HomeMy WebLinkAbout03.08.24 Newsletter
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the Common Council
FROM: Mark Rohloff, City Manager
DATE: March 8, 2024
RE: Weekly Newsletter
1. NON-INFRASTRUCTURE GRANT REQUESTS TOTAL OVER $11 MILLION: Last
Friday, March 1st, was the deadline for applications for grant requests associated with the
non-infrastructure portion of the City’s American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) allocation. The
City has approximately $2.3 million remaining in this allocation. The City has received a total
of 50 separate requests totaling $11,774,065. Staff has not yet reviewed the requests, but they
appear to run a wide range of proposals, primarily from local nonprofit entities. I have
directed staff to develop some more detailed review criteria, as we will need something more
sophisticated to evaluate this many proposals, particularly when we have 5 times more in
funding requests than is available. When I return from vacation on March 18th, I will begin
the review of the applications using these criteria.
2. 2024 CONSTRUCTION PROJECT INFORMATION LETTERS SENT TO PROPERTY
OWNERS: Informational letters regarding the 2024 street reconstruction and utility
replacement projects have been sent to property owners whose properties may receive
special assessments related to these construction projects. These projects include: Waugoo
Avenue (Mill Street to Main Street), Cherry Street (West Irving Avenue to West New York
Avenue), Prospect Avenue (Elmwood Avenue to Cherry Street), West 5th Avenue (Michigan
Street to Iowa Street), West 7th Avenue (Michigan Street to Iowa Street), Iowa Street (West 5th
Avenue to West 7th Avenue), and Michigan Street (West 5th Avenue to West 7th Avenue).
In addition to information about the construction, these letters include information about
having their water service lines inspected, the e-mail subscription list for construction
updates, and general information about special assessments. This information will need to be
updated now that Council has approved the new special assessment funding mechanism. If
you have any questions about these letters, please contact Engineering Division Manager /
City Engineer, Justin Gierach.
3. PUBLIC OUTREACH CONTINUES FOR BOWEN STREET RECONSTRUCTION: The City
is working with AECOM Technical Services (AECOM) to complete the design for the
reconstruction of Bowen Street from Otter Avenue to East Parkway Avenue, which is
scheduled for construction in 2027. As you may recall, postcards were mailed to residents and
nearby property owners along the corridor about one (1) month ago. As we continue the public
outreach, AECOM will be sending e-mails to multiple neighborhood associations, social
service agencies, schools, and churches near the Bowen Street corridor encouraging their input
on the project.
For more information, check the project webpage at:
https://www.oshkoshwi.gov/PublicWorks/BowenStreetReconstructionProject.aspx
If you have any questions, please contact Engineering Division Manager / City Engineer, Justin
Gierach.
4. LOCAL CANDIDATE FORUMS: Oshkosh Media and the League of Women Voters of
Winnebago County co-hosted three candidate forums for local office this week at City Hall.
Candidates for Oshkosh Area Board of Education appeared at a forum Monday night, while
candidates for Common Council and Winnebago County Circuit Court Judge Branch 1
appeared on Thursday evening. Here are links to the forums on the Oshkosh Media YouTube
channel:
• Common Council
• Oshkosh Area Board of Education
• Winnebago County Circuit Court Branch 1
Replays of the forums will appear periodically on Gov TV up until Election Day on Tuesday,
April 2. You can find Gov TV on Spectrum Cable channel 10, AT&T U-verse channel 99,
streaming live on the free Oshkosh Media channel on Roku, Amazon Fire TV and Apple TV
devices, and also streaming live on OshkoshMedia.org. For more information, contact Media
Services Coordinator Jake Timm at (920) 236-5261.
5. OFD WELCOMES ONE FIREFIGHTER, AND CELEBRATES RETIREMENT OF
ANOTHER: Oshkosh Fire Department would like to welcome our newest firefighter, Thea
Melcher, who will start her Fire Academy training on Monday, March 11th. On February 26th,
Lieutenant Scott Broeske worked his final shift with the Oshkosh Fire Department. He served
the citizens for 28 years. Thank you, Scott, for your hard work and dedication, and enjoy your
well-deserved retirement!
6. GET INVOLVED IN A BOARD OR COMMISSION: If you are interested in serving your
community, please consider becoming a member of one of the City’s citizen advisory boards,
commissions, or committees. To learn more about the boards and commissions, or to complete
an application to serve, follow this link: oshkoshwi.gov/BoardsAndCommissions/
7. 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: onboard.oshkoshwi.gov/
8. LOOKING AHEAD: As a reminder, I will be out of the office the week of March 11th, returning
to the office on March 18th. Assistant City Manager John Fitzpatrick will available in my
absence. If you have any questions about my upcoming schedule, please do not hesitate to
contact me.