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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Appleton Common Council Meeting - September 16, 2026

Common Council — Wednesday, September 16, 2026

BodyAppleton, Wisconsin

SessionCommon Council

DateWednesday, September 16, 2026

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 15:44

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

4:10

Good evening.

4:11

I now call to order the Wednesday, September sixteenth, two thousand twenty-six meeting of the Appleton Common Council.

5:01

Alder Person Croat is joining us virtually.

5:04

All right.

5:05

Roll call of officers and department heads.

5:08

All are represented.

5:10

Thank you.

5:11

In a motion on the minutes of the previous meeting.

5:14

We have a motion and a second to approve.

5:16

Is there any discussion of the minutes?

5:21

Hearing none, please cast your votes.

5:41

That motion passes 14 to 0.

5:44

The minutes have been approved.

5:46

All right, on to business presented by the mayor.

5:49

A number of uh proclamations to bring to your attention and uh one that we're going to present here this evening.

5:57

So I'll invite you up.

5:58

Come on up.

5:59

We'll Constitution Week.

6:03

Let's see if this is where it is.

6:06

Good.

6:09

All right, very good.

6:12

All right.

6:13

Whereas September 17th, 2026 marks the 239th anniversary of the drafting of the Constitution of the United States of America by the Constitutional Convention.

6:24

And whereas it is fitting and proper to accord official recognition to this foundational document and its memorable anniversary.

6:32

And to the patriotic celebrations, which will commemorate the occasion.

6:36

And whereas public law 915 guarantees the issuing of a proclamation each year by the President of the United States of America, designating September 17th through 23rd as Constitution Week.

6:48

Now therefore be it resolved that I, Jacob A.

6:50

Woodford, Mayor of the City of Appleton, Wisconsin, do hereby proclaim September 17th to the 23rd, 2026 as Constitution Week, and encourage our citizens to vigilantly protect the freedoms guaranteed to us by our Constitution, remembering that lost rights may never be regained.

7:13

All right.

7:14

Thank you so much.

7:15

Thanks for being here.

7:16

Take care.

7:36

All being recognized here in the month of September.

7:40

Moving on to 26-1189.

7:45

This is a Board of Zoning Appeals appointment.

7:51

We have a motion and a second to approve.

7:54

Any discussion.

7:59

Hearing none, please cast your votes.

8:10

All right, that motion passes 14 to 0.

8:13

Thank you for confirming this appointment.

8:15

And we thank Maria for her willingness to join in volunteer service for the community.

8:23

That is it for business presented by the mayor, and we'll move along to public participation.

8:29

We have no members of the public signed up to speak, but I will check is there anybody who would like to speak on an item that appears on the agenda.

8:39

All right.

8:39

Seeing none, we will close public participation.

8:42

Move along in our agenda.

8:44

We have no public hearings and no special resolutions.

8:48

So we will establish the order of the day.

8:56

And to start us off is Alder Hartzheim.

9:00

Thank you, Chair.

9:00

Item number two from community development.

9:03

Item two six-115 for the counteroffer to purchase on the South Point lot.

9:13

Okay.

9:15

Alder Schultz.

9:16

Thank you, Chair.

9:17

From safety and licensing item number two six one one nine nine, McFleshman soul, full service retail outlet.

9:24

License.

9:26

Okay.

9:29

Alder Jones.

9:31

From community development.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Procedural█████████████████████████████████████████████69%

Economic Development████████████████████31%

Summary of Proceedings

Appleton Common Council Meeting - September 16, 2026

The Appleton Common Council met on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, at 7:00 PM in the Council Chambers. Mayor Jake Woodford presided. Fifteen alderpersons were present; Alderperson Patti Heffernan was absent. The meeting lasted 15 minutes, adjourning at 7:15 PM. All votes on the agenda were approved with varying levels of support, and no public comments were made.

Consent Calendar

Approval of Previous Meeting Minutes (September 2, 2026): Approved 14-0 (Mayor abstained).
Board of Zoning Appeals Appointment (26-1189): Approved 14-0 (Mayor abstained).
McFleshman's Full Service Retail Outlet Transfer Application for Lagerfest (26-1199): Approved 13-0-2 (Mayor Woodford and Alderperson Alex Schultz abstained).
Fox Cities Performing Arts Center Temporary Premises Amendment (26-1020): Approved 12-0-3 (Mayor Woodford, Alderperson Vaya Jones, and Alderperson Josh Lambrecht abstained).
Counter-Offer to Purchase from F Street Appleton 6, LLC (26-1154): Approved 14-0-1 (Mayor abstained) for Lot 2 at the southwest corner of E. Vantage Drive and S. Eisenhower Drive in Southpoint Commerce Park at a purchase price of $611,890 ($43,000/acre).
Balance of the Agenda (including committee report items such as license changes, operator's license denial, Fire Department agreements, fire code amendments, and Urban Forestry Storm Grant): Approved unanimously (14-0, Mayor abstained).

Public Comments & Testimony

No members of the public signed up to speak, and no one indicated a desire to address the council on any agenda item.

Discussion Items

Land Purchase Concerns: Alderperson Sheri Hartzheim expressed concern that the city had not yet approved a resolution regarding AI data centers before proceeding with the sale to F Street Appleton 6, LLC. She described the approach as "putting the cart before the horse" but stated she would vote in favor and encouraged colleagues to do so.

Key Outcomes

All six voting items passed with no opposition, though several alderpersons and the mayor abstained on certain votes.
Proclamations were issued for Constitution Week (September 17–23), Think Train Week, Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, Senior Center Month, Hispanic Heritage Month, and Recovery Month.
No closed session was held, despite being listed on the agenda.
Resolutions submitted by alderpersons (26-1226 on vehicle noise penalties, 26-1227 on increasing noise penalties, and 26-1228 on private school voucher transparency) were referred to committees of jurisdiction. The rules governing dogs in taverns (Resolution 12-R-26) were noted as approved by the Board of Health on September 9, 2026.

Meeting Transcript

Good evening. I now call to order the Wednesday, September sixteenth, two thousand twenty-six meeting of the Appleton Common Council. Alder Person Croat is joining us virtually. All right. Roll call of officers and department heads. All are represented. Thank you. In a motion on 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 14 to 0. The minutes have been approved. All right, on to business presented by the mayor. A number of uh proclamations to bring to your attention and uh one that we're going to present here this evening. So I'll invite you up. Come on up. We'll Constitution Week. Let's see if this is where it is. Good. All right, very good. All right. Whereas September 17th, 2026 marks the 239th anniversary of the drafting of the Constitution of the United States of America by the Constitutional Convention. And whereas it is fitting and proper to accord official recognition to this foundational document and its memorable anniversary. And to the patriotic celebrations, which will commemorate the occasion. And whereas public law 915 guarantees the issuing of a proclamation each year by the President of the United States of America, designating September 17th through 23rd as Constitution Week. Now therefore be it resolved that I, Jacob A. Woodford, Mayor of the City of Appleton, Wisconsin, do hereby proclaim September 17th to the 23rd, 2026 as Constitution Week, and encourage our citizens to vigilantly protect the freedoms guaranteed to us by our Constitution, remembering that lost rights may never be regained. All right. Thank you so much. Thanks for being here. Take care. All being recognized here in the month of September. Moving on to 26-1189. This is a Board of Zoning Appeals appointment. We have a motion and a second to approve. Any discussion. Hearing none, please cast your votes. All right, that motion passes 14 to 0. Thank you for confirming this appointment. And we thank Maria for her willingness to join in volunteer service for the community. That is it for business presented by the mayor, and we'll move along to public participation. We have no members of the public signed up to speak, but I will check is there anybody who would like to speak on an item that appears on the agenda. All right. Seeing none, we will close public participation. Move along in our agenda. We have no public hearings and no special resolutions. So we will establish the order of the day. And to start us off is Alder Hartzheim. Thank you, Chair.

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