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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05.17.24 Newsletter TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the Common Council FROM: Mark Rohloff, City Manager DATE: May 17, 2024 RE: Weekly Newsletter 1. OSHKOSH MEDIA BRINGS HOME HARDWARE: Oshkosh Media staff and volunteers collected nine total awards at the Wisconsin Community Media (WCM) “Best of the Midwest Media Fest” in Eau Claire on Thursday night. Three of those were Excellence Awards, the competition’s highest honor. Staff received Excellence Awards for the City Manager Minute, and for coverage of the 2023 Oshkosh 4th of July Parade. The community-produced talk show “The Place to Be, Oshkosh,” produced by long-time volunteer John Nieman, also took home gold, and was rated the top show in the amateur public access category. Another community show, “The Outpost,” produced by Disabled American Veterans Winnebago County Chapter 17, won an Achievement Award, the competition’s “silver”-level award. The Best of the Midwest Media Fest is an annual competition hosted by WCM. It features more than 170 entries from all over the Midwest. For more information, contact Media Services Coordinator Jake Timm at (920) 236-5261. 2. “THE CORRIDOR” REDEVELOPMENT PROJECT AWARDED TAX CREDITS: The Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA) has announced their 2024 State/Federal Housing Tax Credit award recipients and Commonwealth Development Corporation of America’s project, “The Corridor,” proposed for Oshkosh, was approved for low-income housing tax credits. The project includes 55 housing units, including one-, two- and three-bedroom units on the City of Oshkosh Redevelopment Authority’s property on the 600 block of North Main Street and Jefferson Street. The development includes traditional style apartment units along North Main Street and townhome style units on Jefferson Street. Unique to the project is the inclusion of a two-shift childcare facility that will help address a need for additional childcare in the community. The developers will begin moving forward with public engagement and refinement of their development plans. The developer’s goal is to break ground on the project in late 2024 or early 2025. Please contact Planning Manager Mark Lyons for additional questions. 3. PUBLIC WORKS LAUNCHES NEW WAY FOR PROPERTY OWNERS TO IDENTIFY THEIR WATER SERVICE LINE: The United States Environmental Protection Agency and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources require the Department of Public Works (Department) to identify all lead water service lines in the City by this September. Over the past several months, you may have seen the Leady informational campaign, which asked property owners to sign up for a free water service line inspection appointment. The Department developed an easy, online self-reporting tool for property owners to upload photos of their water meter and water service lines. Water Utility staff will review the photos and respond with what materials the service lines are made of and any next steps. With the launch of this new online tool, an appointment is no longer necessary, but may still be scheduled if property owners so desire. Check out the self-reporting tool at www.oshkoshwater.com and spread the word about the easy steps we can all take to make Oshkosh safer for generations to come. If you have questions regarding this online self-reporting tool, please contact Assistant Director of Public Works / Utilities General Manager Steve Gohde. 4. PUBLIC WORKS WEEK AND WASTEWATER PROFESSIONALS APPRECIATION DAYS OBSERVED NEXT WEEK: At this past Tuesday’s Council meeting, Mayor Mugerauer proclaimed the week of May 19th – 25th as “National Public Works Week in the City of Oshkosh.” Additionally, Governor Tony Evers recently proclaimed May 22nd as “Wastewater Professionals Appreciation Day,” a statewide observance honoring the dedicated service of our state’s wastewater professionals in promoting the health and safety of all Wisconsin residents. While accepting the proclamation from Mayor Mugerauer on Tuesday, Director of Public Works James Rabe said, “The work of our public works professionals impacts every one of us every single day. When people think of public works, they often think of streets and sidewalks, but public works is so much more than that. It’s water treatment, water distribution, wastewater collection and treatment, natural gas distribution, electric distribution, telecommunications, recycling, garbage collection, and so many more things that we take for granted on a day-to-day basis. The staff here at the City of Oshkosh is made up of professionals who are ready for any challenge, and they work tirelessly to improve our infrastructure and our quality of life.” The City of Oshkosh is grateful for the dedicated work of all of our Department of Public Works staff in maintaining the infrastructure, facilities, and services that are of vital importance to our community. 5. ARPA APPLICATIONS AND RESOURCES ONLINE: The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant applications that the City of Oshkosh received through our most recent solicitation this spring have been uploaded to our website and are available for Council to explore. In addition to the completed applications, other resources that may be useful for Council have also been made available; many of these were previously made available, but are organized here to make their location easier to find. A document with links to these resources and applications is available HERE, as well as in the Hot Topics section of our website’s homepage. Please reach out to the City Manager’s office if you have any questions. 6. OPD HAPPENINGS: The Oshkosh Police Department welcomed the hiring of a new part- time Telecommunications Clerk, Alexis Gutierrez, on May 13, 2024. Congratulations and welcome to the OPD Team! • Alexis Gutierrez currently resides in Omro, WI. She graduated in 2022 from Fox Valley Technical College with an associate degree in court reporting. In addition to becoming a part-time telecommunications clerk, Alexis is actively employed as a statewide court reporter for the State of Wisconsin. 7. LAW ENFORCEMENT TRIBUTE MAY 13TH: The Oshkosh Police Department held a Law Enforcement Tribute on Monday, May 13, 2024, in recognition of National Police Week (May 12-18). National Police Week pays special recognition to those law enforcement officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty serving and protecting others. The Oshkosh Police Department honored the Oshkosh Police Officers that were killed in the line of duty since 1853: Louis Hardy, George O’Connor and Walter Spiering, along with those officers that died in 2023 in the State of Wisconsin: Peter Jerving, Emily Breidenbach, Hunter Scheel, and Katie Leising. National Police Week is also a time to recognize the great men and women who serve and protect our communities each and every day. 8. OPD 8TH ANNUAL AWARDS CEREMONY: The Oshkosh Police Department held their 8th Annual Awards Ceremony on Wednesday, May 15, 2024, at the EAA Aviation Museum – Eagle Hangar. Department employees and citizens were recognized for their exceptional performance, achievements and service to the Oshkosh community during the 2023 year. The Awards Ceremony is about more than the reflection of the pride and dedication of those who strive to make a difference in our community. It is also about the strong partnerships that are built and recognized by our community businesses and leaders. We would like to express our sincere appreciation to Tom & Penny Harenburg, EAA, and Caramel Crisp & Café for their generosity and sponsorship in support of making the Annual Awards Ceremony such a success! 9. MUSEUM HOSTING NEW CONTEMPORARY NATIVE AMERICAN ARTIST: The Oshkosh Public Museum is excited to announce that Kimberly Crowley is the 2024 Featured Contemporary Native Artist. Crowley, a Thunder Clan member of the Ho-Chunk Nation, has been a traditional black-ash basket maker for almost forty years. Inspired by her mother and grandmother, Crowley strives to build a legacy across generations through this traditional art. Crowley is a member of the Hall family, who are known to be master basket makers. For Crowley, her art is not just about herself, but about her family. They work together to harvest, prepare, and weave black ash wood into intricate baskets—from miniature to large. Her basketry art will be on view in the Living Cultures section of People of the Waters beginning May 21. Selections of Kim Crowley’s work will also be available for purchase in OPM’s Museum Store beginning later in May. These include handmade miniature baskets of a similar style to one of the baskets on view in the exhibit. 10. 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/ 11. 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/ 12. LOOKING AHEAD: The meetings I have scheduled for the week of May 20th include the following: on Monday at 9:00 a.m., I will meet with staff to review our tax increment development agreements. On Tuesday at 11:30 a.m., I will attend the Oshkosh Area School District Superintendent’s Advisory Council meeting, and at 2:00 p.m., I will meet with Public Works staff to discuss options for the residents of a private, unmaintained road. On Thursday at 10:00 a.m., I will attend the East Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission’s Board meeting, and at 5:00 p.m., I will attend the graduation ceremony for Leadership Oshkosh’s Class of 2024. I will be out of the office on Friday. If you have any questions about my upcoming schedule, please do not hesitate to contact me.