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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWeekly Newsletter Date: May 14, 2010 To: Mayor & City Council From: Mark A. Rohloff, City Manager WEEKLY NEWSLETTER Subject: FRANKFORT/HARNEY RECONSTRUCTION 1.: As the Council is aware, we received a petition that was listed on last Tuesday's evening's Council Agenda. Although there was no discussion on the receipt of the petition, the petition does request that the Council consider delaying action on constructing Frankfort Street for one year so that we can plan to reconstruct the street to include the undergrounding of utilities. Deputy Mayor King worked with Mr. Jungbacker to collect signatures on the petition. The signatures represent approximately 45% of the frontage and number of property owners in this area. Staff met with Mr. Jungbacker and Deputy Mayor King to discuss the details of the project and other considerations that come into play for the Council to consider a delay of this project. Specifically, because of the interconnection of the sewer utilities between Harney and Frankfort, Harney must be reconstructed at the same time as Frankfort. Therefore, a delay on Frankfort would also require a delay for reconstructing Harney th Avenue. Staff is assembling information that we will make available prior to the May 25 meeting so that Council may consider whether or not you wish to delay these projects for one year. Accordingly, we are sending a letter to all property owners on Frankfort and Harney to make them aware of this possible delay. We typically give the property owners advance notice that a public hearing will be forthcoming, but we added this additional information for the Harney and Frankfort residents so that they are aware that this petition was received and that the Council may be considering a postponement of these projects. Please find enclosed a letter that was sent to the residents on Harney and Frankfort. If you have any questions on potential outcomes of delaying this project, please contact Public Works Director Dave Patek, and we will incorporate this information into our informational package for you. TAKING ROOT CAMPAIGN ATTRACTS STATE-WIDE ATTENTION 2.: As the Taking Root Campaign to add terrace trees throughout Oshkosh is underway, we are receiving some state- wide recognition for this program. Please find enclosed an article that came from the State Parks and Recreation Association's newsletter. It explains our "Taking Root" program and puts it in a very positive light. It also refers to how the tree planting campaign is tied in with the results of the Vision Oshkosh Report. Congratulations to City Forester Bill Sturm, Parks Director Ray Maurer and all city staff that are associated with this successful program. Weekly Newsletter May 14, 2010 Page 2 EMS DAY 3.: Please find enclosed information provided to me by Battalion Chief Jim Austad nd regarding EMS Day on Saturday, May 22. The event will be held at Fire Station #15, at the corner of Court Street and Ceape Avenue, from 12:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Council Members are encouraged to attend if you are available during any portion of this time period. If you have any questions regarding this event, please contact Fire Chief Franz or Battalion Chief Austad. INSTITUTE FOR WISCONSIN'S FUTURE 4.: Please find a report that was provided to us by the Insitute for Wisconsin's Future on suggestions to deal with Wisconsin's budget deficit. This attached article identifies ways in which the state can improve on collecting taxes that have largely been uncollected over the years. As an aside, I just wanted to remind Council that I will be making a presentation, along with School Superintendent Bette Lang and County Executive Mark Harris, on the impact of the Federal Stimulus Package on the local economy. This event is also being sponsored, in part, by IWF. All Council Members are cordially invited to this event, which th begins at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, May 20, at the Oshkosh Public Library's lower conference room. I am enclosing a notice of the meeting from the City Clerk's Office in the event we have a quorum of the Council present. JAMES ROAD DETENTION BASIN 5.: Since the time that Council authorized the mapping of properties in the James Road/State Highway 91 corridor for purposes of a storm water detention basin, staff has been working to identify surveying issues that may impact the possible construction of a detention pond in this area. Staff is close to finalizing this information that we will share with the property owners in this area. Because of natural features that we were able to identify with the assistance of some of the property owners, it appears as though we will be modifying the footprint of the pond so that it will only impact one property owner (Mr. Radloff). The other properties that were much smaller in size that we were looking at acquiring do not appear to be necessary in order for us to construct the detention basin. We will be notifying the property owners shortly about the status of this project. After that, we will come back to the Council with a request to begin the site acquistion process. It is likely that we will still be able to get this pond constructed in late 2010. If you have any questions regarding this project, please contact Public Works Director Patek. DEPARTMENTAL REPORTS & UPDATES 6.: Other items I'm enclosing with today's Newsletter include the Annual Report from the East Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission, for 2009-2010. I am also enclosing a press release from Oshkosh Community th Media, listing the various awards CitiCable 10 and CATV2 received at the 12 Annual Wisconsin th Association of Public, Educational and Government Channels Video Festival on April 30. Our local producer and staff programs collected an impressive 15 awards for their excellent programming at the event. The next item I'm enclosing is an invitation to participate in the Fourth of July Parade. Mayor Esslinger has coordinated the Council's participation in the past, so please let him know if you are able to be a part of the parade this year. Insofar as minutes are concerned, thth I'm enclosing the minutes of the May 4 Plan Commission meeting; the minutes of the April 20 Downtown BID Board meeting; the meeting notice, agenda and background material for the May ththth 19 Transit Advisory Board meeting; and the minutes of the March 10 and April 14 Landmarks Commission meetings. The last item I'm enclosing is the latest issue of The Crime Reporter, a collaborative effort of citizens, businesses and law enforcement in Winnebago County. Weekly Newsletter May 14, 2010 Page 3 th UPCOMING MEETINGS 7.: Meetings I have scheduled for the week of May 17 include the following: On Monday, at 12:00 noon, Community Development Director Allen Davis and I will be meeting with the Oshkosh Northwestern Editorial Board. At 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday, I'll be meeting with Gary Ruhl of the Winnebago County Labor Council. On Tuesday, at 12:00 noon, I will be addressing the Oshkosh Noon Kiwanis Club regarding general city issues. On Thursday, at 5:00 p.m., I will be attending the informational event at the Grand Opera House regarding an update on their renovation plans that they will be sharing with donors and members of the public. On Thursday, at 6:00 p.m., I will be at the Library to take part in a panel addressing the impact of the Stimulus Package on Oshkosh, which I mentioned previously. If you have any questions regarding my attendance at any of these meetings, please do not hesitate to contact me. MAR/jdc