The Notes: Week of November 1 - November 5, 2021

Happy Halloween, Neighbors!  I hope you all have a safe but spooky-fun day today as the little ghouls and goblins go door-to-door for treats.  My step-dog Koda doesn't love all the doorbell ringing that today brings; but he is a good sport when made to dress as a bespectacled mermaid dog.  Anything for a treat!

After the fun and games of Halloween, we move forward into Full Council Week for the City of Appleton.  There is one other city meeting this week and a special session of the full council scheduled as well.  Here's the run-down and some agenda highlights:

Wednesday, 11/03/2021

Appleton Public Arts Committee (8:30am):

• Creative Downtown Appleton, Inc. would like permission to install four-foot-tall letters spelling "RISE" in Houdini Square from mid-November through March 2022.  This is similar to last year's installation of the letters spelling "HOPE." 
   
• Sculpture Valley is requesting the extension for the placement of three pieces past the 11/07/2021 end date of the two-year agreements.  The three sculptures are The Collective (the extension of which was discussed last week by the Municipal Services Committee), Gyan/Gesture of Conscience (at Jones Park), and To The Moon Alice (at Vulcan Heritage Park).  The arts committee will be asked to approve the extension of the placement of the latter two pieces until 11/07/2022 and The Collective until 04/30/2022.
  
  
• The committee will again discuss whether to ask the community at large for photos (public photo contest) or use photos taken by a professional photographer of the Rhythms of the World event for the updating of the welcome tower in Houdini Plaza.  They were unable to come to a decision the last time they discussed this due to not seeing all of the work of the professional photographer and wanting to review more in order to decide. 

Common Council Public Hearing on the Proposed 2022 Executive Budget (6pm):

• Residents and taxpayers of the City of Appleton are welcome at this time to present written and oral comments regarding the city's 2022 proposed budget. 
  
  Please review the below and let me know if you have any budget questions or concerns.  In general, I'm pleased with the 2022 budget as the mayor has asked all of the department heads to keep their budget increases to a minimum to help the city limit borrowing in the coming fiscal year.  He is fully cognizant of the sharp increase in debt the city has taken on in the last decade and aims to at least hold further borrowing at bay for 2022.  I see very little room for any further cost-cutting measures for the city in the 2022 budget and hope that, upon your review, you feel the same.  But please do let me know your thoughts! 

Common Council (7pm):

• The mayor is back with four proclamations this week!  It's Native American Heritage Month, Appleton High Schools DECA Week, Runaway and Homeless Youth Prevention Month, and Small Business Saturday is coming up on 11/27/2021.
  
  
• The council will be asked to approve a special resolution and new ordinances declaring the city's new voting wards and districts (effective 01/01/2022) subsequent to the recent redistricting process. 
  
  
• From the Safety & Licensing Committee: River Tyme Bistro's request for a premises amendment to allow them to seat/serve customers in off-street parking spaces (due to the deterioration of the land beneath their outdoor seating patio) was recommended for approval contingent upon approval from other city departments.  And the request from Tee Tees Nachos for a liquor license from their location on Morrison Street was denied in committee.  I would wager that at least one of these items two will be discussed further by the full council during this meeting. 
  
  
• From the Finance Committee: The mayor's proposal for the first portion of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds will again be discussed.  It was referred back to committee and further discussed there.  At the Finance Committee meeting, I came to further understand the request from the mayor.  Pending any new developments at the full council meeting in this regard, I expect to vote to approve this allocation (despite my ongoing concerns about some of the proposal).  Many of the questions I had regarding the proposal were answered in the committee meeting, though.  So I feel more confident that this first allocation is an acceptably responsible and transparent manner with which the city should allocate the funds... at least at this point.  Please feel free to review the committee meeting video linked above and let me know if you have any further questions on this that I can bring to council on Wednesday.        

I always look forward to hearing from you regarding anything city-government-related.  I'm happy to answer -- or take your questions to those who can best answer them.  Please don't hesitate to contact me any time. 

'Wishing you a wonderful start to November 2021 as we slide into the upcoming holiday season (yikes)!