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All Things Appleton, Appleton, WI (2025)

09/05/2025

Mayor Woodford: Good evening. I now call to order the Wednesday, September 3, 2025 meeting of the Appleton Common Council. Please rise for the invocation which will be delivered by Alder Schultz.

Alderperson Alex Schultz (District 9): It happens in this job, the occasional constituent request that makes you turn your head like a quizzical puppy. Do what now? You want me to ask APD to stop chasing and catching wild turkeys? Is that what you said? Did you ask to see if I could get rid of all the terrorizing woodchucks coming into your yard from the neighboring property? As odd as some of these things we get asked to do are they are no less relevant and worthy of our attention, even if it's just to say, "I'm sorry, there's not much I or staff can do to help you manage this. Might I suggest so and so." In fact, sometimes that's all our constituents need to hear that we listened and offered what assistance or staff redirect we could.

Of course, community problems tend to be far more significant, flooded basements, industrial noise pollution, tree removals due to street reconstructions, truancy court and the like, and sometimes these issues engulf this deliberative body and test our personal views as we weigh our votes to balance them against the needs of the greater community good. But we have that responsibility, and it's good to remind ourselves that there are many places around the world where our little city democratic process is still just a dream. We are so fortunate to live in a community where differences can be voiced without violence, where neighbors of many backgrounds, traditions and perspectives can share our public spaces, our incredible parks, and our workplaces. This is not something we should ever take for granted. In fact, it's the strength and foundation for a peaceful and welcoming city, and one we must protect and nurture.

So no matter how odd the request or how heated or challenging the council deliberation and decision is in front of us, let's endeavor to recognize that the spirit of peace does not only begin in treaties or world assemblies; it begins in small moments like these and councils like this one where diverse voices come together to find common ground. When we practice empathy with one another, we mirror what we wish to see on the global stage, dialog instead of silence, compassion instead of suspicion, and cooperation instead of conflict. After all, isn't this our golden rule, our shared imperative in how we get this job done, working together to help our constituents and our great community as we would help ourselves.

09/05/2025

The Common Council met 09/03/2025. One of the items separated out for an individual vote was the license revocation 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. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/09/02/safety-and-licensing-committee-recommends-revocation-of-mr-frogs-alcohol-license-committee-unanimously-verifies-bar-has-accrued-265-demerit-points-and-determines-bar-is-a-disorderly-and-riotous-hou)

At 4PM on 09/03/2024, 3 hours before the Common Council was scheduled to meet and take a final vote on the revocation, the license holder Vanessa Alvarado surrendered the alcohol license to the City Clerk’s Office. In light of this, City Attorney Christopher Behrens told the Common Council that there wasn’t any need to take action on the item. He recommended holding the item until July of 2026 which was the point at which the license would have expired. The Common Council voted unanimously to hold the license revocation until the first Common Council meeting of July 2026.

A transcript of the discussion is available on the All Things Appleton website: https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/09/05/mr-frogs-license-surrendered-prior-to-vote-on-revocation-maneuver-opens-path-for-business-to-acquire-a-new-license-and-reopen-under-new-management/

At least 20 incidents took place in and around Mr. Frogs since Mr. Frogs first opened in September of 2024. Five of those incidents resulted in demerit points being assessed against the alcohol license of the business. In less than a year Mr. Frogs accumulated at least 265 demerit points, 135 of which were assessed in July of 2025. Appleton’s Municipal Code requires that a retail alcohol license be revoked when the licensee accumulates 200 or more demerit points in a 36-month period.

The Safety and Licensing Committee did not seem to hesitate in recommending that the license be revoked. However, before the matter was brought before the Common Council for a final vote, the license holder surrendered the license. This will make the license available for another business in Appleton to obtain.

In light of the surrender of the license, City Attorney Behrens told the Council, “My recommendation would be to hold the matter until July of 2026. That's a time period when this license would have otherwise expired, just more of a procedural matter than anything else. But there isn't any need to take any action on the report that came from the committee at this point in time recommending the revocation.”

Alderperson Sheri Hartzheim (District 13) asked what they would do with the item in July of 2026. Mayor Woodford explained, “[I]t would appear on the council's agenda and would just need to be dealt with at that point, either accepted, voted down, or held indefinitely.”

It was not discussed at the meeting, but if the license had actually been revoked, per Appleton’s Municipal Code, no business located on that premises could be granted a license within 6 months of the revocation. Additionally, Ms. Alvarado would not have been able to obtain any other license for a period of 12 months. By surrendering the license, both of those consequences were avoided which would allow a new business to operate in the Mr. Frogs location as soon as that new business acquires an alcohol license and allow Ms. Alvarado to obtain a new alcohol license, should she so desire, without having to wait 12 months. This was the same action the previous owner of Speakeasy Ultra Lounge took when he was facing revocation of his license, and voluntarily surrendering the license allowed him to sell the business which was then able to continue operating after the new owner obtained a new license. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/01/10/speakeasy-ultra-lounge-owner-surrenders-alcohol-license-license-no-longer-subject-to-revocation-action-by-safety-and-licensing-committee/)

The building Mr. Frogs is located in is owned by Julia Nino Gomez Morales, a woman who has twice been denied an alcohol license herself, once for Mr. Taco on State Street (https://allthingsappleton.com/2021/07/21/recap-of-07-14-2021-safety-and-licensing-committee-denial-of-mr-tacos-liquor-license-application-mid-year-reports-from-police-and-legal-services/) and once for Mr. Frogs on College Avenue (https://allthingsappleton.com/2024/06/29/safety-and-licensing-committee-votes-3-0-to-deny-alcohol-license-for-mr-frogs-after-police-department-expresses-concern-about-applicants-moral-character-and-ability-to-follow-the-law/) due to her close association to convicted drug traffickers and distributors. (https://www.postcrescent.com/story/news/2021/01/07/mr-taco-appleton-kimberly-hilbert-owner-charged-selling-cocaine/6589154002/) In fact, the only reason Ms. Gomez Morales applied for a license for Mr. Frogs herself is because, by her own admission, the previous managers of the business had been doing “illegal stuff,” so she decided to end their lease and hoped to open the business back up under her own name. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2024/06/29/safety-and-licensing-committee-votes-3-0-to-deny-alcohol-license-for-mr-frogs-after-police-department-expresses-concern-about-applicants-moral-character-and-ability-to-follow-the-law/)

I say her license application for Mr. Frogs was denied, but that’s not entirely accurate. Rather, it was recommended for denial by the Safety and Licensing Committee, but before it came before the Common Council for a final vote, Ms. Gomez Morales withdrew her application. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2024/07/12/safety-and-licensing-committee-votes-to-accept-withdrawal-of-alcohol-license-application-for-mr-frogs/) One month later, a new alcohol license application for Mr. Frog was submitted by Vanessa Alvarado. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2024/08/13/safety-and-licensing-committee-meeting-08-14-2024-will-vote-on-non-renewal-request-for-corner-pub-alcohol-license-initial-alcohol-license-application-for-mr-frogs/)

[So, basically, what it appears to me is that the owner of the Mr. Frogs property has close ties with drug dealers and has twice rented the business out to people who have not been able to manage it properly or prevent illegal activities from occurring there, and now, with this surrender of the alcohol license, Ms. Gomez Morales will once again avoid accountability and is now free to lease Mr. Frogs to yet another irresponsible business manager.]

View full meeting details and video here: https://cityofappleton.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1335556&GUID=6ECD5AF2-12E7-4E2B-969A-F176299B4E7A

09/04/2025

The Common Council met 09/03/2025. One of the items they separated out for an individual vote was the request to approve the renaming process for the neighborhood park that currently holds the name Veterans Park. This name change is necessary to avoid confusion now that Memorial Park has been renamed Veterans Memorial Park. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/06/20/20350/) City staff had recommended a process that required all submitted names adhere to the city’s Naming of Public Park Lands policy, but the Parks and Recreation Committee voted to recommend that the policy not be adhered to. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/08/26/parks-and-recreation-committee-approves-renaming-process-for-veterans-park-amends-process-to-allow-consideration-of-the-name-pride-park/) This was done so that names such as Pride Park and Pollinator Park, that do not fit the policy could also be considered. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/08/31/pride-park-and-pollinator-park-both-cited-as-suggestions-driving-push-to-disregard-citys-park-naming-policy-during-veterans-park-renaming-process/)

During the Council meeting, Alderperson Sheri Hartzheim made a motion to amend the item and restore the requirement to have the new name adhere to the existing Naming of Public Park Lands policy. This amendment failed by a vote of 6-8. The Council then went on to vote 9-4 approve the Veterans Park renaming process as originally recommended by the Parks and Recreation Committee which included disregarding the naming policy.

Mayor Woodford said that city staff would need to come back to the Parks and Recreation Committee and so that some parameters around potential names could be set “Because I'm frankly not comfortable opening a process without clarity around what's actually going to happen or what the parameters are.”

A transcript of the discussion is available for download on the All Things Appleton website: https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/09/04/common-council-approve-veterans-park-renaming-process-that-disregards-citys-existing-park-naming-policy-mayor-woodford-indicates-need-for-follow-up-to-set-new-naming-parameters/

During the Public Participation portion of the meeting, one member of the public spoke on this item. The recommendation by the Parks and Recreation Committee to disregarding the park naming policy come immediately on the heels of the Common Council’s 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. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/08/22/recap-of-public-participation-and-common-councils-deliberation-on-oklahoma-street-reconstruction-design-council-votes-8-4-to-reconstruct-street-at-26-width-and-remove-parking-on-one-side/) This resident opposed discarding the park naming policy when the need to follow existing policies was heavily leaned on as a reason to not change the proposed design of Oklahoma Street to be more in line with the expressed desires of its residents.

Alderperson Hartzheim started discussion out by making a motion to require the parking naming policy be followed.

Alderperson Nate Wolff (District 12) thought that staff had indicated at the Parks and Recreation Committee that the park naming policy should be updated. He thought that not following the policy would allow for more park name suggestions from the community and more creativity in names. “They paid for it. It's their park, right? So, I feel as though we should keep the amendment because it allows our community to have more leeway.”

Director of Parks and Recreation Dean Gazza told the Common Council that although the park naming policy had been approved/last updated in 1997 it was reviewed by staff every two years and compared to similar policies from other municipalities. Staff did not believe the policy needed to be changed and considered the existing policy to be up to date.

Alderperson Wolff apologized for misunderstanding what had been said at the committee meeting.

Alderperson Brad Firkus (District 3) supported following the park naming policy. “The policy exists so that these type of discussions don't turn into a free for all. These are not just to put guardrails around what can and cannot be considered, but also to make sure that the process for naming this doesn't turn into basically some weird middle-aged version of Lord of the Flies where we're fighting over the conch.”

Alderperson Alex Schultz (District 9) said that Ellen Kort Peace Park had been able to be named that because Ellen Kort’s name had been affixed to it. He didn’t like the idea that a peace park without her name affixed to it would not have been worthy of pursuing.

The Council voted on the amendment. It failed by a vote of 6-7 with Alderpersons Josh Lambrecht (District 1), Vered Meltzer (District 2), Patrick Hayden (District 7), Schultz, Adrian Stancil-Martin (District 11), Wolff, and Denis Dougherty (District 15) voting against the amendment and in favor of disregarding the park naming policy.

The Council then went on to vote 9-4 to approve the park renaming process as recommended by the Parks and Recreation Committee to disregard the park naming policy with Alderpersons Firkus, Denis Fenton (District 6), Hartzheim, and Chris Croatt (District 14) voting against the item.

After the item was passed without including a naming policy Mayor Woodford stated, “Wasn't going to comment on this, but now this will be very interesting, because effectively, what you've done is, is you've set aside the policy that exists. So, I would expect we're going to come back to committee, because I—we're going to need to have some parameters around this. And so, if you've decided to jettison the policy, I still think we're going to need some discussion at committee, just so that we have an understanding of what the committee's expectations are going to be before we move into any kind of process. Because I'm frankly not comfortable opening a process without clarity around what's actually going to happen or what the parameters are. So, we'll talk about this, and staff will bring some items for discussion back to the Parks and Recreation Committee to make sure we're all on the same page about this before anything get started. So just to manage expectations for constituents in the public, I would expect this can take a little bit more time.”

View full meeting details and video here: https://cityofappleton.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1335556&GUID=6ECD5AF2-12E7-4E2B-969A-F176299B4E7A

09/04/2025

The agenda for the 09/03/2025 Common Council meeting initially did not include any mayoral proclamations, but at some point it was updated to include 5 proclamations from Mayor Woodford.

With the first, he proclaims September 15 – October 15 as Hispanic Heritage Month in Appleton and calls “upon residents to reflect on and honor the traditions and countless contributions of all Hispanic residents.”

With the second, he proclaims September 21, 2025 to be Day of Peace in Appleton and encourages “all citizens to participate in community events in celebration of the Day of Peace and to promote peace in our communities.”

With the third, he proclaims September to be Childhood Cancer Awareness Month in Appleton and encourages “all citizens to observe Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and support research to cure this disease that so deeply impacts families in every community.”

With the fourth, he proclaims the second week of September as Literacy week in Appleton and encourages “all residents to celebrate the power of literacy and support efforts to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to learn, thrive, and fully participate in our shared future.”

With the fifth, he proclaims September 2025 to be Su***de Prevention Awareness Month in Appleton and encourages “all residents to raise awareness, promote healing, and help save lives through compassionate action and education.”

09/03/2025

My apologies. I just realized I never posted Alderperson Nate Wolff’s invocation given at the 08/06/2025 Common Council meeting. Although it’s a month late, I believe his message is still applicable in the days after Labor Day.

Mayor Woodford: Good evening. I now call to order the Wednesday, August 6, 2025 meeting of the Appleton Common Council. Please rise for the invocation, which will be delivered by Alder Wolff.

Alderperson Nate Wolff (District 12): Thank you, Mayor. So I want to talk about last month. I know we're looking ahead. July in Common Council is always a month where we don't do too many committee meetings. We don't have many meetings. We take a breath, relax a little, enjoy the summer. And August is now the time to get back to work and to help the constituents of Appleton, as we all love to do. So, rather than giving a long invocation, let's get to work, have fun, and work for the people of Appleton. Thank you.

09/03/2025

The City Plan Commission met 08/27/2025. Much of the meeting was taken up with and overview and discussion of the draft update to the city’s Comprehensive Plan. Members of the public can review and comment on that here: https://www.planappleton.org/

Other than that, the commission took up two action items which they recommended for approval and reviewed two proposed updates to the city’s Municipal Code which will come back before the commission as action items later in September.

A transcript of the discussion is available for download on the All Things Appleton website: https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/09/03/city-plan-commission-approves-public-dedication-of-portion-of-johnston-street-alley-and-downtown-business-improvement-district-2026-operating-plan-reviews-proposed-ordinance-changes/

DEDICATION OF A PORTION OF JOHNSTON STREET ALLEY FOR PUBLIC RIGHT-OF-WAY – A portion of the Johnston Street Alley behind the former Chase Bank building at 200 W College Avenue is technically still privately owned even though it is used as an alley way. The owner/developer of the building that was formerly the Chase Bank building and is now the home of Vault 202 formally dedicated that section of the street to the city for public right-of-way. This was more an issue of getting paperwork in order and will not result in any change to how the public experiences that area.

The basement of the building is located under a section of this street, so associated with this public dedication, the developer applied for a permanent street occupancy permit which the Municipal Services Committee recommended for approval. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/08/29/municipal-services-committee-approves-street-occupancy-permits-for-temporary-copper-leaf-dumpster-vault-202-outdoor-seating-basement-under-johnston-street-alley/)

ANNUAL REVIEW AND REQUEST TO APPROVE THE DOWNTOWN APPLETON BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT (BID) 2026 OPERATING PLAN – Jennifer Stephany, the executive director of Appleton Downtown Inc, which is the managing arm of the Downtown Business Improvement District appeared at the commission meeting and briefly reviewed the annual report. They had 204 contributing parcels and units in the BID and their value increased over the previous year by just under 14% to a total value of $208.3 million, which was a pretty substantial increase.

The 2026 BID level was going to remain unchanged at $2.75 per $1,000 of assessed value with a maximum levy of $5,500 on any parcel and a minimum of $275 per parcel. That levy will generate $285,183 for the BID.

They were focused on achieving sustainability and growth for ADI and the properties within the BID through things such as their façade grant program and their business recruitment grant program. They also had a full calendar of events scheduled for downtown and was focused on promoting unique visitor experiences.

They wanted to foster community engagement and had some new programs including the Youth Advisory Committee and a brand-new podcast. Additionally, they were keeping Downtown Appleton clean and safe through contracts with power-washing companies and a care program with Riverview Gardens. They were also advocating alongside Pillars to help solve homelessness issues in downtown.

They were trying to attract new residents to downtown by supporting residential development, hosting neighborhood engagement programs and events, and recruiting businesses to meet the needs of downtown residents. They were still trying to get a grocery store to open a location in Downtown Appleton, but that was proving to be difficult.

Mayor Woodford commented that he often heard visitors to Downtown Appleton remark on how clean it was. That was only possible because of the efforts of the BID which had contracts for power-washing services.

DRAFT TEXT AMENDMENTS TO MUNICIPAL CODE CHAPTER 23 ZONING ARTICLE III. SECTION 23-54 TEMPORARY USES AND STRUCTURES – This was an information item that gave the commission and opportunity to review proposed changes before they were brought forward for action at a later meeting. The purpose of these proposed changes was to eliminate duplication of staff effort. Currently there are a handful of temporary uses, such as firework and Christmas tree sales, that require vendors to get a temporary use permit through the Community Development department as well as a license through the City Clerk’s Office. Under the proposed changes, would still need to get a license which would be reviewed by the Community Development Department, but they would not need to get a temporary use permit also. On paper, the elimination of the temporary use permit would result in between $700 and $1000 in revenue to the city, but that would be potentially more than offset by the reduction in administrative staff time that would free city employees to focus on other things.

DRAFT TEXT AMENDMENTS TO MUNICIPAL CODE CHAPTER 23 ZONING CREATING ARTICLE XI. SHORELAND-WETLAND ZONING DISTRICT REGULATIONS AND AMENDING ARTICLE XIX. SHORELAND ZONING – This was also an information item for commission review prior to being brought forward as an action item. The changes were prompted by the DNR which wanted Appleton to adopt a shoreland-wetland ordinance because a few of the recent annexations on the north side of the city have wetlands of five or more acres.

City staff mirrored the model ordinance that the DRN provided and also cleaned up a small section of the Municipal Codes existing shoreland ordinance to reflect some of the language in the DNR’s model code. City staff had wanted to customize the language of the new ordinance somewhat in order to clarify some language, but the DNR did not want them to do that and wanted them to adopt the model code as written with no changes, so city staff did not make the changes they had wanted to.

Mayor Woodford asked if there were issues with the model ordinance that could be adjusted while still remaining compliant. “Ultimately, you know, we want to make sure we're compliant with our with our ordinance. On the other hand, the Department of Natural Resources does not write Municipal Code for the city of Appleton. So, if, if there are things that that we need to take a look at, I believe I speak for my fellow plan commissioners, we would be happy to entertain our recommendation, so long as we're maintaining that compliance,”

Principal Planner Don Harp did not think any changes would be necessary and said that they had gone over things wit the engineering staff who would be administering this provision of the code and their comfort level was now good with the draft language in front of them.

View full meeting details and video here: https://cityofappleton.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1317588&GUID=2D15F102-5626-436A-A64A-0C739977D368

09/02/2025

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. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/06/20/20350/) City staff recommended a process that required all submitted names adhere to the city’s Naming of Public Park Lands policy. The Public Arts Committee voted to recommend that the policy not be adhered to so that names that do not fit the policy could also be considered. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/08/26/parks-and-recreation-committee-approves-renaming-process-for-veterans-park-amends-process-to-allow-consideration-of-the-name-pride-park/) 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. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/08/31/pride-park-and-pollinator-park-both-cited-as-suggestions-driving-push-to-disregard-citys-park-naming-policy-during-veterans-park-renaming-process/) 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. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/08/22/recap-of-public-participation-and-common-councils-deliberation-on-oklahoma-street-reconstruction-design-council-votes-8-4-to-reconstruct-street-at-26-width-and-remove-parking-on-one-side/)

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. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/09/02/safety-and-licensing-committee-recommends-revocation-of-mr-frogs-alcohol-license-committee-unanimously-verifies-bar-has-accrued-265-demerit-points-and-determines-bar-is-a-disorderly-and-riotous-hou)

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. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/08/30/safety-and-licensing-committee-recommends-approval-special-event-permit-for-world-peace-festival-taking-place-september-13/)

Finally, the Human Resources and Information Technology Committee recommended approval of a Table of Organization change for the Police Department. (https://allthingsappleton.com/2025/09/01/human-resources-and-safety-and-licensing-committees-review-matrix-police-staff-study-human-resources-committee-approves-table-of-organization-change-prompted-by-study/) 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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