The Notes: Week of May 31 - June 03, 2022

Welcome to a new month (it's JUNE tomorrow!!) and a Full Council Meeting Week, Neighbors!

It's already Tuesday (love those long weekends!) and there are just three meetings scheduled for the week, all tomorrow (Wednesday, 06/01/2022).  One is a special "joint meeting" which is an interesting new twist.  

Finance Committee - 5:45pm: In this short, one-agenda-item meeting, the committee will be asked to approve a budget amendment relating to a site assessment and master plan creation for the Valley Transit Transit Center in downtown Appleton (adjacent to the library).  There are potential plans for using that site for a sort of a mixed-use development with an indoor transit center on the first level and some storefront and perhaps housing on other levels in a single development.  The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) will cover 80% of this initial site plan/assessment so the balance ($35,870) must come from local funding.

Joint Meeting of the Finance Committee and Utilities Committee - 6pm: This special joint meeting has been called to discuss a resolution that was presented to the council in April.  

As you can see, the resolution calls for the redirecting of $6M (of a total of $8M available) of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding that was "placeholder" set aside in the 2022 in some very vague categories for spending in 2023 (see below).  The resolution requests that this $8M instead be used to support infrastructure investments in the city's water utility -- specifically for replacement of the city's aging 6-inch water mains to match the standard 8-inch water mains in the rest of the city.  

The author of the resolution, District 15 Alderman Chad Doran, has written about the importance of this resolution.  I am in agreement with him that the water main issue in Appleton is a better place for the city's ARPA funds investment -- for the benefit of all citizens of the City of Appleton.  I believe that it is most important that a city government stays true to supplying and maintaining the basic services of a city rather than attempting to "throw money" at issues to which a city government is not well suited and for which these amounts (while quite large) will likely have very little impact.  Let me know your thoughts: Should ARPA funds be distributed and used for the above "placeholder" allocations or for a solid investment in the infrastructure of a basic need for all Appletonians -- a reliable water supply?  

Common Council - 7pm:  After the mayor begins the meeting with five -- count 'em five! -- proclamations, all items discussed in last week's committee meetings will be take up by the full council.  The agenda items listed above also appear on the full council meeting agenda.  Of note are the following items:

• The resolution regarding Soldier's Square will be revisited by the full council.  Two weeks ago, it was referred back to the Municipal Services Committee who again discussed it and recommended it for denial.  I am in agreement with this denial as I mentioned earlier blog posts here and here.  It's not that the city should not support the revitalization of Soldier's Square.  It's that this resolution is essentially putting the cart before the horse in that regard.  The discussions on this resolution have brought forward some great ideas and some private fundraising efforts and much community discussion surrounding this revitalization efforts.  So that is a huge plus!  I still support denial of this resolution but encourage the ongoing efforts in the community to do right by our veterans as we move forward with the revitalization talks. 
  
  
• All three "overhires" mentioned last week were approved by the Human Resources and Information Technologies Committee and are up for full council approval at this meeting. 
  

There are no other extremely pressing issues to be discussed so I expect a rather straightforward and succinct meeting.  (And now that I said that.... watch this meeting turn out to be a long one!😁)

On another note: Thank you to all who attended and honored the fallen in Monday's City of Appleton Memorial Day Parade.  All gave some; some gave all.  

Keep your eyes open for more information on the city's Flag Day Parade which is coming up soon -- on Saturday, June 11th.  You can follow the parade's Facebook page or find out more on the city's parades page or Flag Day Parade page.  This year, there will be a special new addition to the parade -- a  Cavalcade of Cars!  I hope you and your family can join us downtown for all of the Red, White, and Blue festivities!  

If you have any questions or concerns about the above items or have any other items of concern regarding Appleton city government, please do not hesitate to contact me. Have a great first few days of June and I hope you will join me for another update here next week!