Green Bay Common Council Meeting – January 20, 2026
Green Bay Common Council Meeting – January 20, 2026
On Tuesday, January 20, 2026, the Green Bay Common Council convened with 12 members present. The meeting opened with a Pledge of Allegiance and an invocation by Alder Galvin, who shared two quotes from John F. Kennedy about political courage and the urgency of the times. The council approved the minutes as amended (recording Alder Stevens and Alder Presley as “no” on previous votes), approved the agenda, and moved through routine reports and multiple consent-style agenda items.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Operator License Appeal – Brian Sanchez: Mr. Sanchez addressed the council to request his bartending (operator) license, stating he needed it to continue working at Lambeau Field and the Home Field Pub & Social, to train others, and to advance in his job. He explained his previous denial stemmed from not listing prior convictions (a 2022 misdemeanor for possession of marijuana and a prescription drug offense, and a pending deferred prosecution agreement for a felony case) on his application, attributing the omission to misunderstanding.
Discussion Items
- Mayor’s Report: The mayor thanked community groups for Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebrations and announced that Myron had withdrawn its lawsuit against the city, calling it “meritless.” He indicated a special meeting might be called as early as Thursday, January 22, at 5 p.m. to approve the related contract.
- Protection & Policy – Item 1 (Operator License Appeal): Police Chief provided the rationale for the staff recommendation to deny Brian Sanchez’s operator license. He noted Sanchez had multiple minor traffic violations, a misdemeanor conviction, and a pending deferred prosecution case (with a hearing in March 2027). Chief stated that Sanchez answered “N/A” on the application for felony/misdemeanor convictions and pending cases, which staff considered a false statement. Alder Galvin questioned whether the denial was solely due to the omission and whether the license would have been approved otherwise. Chief indicated that the false statement alone was the basis for denial. Alder Galvin then moved to approve the license.
- Other Items: Council approved multiple committee reports (Redevelopment Authority, Improvement in Services, Police Department Operator Licenses, Plan Commission, Finance, Personnel, Public Arts Commission, Traffic/Bicycle/Pedestrian Commission, Sustainability Commission) without separate discussion. Informational items (December municipal court report and building report) were noted.
Key Outcomes
- Operator License (Brian Sanchez): The council voted to approve the license, overriding the staff recommendation for denial. The motion by Alder Galvin, seconded by Alder Prophet, passed on a voice vote.
- Appointments: Approved by consensus.
- Public Hearing – Ordinance 07-25 (Comprehensive Plan Amendment): No public testimony; the item moved forward.
- Ordinances – Second Reading: Adopted 12-0 in a single roll-call vote.
- Protection & Policy Items 2–4: Approved en bloc.
- Resolutions and Ordinances – First Reading: Approved en bloc and advanced to final reading.
- Special Meeting Announcement: A special meeting was anticipated for Thursday, January 22, at 5 p.m. to act on the contract related to the Myron lawsuit withdrawal.
Meeting Transcript
I call to order the meeting of our common council for Tuesday, January twentieth. Clerk. Yes, thank you, Ronnie. We have twelve members in the room and twelve members in civic court. All right, thank you, Clerk. Now please rise for the Pledge of Allegiance and remain standing for an invocation offered by Alder Galvin. Pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and just stands one nation under God in the indivisible with liberty. Thank you. Everyone can sit down. Sorry. Um so what when I realize it was my turn to speak, um and this is gonna be my last time to do this, uh, to all of you, but um usually what I do is I try and look at what's going on in our society right now and try and find something from someone way smarter than me uh that said something that I think applies. And so today I have two um quotes quotes from John Kennedy. Um the first is today the challenge of political courage looms larger than ever before. For our everyday life is becoming so saturated with the tremendous power of mass communications that any unpopular or unorthodox course arouses a storm of protest, such as John Quincy Adams under the attack in eighteen oh seven could never have envisioned. Our political life is becoming so expensive, so mechanicized, and so dominated by professional politicians and public relations men, that the idealist who dreams of independent statesmanship is rudely awakened by the necessities of election and accomplishment. Um what we face today, and this is from nineteen fifty-six, and I think it it's even more profound today when you think about it. The times are too grave, the challenge too urgent, and the stakes too high to permit the customary passions of political debate. This was from a speech in 1960. So I applaud all of you that are running for re-election and those that are running against you and what you're hoping to accomplish in the future. So thank you. Thank you, Alder Galvin. And thanks. Thanks for offering that for your final invocation. Some wise words. With that, we will move along to approval of the minutes. Motion to approve made by Alder Stevens. Yes. Go ahead. In S5, the last two votes, I'd like both myself and Alder Presley to be recorded as a no. All right. Alder Prophet makes that motion seconded by Alder Presley. All in favor will say aye. Aye. Oppose nay. The ayes have it. The minutes have been amended. Motion to approve is amended. Motion to approve is amended, made by Alder Prophet. Okay. Seconded by Alder Ritterbush. All in favor will say aye. Aye. Oppose nay. The ayes have it. The minutes are approved as amended. Approval of the agenda. Motion approved. Motion to approve made by Alder Prophet and seconded by Alder Stevens. Any discussion. Seeing none.
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