The Common Council is meeting 09/03/2025 at 7PM.
There are a few action items that stand out as candidates to be separated out for individual votes.
The first is the process for renaming the neighborhood park that current is named Veterans Parks. This name change is necessary to avoid confusion now that Memorial Park has been renamed Veterans Memorial Park. City staff recommended a process that required all submitted names adhere to the city’s Naming of Public Park Lands policy.
The Parks and Recreation Committee voted to recommend that the policy not be adhered to so that names that do not fit the policy could also be considered. Per the discussion at the committee meeting and a follow-up communication with Alderperson Martyn Smith (District 4), “Pride Park” and “Pollinator Park” were both cited as the suggestions driving the push by the committee to disregard the policy.
If the Common Council votes to go ahead with the recommendation to disregard the Naming Of Public Park Lands Policy it would come immediately on the heels of its decision to strictly follow the Complete Streets Design Guide policy as it pertained to the reconstruction of Oklahoma Street even in the face of residents’ clearly voiced opposition.
They will also be voting on the revocation of the alcohol license for Mr. Frogs. The Safety and Licensing Committee voted unanimously to recommend the license be revoked both (1) because the business had racked up at least 265 alcohol license demerit points in less than a 12 month period and the Municipal Code requires revocation when a business accumulates 200 or more demerit points in a 36-month period, and (2) because the committee determined the business was a disorderly and riotous house which, under state statutes, is grounds to revoke a business’s alcohol license.
The Safety and Licensing Committee voted unanimously to recommend that the World Peace Festival organizers be issued a special event permit even though they did not submit their application for that permit on time. This was done in light of the fact that Appleton is in the first year of its new Special Events Policy and some organizers of recurring events have not been aware that that there is now a 45-day deadline to submit applications. This was not a controversial item, but if the event organizers attend the Common Council meeting I would expect it to be separated out for an individual vote.
Finally, the Human Resources and Information Technology Committee recommended approval of a Table of Organization change for the Police Department. They are taking two Lieutenant positions, moving the district under which they operate, and giving them duties associated with professional development training and administration. This change is revenue neutral and is not controversial, but it is the first of what will potentially be a number of changes prompted by Policy Department staffing study conducted by Matrix Consulting Group. For that reason, it would not surprise me if it is separated out for an individual vote as a way to highlight it.
View full meeting details here: https://cityofappleton.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1335556&GUID=6ECD5AF2-12E7-4E2B-969A-F176299B4E7A
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