Green Bay City Council Meeting - August 20, 2025
Green Bay City Council Meeting - August 20, 2025
This City Council meeting included recognitions, a public hearing on a zoning amendment, approval of several ordinances, committee reports, and a discussion on a massage establishment license. The meeting began with the Pledge of Allegiance and an invocation led by Reverend Bridget Flad Daniels of Union Congregational Church.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of minutes and agenda.
- Appointments were approved unanimously.
- Report of the Redevelopment Authority approved.
- Report of the Protection and Policy Committee approved except item 5.
- Report of the Green Bay Police Department granting operator licenses approved.
- Report of the Plan Commission approved.
- Report of the Personnel Committee approved except item 4.
- Report of the Park Committee approved.
- Informational item: building report for July 2025 received.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Tim Warner (3489 Finger Road) spoke during the public hearing on the Smart Growth 2022 comprehensive plan amendment for properties at 3250 and 3542 Finger Road. He opposed the development, stating the site is a park with 38 large mature trees and is adjacent to a cemetery. He expressed a desire to keep the park and noted that the area is building up and the park would be lost. He referenced a previous sale by the church against community wishes.
Discussion Items
- Public Hearing (Ordinance 04-25): Alder Johnson clarified that the public hearing portion was separate; the agenda item would come up later.
- Ordinances Second Reading: Item 1 (property at 3250/3542 Finger Road) – Parks Director confirmed the parcels are owned by Green Bay Area Public School District, not city parks. The ordinance was adopted unanimously after discussion. Item 3 passed with one abstention.
- Improvement in Services Committee Report – Item 1: Parking utility budget. Alder Johnson voted no, citing broader concerns about parking impacts downtown and a desire for further discussion. Approved.
- Improvement in Services Committee Report – Item 6: Contaminated soil contract. Alderak moved to amend from “receive and place on file” to approve the award to Peters Concrete Company for a one-year contract with estimated spend of $85,000. Approved.
- Protection and Policy Committee Report – Item 5: Fee for fire inspections (new fee). Alder Johnson moved to hold the item until the next council meeting to allow more discussion, stating the fee ($335,000 in new fees) warranted additional committee conversation. Fire Chief Knot indicated no time sensitivity. Held to next meeting.
- Finance Committee Report – Item 2: Neighborhood event fee. Alder Profit moved to amend the ordinance language to remove “neighborhood” and have it be “nonprofit event fee” as originally discussed. Motion passed. Then the amended item was approved. Alder Johnson also moved to refer two fees (10-741 and 18-656) back to finance committee; motion carried.
- Personnel Committee Report – Item 4: Internal transfer of budgeted positions. Alder Profit moved to approve, arguing it was a smart move and department heads are trusted. Alder Presley agreed, noting council has say during budget season. A roll call vote resulted in 6-5 against approval. Then a motion to refer back to committee passed 6-5.
- Massage Establishment License for Sunrise Spa (503 South Military): Attorney Cochart clarified this was not a quasi-judicial hearing. Police Chief Davis summarized background checks: an inconclusive phone number linked to an erotic massage website (hot.com), two prior incidents in 2020 and 2023 involving the applicant (one citation, one verbal warning for license display), and a conflict in ownership statements. Inspections were cleared. The applicant’s attorney, Randall, spoke virtually, denying advertising on Hot.com and stating any issues have been resolved. Motion to approve passed with ayes.
- Happy Hour License Amendment: Approved for 809-813 South Broadway for September 12-13, 2025, subject to permits.
Key Outcomes
- Recognition of Weldon Tucker: Certificate presented for rescuing a child with autism from traffic near Bond Street.
- Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Culture of Health Prize: Award formally presented to the city by partners from Wellow, We All Rise, ComSA, and Casa Alba. Green Bay was chosen out of 300+ applications as one of ten national finalists and eventual winners.
- Ordinance 04-25 (Finger Road property): Adopted unanimously, amending the comprehensive plan from schools, parks, and low-medium density housing to medium intensity office retail and housing.
- Ordinances Second Reading: Items 1, 2, and 4 adopted unanimously; Item 3 (with one abstention) adopted.
- Contaminated Soil Contract (Item 6): Approved with amendment to award to Peters Concrete.
- Fire Inspection Fee (Item 5): Held to next council meeting.
- Neighborhood Event Fee (Finance Item 2): Amended language to “nonprofit event fee” and approved; two other fees referred back to finance committee.
- Personnel Item 4 (Internal Transfer): First motion to approve failed 6-5; motion to refer to committee passed 6-5.
- Massage Establishment License (Sunrise Spa): Approved.
- Resolutions: Items 1,2,4 adopted unanimously; Item 3 adopted as amended with referrals.
- Ordinance First Reading: Items 1 and 2 advanced to second reading; Item 3 held until September 16, 2025.
Meeting Transcript
Clerk. 11th president. All right. Thank you very much, Clerk. Now please rise for the Pledge of Allegiance and remain standing for the invitation offered by Alder Johnson. A Pledge of Allegiance of the United States of America. And she's very public stands. One nation, another God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you, Mayor. Please remain standing. I'd like to introduce you to the Reverend Bridget Flad Daniels, who is with Union Congregational Church in the Astor Park area, which is part of my district. In downtown Green Bay. She is the proud leader of the longest continually meeting Christian congregation in the state of Wisconsin. Bridget's ministry works to help people see that Jesus' teachings are more relevant today than ever, particularly around the areas of justice, inclusion, healing, and hope. She lives in the Bay with her husband and daughter, who I had the pleasure of meeting beforehand, Scott and Josie. Welcome. Bridget received her Master of Divinity from Catholic Theological Union in Chicago in 1998 and completed further requirements for uh ordination through Chicago Theological Seminary in 2005 and 2003. She was named St. Norbert College Young Alumnae of the Year for her work uh of witness and mission. She was ordained by the UCC in 2007. She's a native of Milwaukee, served several churches in the Menturo area. Uh she cites a missionary experience in El Salvador. At the end of that country's civil war is a watershed event in her call to ministry. After returning to the States, she served as a chaplain at a homeless shelter, which focused particularly on hospitality to those dying with AIDS. In 2022, she was featured in the Neville Public Museum's Hurstory exhibit, which lifted up the changing roles of women in Brown County. And I want to kind of point out on a personal level about Union Congregational Church, because we had talked about this when we visited a few months back. Was a point of interest that was fascinating to me that I didn't realize. So one of the one of the oldest churches in Wisconsin founded in 1835, uh originally part of the Fort Howard uh settlement, uh, but also served as a stop during the Underground Railroad during the Civil War, which I think uh is a really interesting point uh about our community's history and really captures I think uh the things that you do. I mean, I've been to your church probably more than any other in our city, yet I've never been there for a single mass, wedding, or funeral. And I think it's because of how much you open to the community and how much you open your doors to serve the people uh that live it in our in our city. So thank you for what you do, and with that, uh Reverend Bridget. Thanks for the invitation and for that introduction, Brian. Let us take a moment to quiet ourselves and remind ourselves that we're always in God's presence. Holy one, source of every language and culture and dream, who delights in community and who calls us to seek justice. We gather tonight in this chamber not only as officials and citizens, but as neighbors bound together by the promise of community. Remind us that true strength is not found in uniformity, but in beauty of our differences woven together. That the voice is long silenced to find courage here, that those who carry power remember its purpose, to serve the common good, to lift the lowly, to protect the vulnerable, to pursue what is just. Starting here and starting now. In all of your holy names, we humbly pray. Amen. Amen. Thank you so much, Pastor, for those wise words. Next, we will move along to approval of the minutes. Motion to approve made by Alder Prophet. Second by Elder De Lee. Any changes here? Seeing none, all in favor will say aye. Aye. Pose nay. The guys have it.
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