh what we're gonna do is uh we'll handle we'll handle most of our business on voice votes, and then if we if we have dissension, we may we may have a roll call vote, and at any time uh a member of the body can uh ask for division. Uh so uh we have a motion and a second to approve item 26 0532 common council meeting minutes. There being no discussion, all those in favor, please signify by saying aye. Aye. All right, the ayes have it. Minutes are passed. All right, on to business presented by the mayor. Uh, a couple of things to take care of. Uh uh, if if you'll all indulge me, I'd like to take care of uh an administrative item first. This is 26-0592. Uh this is library board and uh a plan commission appointment.
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