Appleton Redevelopment Authority Receives Update On Purchase Of Property At 222 N Oneida Street – After Over 18 Months, Valley Transit Has Finally Received Approval From Federal Government To Purchase Property

The Appleton Redevelopment Authority met 02/12/2025. During that meeting they received an update on the vacant lot at 222 N Oneida Street that the ARA owns and is in the process of selling to Valley Transit.

Valley Transit has been under contract to purchase that land for a while but had been waiting for approval from the federal government under the rules of the National Environmental Policy Act. That approval has now come through, so a closing date on the transaction should be scheduled in the next few months.

I’ve prepared a transcript of the discussion for download:

Valley Transit has been working through a multi-year process to purchase the property directly north of the transit center so that they can own that entire block of land and build an expanded multi-level building with the transit center on the first floor and housing units above that. The Federal Transit Administration needs to approve Valley Transit’s purchase of the property. One of the FTA’s requirements in order to approve the purchase is that a National Environmental Policy Act process be completed. That NEPA process started in June of 2023 and has taken so long that the ARA had to extend the purchase deadline of the contract they originally entered into with Valley Transit. The NEPA process is now completed, and the sale can move forward.

Valley Transit received $25 million through a Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grant from the federal government to help pay for the proposed project. An ARA member asked if, with the current environment in Washington DC, there was a chance that any of those grant funds would be frozen. Director of Community Development Kara Homan responded that to her knowledge nothing was currently frozen. The project itself was not a concern of the ARA. Their only interest was that they owned the land. Once the sale to Valley Transit went through, it would be out of their hands. All issues related to the project itself would go before the Appleton Common Council. She noted that Valley Transit intended to purchase the land with existing funds that were at its disposal. So, they did not have to worry about that money being frozen.

View full meeting details and video here: https://cityofappleton.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1256180&GUID=1435935C-B478-4F7D-B355-A447B1226ED8