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Home My WebLink About5.7newsletter DATE: May 7, 2021 TO: Honorable Mayor and Common Council FROM: Mark Rohloff, City Manager SUBJECT: Weekly Newsletter 1. 2021 SIDEWALK REHABILITATION BEGINS: The Contract 21-06 Concrete Sidewalk (New and Rehabilitation) Project is anticipated to begin the week of May 10th. The general contractor for this Contract is Al Dix Concrete, Inc. of Kaukauna, Wisconsin. The work under this Contract includes the removal and replacement of defective sidewalk in the designated 2021 Sidewalk Rehabilitation Area, and installation of new walk ordered in on West 9th Avenue. This Contract also includes the repair of concrete sidewalks and streets at water service and water main break locations throughout the City and installation of handicapped ramps at those intersections currently without ramps. Work on the defective sidewalk in the designated Sidewalk Rehabilitation Area will not commence until June 1st or later. The work the Contractor is starting on now includes the patches necessary from fixing water main and service lateral breaks throughout the winter and the ordered-in sidewalk. If you wish to sign up for e-mailed construction updates for Contract 21-06, please send a blank e-mail to contract2106-subscribe@lists.ci.oshkosh.wi.us. You will receive an e- mail stating your subscription request has been received. You must reply to the message within five (5) days to complete the subscription. If you have any questions, please contact Construction Management Supervisor, Mike Blank. 2. OPENING DAY AT MENOMINEE PARK ZOO: What do you get when you see an increase of 4,558% on Facebook views on the Menominee Park Zoo’s opening day posting and incredibly beautiful weather on opening weekend? You get over 3,400 visitors over the first 2 days of the 2021 season! There is major excitement at the Zoo with the arrival of Cayuga at the eagle exhibit and the new, playful sibling wolf pack of Loki, Freya, and Tala. The Zoo is open 9 am to 7 pm every day through September 26 and admission is free. Please make sure your summer plans include visiting Menominee Park Zoo to see the new additions. For further information, please contact the Parks Department at 920- 236-5080. 3. BACK AT IT: In the month of May the Oshkosh Seniors Center continues to make significant strides in getting back to normal operations. Since last summer the Center has followed a phased approach to reopening. Here are just a few of the changes coming in May.  The lending library located in the South facility has added an additional day and hours to the schedule in order to allow people to pick up books, puzzles, or DVDs. The hours for the in-house library will expand to Monday, Thursday, and Friday from 8:30-3:00 pm. Previously the library was only open on Mondays and Thursdays from 8:30 am to noon.  The morning appointments in the Fox Fitness Center will start at 7 am and run to noon. Prior to May, people could only make appointments from 8 am to noon. This is great news for early morning exercisers.  Mindfulness Meditation and Essential Oils classes had only been offered virtually, in May the programs will be held in-person.  Our popular group exercise classes will increase from 18 to 20 participants. The additional two spaces will allow the “at-capacity” classes to accommodate more people. The Oshkosh Seniors Center’s North facility is hosting an open house May 24-28 in the afternoons from 12 pm to 3 pm. Stop in to see the changes that have been made. There will be staff on hand to give tours, answer questions, and share information. It promises to be a fun celebration with exciting door prizes. The Center is pleased to continue making progress on our journey to return to a new normal that encourages older adults to stay active, stay social, and stay informed. 4. FAMILY FUN EVENT: On April 24, 2021, the Oshkosh Police Department partnered with the Oshkosh Fire Department, Lowe’s Home Improvement, and Rodney Frazier of Rodney’s Café to host the Garden Start-up Kits for Families fun-filled event. The event took place at Lowe’s from 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. where families received garden start up kits, children’s books and a free lunch for the kids. The event was well attended with nearly 1,000 people participating! We would like to express our sincere appreciation to our generous donors and volunteers that helped make this event possible: Lowe’s, OFD, Rodney’s Café, Oshkosh Auxiliary Police, Cherith Clothing & Resource Center, Reach A Child, Pick ‘n Save and Piggly Wiggly, MARCO Promos, Miss Oshkosh and Miss Oshkosh’s Outstanding Teen Scholarship Organization. 5. D.A.R.E. FUNDRAISER: Members of the D.A.R.E. program from the Oshkosh Police Department and the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office held a Brat Fry fundraiser at Festival Foods on April 24, 2021. OPD Sergeant Jeff Nelson, SRO Deana Brandl and SRO Tony Flaig participated in the event. Attendance was great and they raised a total of $1800.00 for the D.A.R.E. program! 6. CONGRATULATIONS AND WELCOME TO THE OPD TEAM: On Tuesday, May 4, 2021, during a virtual Police and Fire Commission meeting, the Oshkosh Police Department celebrated the hiring of three new Police Officers, David Waite, Tyler Vanden Hoogen and Caitlyn Tohak.  David Waite is originally from Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin, transferring his senior year of high school to Park Ridge, Illinois. He earned his Bachelor’s degree in Sociology with a Concentration in Law, Crime and Criminology from DePaul University in 2013. David then went on to graduate from the Chicago Police Academy in 2016. Prior to becoming a Police Officer with the Oshkosh Police Department, David Waite served as a Police Officer with the City of Chicago Police Department.  Caitlyn Tohak is originally from Green Bay, Wisconsin. She completed her Wisconsin Law Enforcement Certification through Northeast Technical College in November 2020. Caitlyn Tohak previously worked in Security at St. Vincent Hospital and St. Norbert College prior to becoming a Police Officer with the Oshkosh Police Department.  Tyler Vanden Hoogen is originally from Green Bay, Wisconsin. He earned his Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Wisconsin – Oshkosh in May 2019. Tyler then went on to complete his Wisconsin Law Enforcement Certification through Northeast Technical College in November 2019. He also completed the Jail Academy at Fox Valley Technical College in February 2020. Prior to becoming a Police Officer with the Oshkosh Police Department, Tyler Vanden Hoogen was employed as a Correctional Officer at the Brown County Sheriff’s Office. 7. REPORTS ATTACHMENTS UPDATES AND LINKS: Attached please find the Oshkosh Public Library’s April Highlights. 8. MEETING MINUTES FOR BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS: All meeting minutes are uploaded to the website upon approval. Please follow the link below for the most updated information & meeting minutes: https://onboard.ci.oshkosh.wi.us/. 9. COVID-19 RESOURCE LINKS AND INFORMATION: o Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:  https://www.cdc.gov/ o Wisconsin Department of Health Services:  https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/ o Winnebago County Public Health Department:  https://www.co.winnebago.wi.us/health/divisions-program- areas/communicable-disease/covid-19-coronavirus/wchd-covid-19- situation 10. UPCOMING MEETINGS: The meetings I have scheduled for the week of May 10 include the following: At 7:30 AM on Tuesday, I will be attending the Chamber’s Community Sounding Board meeting. At 9:00 AM I am meeting with Mayor Palmeri to discuss Tuesday’s Council agenda. At 3:00 PM I will be meeting with staff to discuss parking lot options throughout the city. At 7:30 AM on Thursday I will be attending the GOEDC Executive Committee meeting. I will be out of the office on Friday. If you have any questions regarding my schedule, please contact me.