Appleton Common Council Update for the Week of October 12

It's an extremely busy committee week for the Appleton Common Council. Here are some of the highlights:

Finance Committee, Monday, 5:30 pm

This week the Finance Committee will again be asked to approve a recommendation related to a resolution submitted this spring. The resolution calls for the city to take on a comprehensive brand study to consider updating the city logo and messaging.

When this resolution was submitted six months ago I asked for it to be referred to staff and brought back for consideration alongside the city's 2021 budget. The study itself is likely to require a significant expenditure and potential implementation (replacing every city logo on a vehicle, building, stationary, etc) could be even more expensive, so I felt it was appropriate for this item to come up for discussion at a time when we were best prepared to discuss how it would be paid for and its budgetary impact.

Of course, a lot has changed since the spring. Late last week the mayor issued a memo asking for the committee to give his office more time to "further research and prepare for a brand study, including gathering input from internal (employee) stakeholders, alderpersons, community partners, and members of the public to appropriately establish the scope and objectives of the project."

If this item is approved, council is expected to see a Request for Proposals no later than February 1, 2021 and at that time will have the opportunity to evaluate financing options to proceed.

This week the committee will also be asked to consider possible options for funds available in excess of our maximum general fund balance. The city has a policy related to the general fund calling for the end-of-year balance in the general fund not to exceed three months of operating expenditures.

The policy calls for any excess to be divided two ways, with 75% used to reduce long-term liabilities and 25% subject to the recommendation of the Finance Committee. With nearly $600,000 available, that means the city's Finance Director and financial advisor will have about $442,000 to use to either pay off existing borrowing or reduce next year's budgeted borrowing.

That leaves slightly more than $147,000 for the recommendation of the Finance Committee. Staff is requesting permission to allocate those funds as follows:

• $100,000 to help fund a comprehensive planning study for the neighborhood surrounding the Appleton Public Library to "provide recommendations for the most effective and orderly development of the properties north of E College Avenue." There are currently several vacant parcels in this neighborhood, including Washington Square (the former Conway Hotel), the former site of the Blue Parking Ramp and the former site of Author's Kitchen.
• $50,000 to supplement the Appleton Redevelopment Authority's Business Enhancement Grant program, which provides matching funds to commercial property owners and tenants to fund facade and exterior improvements to their establishments.

Anticipating a possible question: While we don't have an exact estimate for the price of the brand study listed above, I expect it to be in excess of the money available here and that's why these projects are recommended while the brand study remains on hold.

Fox Cities Transit Commission, Tuesday, 3 pm

Valley Transit has long been one of many stakeholders involved in a conversation regarding the possibility of providing commuter bus service along the I-41 corridor from Green Bay to Fond du Lac to help alleviate some of the congestion on that busy segment of highway. Continuing to expand that stretch is an extremely expensive project, so any efforts that could be made to reduce the need would provide an immediate financial benefit.

This week the Transit Commission has an information item listed on their agenda labeled "Potential Pilot I-41 Commuter Service." There are no more details attached to the agenda, but this could be step one in an exciting and newsworthy development.

City Plan Commission, Tuesday, 4 pm

This week the City Plan Commission will take up three items of specific interest to Appleton's north side and residents of the 13th district.

First, they have a pair of adjacent rezonings in the Emerald Valley neighborhood, north of Highway JJ and west of French Road. The rezonings call for a pair of parcels near the current north end of Providence Avenue to be rezoned from Agricultural to R-1B, single family as part of the continued development of that subdivision. Combined, the two actions cover more than 19 acres of property and around 50 new single-family lots.

Like many residents of the 13th district I am grateful for continued demand for homes in this neighborhood and continued expansion of the city's tax base. As always, however, I will note that continued development on the north side continues to stretch and challenge city services, including fire protection, and will presumably add to the enrollment numbers at Huntley Elementary. The city has already included preliminary spending in the 2021 budget for a projected move bringing Fire Station #4 further north to help address our portion of this issue.

Additionally, on Tuesday the Commission will be asked to approve the annexation of about three and a half acres currently in the towns of Grand Chute and Vandenbroek to provide the footprint for a future street northeast of the intersection of JJ and French Road. The road, currently mapped as Sequoia Drive, will connect an anticipated subdivision east of French Road (further in from French than current construction) to Broadway Drive to the north and provide a second point of access to the neighborhood.

Utilities Committee, Tuesday, 5 pm

The City of Appleton's 2021 budget includes something we haven't discussed in a long time: A wastewater rate increase. The city hasn't adjusted wastewater rates in any way since 2011 but will need to consider one for 2021 to cover increased expenses and the loss of revenue from a major industrial client.

Managing utility rates is a complicated and heavily regulated process and requires a "rate study" to determine the appropriate course of action. This week the Utilities Committee will hear from Trilogy Consulting, LLC, the consulting firm conducting our study, and will be asked to approve a 25% increase effective January 1, 2021 (about $15 quarterly for most residential customers). Even with the increase, the budget and rate study will note that our wastewater rates remain lower than our neighbors'.

Safety & Licensing, Wednesday, 5:30 pm

Finally, on Wednesday the Safety and Licensing Committee will be asked to consider a pair of resolutions likely to generate a significant amount of interest.

First, this week will be the second time the committee has discussed a resolution calling for the city to decrease the fine amounts for offenses related to marijuana and drug paraphernalia. The city's current ordinances call for a fine of $200 on the first offense, $250 for a second offense and $300 for third and subsequent offenses of possession of marijuana or drug paraphernalia. The resolution, submitted by Alderpersons Wolff and Prohaska, calls for the city's portion of the fine to be $5 for the first offense and $15 for subsequent offenses for marijuana and $5 and $10 for first and subsequent offenses for paraphernalia. In both cases, those fines do not include court costs.

While I do not have a strong opinion either way about marijuana, I do have a strong opinion about the nature of fines and the way way they serve as a steep penalty for those without financial resources but a minor inconvenience for those with plenty. In this particular situation the divide is even clearer: A defendant can have this charge dismissed by agreeing to attend an AODA assessment at a cost of $168-$459. Again, someone without financial resources is more likely to end up with this charge remaining on their record, while someone with more can write a check and walk away from it.

As such, in the interest of justice I support this resolution and plan to vote in favor of it on Wednesday and beyond.

Additionally, this week the committee is expected to take up a resolution submitted by Alderman Smith calling for the city to reverse its previously stated position and cancel trick-or-treating this Halloween. The city has previously issued guidelines for safely proceeding but has opted to allow it to continue.

I'm looking forward to hearing from our Police and Health Departments on the rationale for their existing decision and want to do that before I make a decision on this resolution. While my wife and I do not plan to hand out candy this year in an effort to maintain social distancing, I understand this is something a lot of folks are looking forward to and I have questions about our ability to prevent it from happening, even if we as a city do opt to cancel it.

In addition to all of the above, this week will be our first round of committee meetings since council received the 2021 City Budget. Many of my colleagues and I have started to review the 600+ page document in anticipation of Budget Saturday on October 31. The budgets for various departments will be on their respective committee agendas this week to allow directors to outline their respective portions and answer any preliminary questions.

The ongoing pandemic makes it increasingly difficult for us to safely allow large groups to participate in our governmental meetings, making it all the more valuable to have the tools for residents to contact alderpersons online and view our meetings remotely. If you have thoughts on these or any other action items on our agendas this week I would encourage you to use those links to remain engaged and active in the safest way possible.

You can see all of this week's meeting agendas and the full schedule at the city's Legistar page.

Keeping you informed on issues that may impact you around the city is one of my primary goals as an alderman. Good governance happens in the open, and I remain committed to raising awareness on the issues coming before us.