Common Council Recap

December 4, 2019 2:28 pm

A LOT happened on this agenda, but there was virtually no discussion of any substantive issues in the 1 hour and 10 minute meeting. Many lobbyists attended and registered to support their items.

Here’s the agenda. You can follow along here if you feel so inclined.

GETTING STARTED/HONORING RESOLUTIONS/REMARKS

Roll Call: Carter excused, Harrington-McKinney excused, Kemble excused, 17 others present.

Opening remarks:

Alder Arvina Martin extends gratitude for the last few weeks and month with the passing of her father.
Alder Mike Verveer makes comments on former Alder Judy Plaenert Olson. She served for 10 years on the Common Council, including as president, she was Deputy Mayor in Mayor Sue Baumann’s administration and President of the Madison Public Library Foudnation Board for 14 years among other many accomplishments and service to our community. He asks for a moment of silence for Judy who passed away on November 23rd.

Suspension of the Rules: Bidar moves suspension of the rules to allow introduction and taking ordinances and resolutions out of order. Passes.

Presentation: Poetry Recitation by Sofia Snow (Director of the UW Madison First Wave Hip Hop and Urban Arts Learning Community and Office of Multicultural Arts Initiatives) – is referred to the January 7th meeting

Honoring resolutions

Honoring and Commemorating the Life of City of Madison Mayor Joel Skornicka. – Mayor reads the resolution, several people are registered in support (Judy Karofsky, former Mayor Joe Sensenbrenner and Ricardo Gonzalez). She will present the resolution at the memorial service later this week. No discussion. Passes.

Recognizing the dedicated service and outstanding achievements of Oscar Mireles during his tenure as Madison Poet Laureate. Alder Christian Albouras reads the resolution. He says its an honor to be reading this for many reasons, but particularly for Oscar’s amazing accomplishments and impact he has had in this capacity. Ricardo Gonzalez also in support not wishing to speak. Mireles says 4 years ago he didn’t know what the Poet Laureate position was. He found 5 or 6 amazing people who had a vision about the power of poetry and how it could enhance our city. Some of you have seen and heard some that have come through. He thanks them, thanks his wife Diana Gonzalez.

Awarding the 13th Annual Jeffrey Clay Erlanger Civility in Public Discourse Award to Patty Prime. Alder Patrick Heck reads the resolution. Prime says she is humbled and honored and she only recently learned about Jeffrey Erlanger through Mr. Rogers Documentary. Jeffreys committment to making things better for other is inspiring and she can’t believe they she got this honor. She wishes she was half as effective as Bob Klebba wrote about in his nomination. A neighborhood is a place for enjoyment and getting along, but it seems to be at its highest when there is a controversy brewing. If people want to connect to a neighborhood they don’t want to be threatened or ignored. A new full of energy neighbor had been involved in another city and when he attended a meeting he felt completely ignored and like an outsider, he had expected to be welcomed, she took that to heart and she has tried to welcome people. She is humbled by her predecessor honorees. She thanks Bob Klebba (for nominating), Marta Staple (for cheering him on), the council members and huge support from alders Patrick Heck and Ledell Zellers and her husband Richard Linster who taught her what being a neighborhood leader really means.

Former Alder Ledell Zellers says the resolution summed up why she deserves this award and having worked with Jeffrey for a number of years, she knows how meaningful this award is. The recipients have been stellar as is Patty. As an alder she could only hope for all of you to have a neighborhood leader as effective as Patty has been, it made her job as alder easier and hopes they all get someone as collaborative and effective as Patty. She thanks the alders as well for their hard work to do the best they can for the City.

They play a Mr. Rogers video clip.

Alder Shiva Bidar thanks Jeff Erlanger’s parents and says she served on a committee with Jeffery and she learned a lot by sitting next to him about how committees and the city works, she thanks them for working on this award every year.

Alder Marsha Rummel says this is a special event, even more wonderful with the movie coming out, some of us have seen this clip before, but its even more powerful to know the power of your son and Mr. Rogers. She says she was so thrilled when Bob Klebba emailed me and asked me to add to a recommendation for her, I think I responded in about 4 minutes with a long paragraph about how fantastic and talented she is. This is well deserved and she is proud of the work that they have done. She says Ledell doesn’t know how good she had it with Patty. At contentious meetings Patty facilitated, in her neighborhood she doesn’t have a Patty and she get has to get up there and gets all the slings and arrows. Patty was magnamous, listened, helped steer and the neighborhood can see the impacts. So thank you and to Jeff and his family.

Alder Mike Verveer says that usually they have the honor of having Pam or Howie say a few words, he asks if they would like to. He doesn’t want to put him on the spot, but he professor is well prepared as always.

Howard Erlanger says that they indulged Jeff’s memory a lot with the long clip. That relationship with Fred Rogers was amazing for both of them. There has been so much attention to Fred Rogers and there’s a reason because its amazing times and every year we say this year more than ever we need an award for civility in public discourse and that has a lot to do with the attention and strong reception of Fred Roger’s legacy. Another movie just came out and is fantastic if you haven’t seen it. They are a little embarrassed that they showed that because its so long and there is plenty of city business to do. He says that was unrehearsed, unscripted and uncut. Fred Rogers says that you just come on here and maybe we’ll sing a song and they just did it. And I said you’re going to cut the part about the urine and he said, no, I figure the kids will have no idea what he’s talking about and it will be really good for the parents see a 10 year old discuss bladder surgery, so they didn’t cut a thing. That really speaks to Fred Rogers legacy which is so important to us. And of course its been fun having Jeff be part of the celebration of Fred Rogers, but tonight is the highlight for us of the year, because seeing someone be honored because of part of the example that Jeff set means everything to them. They’ve been in the city almost 50 years now and we’re from Madison at this point and it means so much to know that whatever is happening on the national scene that in Madison there are people like Patty that are quietly, conscientiously focused on bringing people together and getting things done. It makes him and Pam feel so good about what it means about the future of the city to know that there are people like Patty that are here for us. Congratulations to Patty and thank you to everyone for honoring Jeff, we appreciate it.

Verveer feels honored every year that they do this on the closest meeting to Jeff’s birthday that they can arrange. Hard to believe its been 13 years and every year fewer and fewer members of the council had the pleasure of working with Jeff. He considered Jeff a friend, he was an amazing person. He was more than a regular in city hall, was brilliant in his work and dogged in his determination to work. He chaired the Disability Rights Committee, worked to have mandated accessible taxi cab service and served on the Economic Development Committee. He was an activist in the greater downtown area, by far the most vibrant and accomplished president of the State-Langdon Neighborhood Association – so its appropriate to have Patty as a neighborhood leader be honored with this award. He says they should look at the award plaque outside the chamber and look at the past recipients, they are names they would recognize and when you look at the 13 individuals it really shows the best of the community. The need we have these days. Our interim planning director Nan Fey is one of the previous recipients. He also thanks Pam and Howie for making this award a lasting legacy for their wonderful son. Pam has served for years on the award committee, he served on that committee with her at that time. The council president serves on the committee. The Madison Community Foundation also has an award fund and the recipient of the award and the nominator are able to designate a charity of their choice. It’s part of Jeff’s lasting legacy. He says Patty is so deserving of this award in so many ways, he hasn’t had the privilege to work directly with her but its a testament to her legacy that neighboring alders know of her work. He thanks her for her community service for many years and knows its not the end of her work, its a legacy she should be proud of. Her husband is a former county supervisor, so public service is in the DNA of the family and household.

Mayor adds her congratulations and thanks to Howie and Pam, it was an honor to know Jeff and work with him, however briefly.

Wishing the delegation of Madisonians visiting our Sister City, Camagüey, Cuba, in January 2020 much success in their endeavors to maintain the links of friendship between our communities and calling for a Return to Engagement as policy in US-Cuba relations. Alder Shiva Bidar reads the resolution. Ricardo Gonzalez accepts the resolution. Gonzalez he thanks the mayor and the sponsors. 25 years ago they began the relationship with Camaguey Cuba thinking they were on the brink of a new era with Cuba. Thinking light was at the end of the tunnel, instead it hasn’t been that way and instead we are in worse shape now in terms of where they were then in terms of misunderstanding what the issues are, when he says “we” he means the government, our federal government that continues to follow a policy of confrontation and isolation of Cuba. President Obama in 2014 started a new approach of engagement, understanding, exchanges with the Cuban people and these policies bore fruit, they were helping people. Those of us who go to Cuba on a regular basis that it was bearing fruit, people’s lives were improving, the private sector was improving and developing in ways they never suspected and then under this administration everything has slowly but surely been shut down. Right now to get to Camaguey they are back to the way it was 20 or 25 years ago where you have to go through a 3rd country or charter airlines that are unsafe sometimes. There never has been one that has fallen from the skies but its not the same as commercial airlines. 75% of the American people support engagement with Cuba. Even the majority of the Cuban Americans in Florida support engagement with the Cuban government, its high time. When the common council, along with other cities, express their views, it counts. Our friends in Camaguey will be very happy to see this and know we support them.

Charles James is there to support. Joe Sensenbrenner and Daniel O’Brien are in support not wishing to speak.

James says that on behalf of the Sister City Collaboration Committee they wish to support the resolution, he’s been a member of the committee since 2012 when he learned about the Cuba sister city relationship. He’s learned of the humanitarian work of the MCSCA has been doing for over 25 years. In January he traveled to Camaguey to meet some of the people that have become friends and partners in central Cuba and it is his intention to travel there again this January. The restrictions on travel to Cuba being imposed by the current administration are unrealistic and completely counter to the efforts of private citizens to foster positive relations with citizens of a sovereign nation. He urges support of the resoltuion to return to positive engagement between USA and Cuba. The Cuban people are not our enemies, the stupidity of our administration is.

Passes.

ROUTINE BUSINESS, CONSENT AGENDA

Petitions and Communications – they refer 6 and accept 7 – 9. Motions pass.

They read the consent agenda as blogged here. The recommendation on the Water Utility bonds was adoption.

There is public comment on items 32, 33 and 88 so those will be excluded with the public hearing items.

Mayor says they have registrations on the consent agenda as follows:

#35 – Casey Frolich, in support available to answer questions, representing Hooters of American Restaurant Holder LLC

#80 – Brad Mullins, in support and available to answer questions. (Mayor doesn’t read who he represents but his family is signing the lease with the city)

$81 & 87 – Richard Arneson and Helen Bradbury in support and available to answer questions (Mayor doesn’t say they represent Stonehouse Development)

#82 – Andrew Shields, Salvation Army, available to answer questions.

#96 – Jared Schumacher in support not wishing to speak.

Everything on the agenda passes as noted on the agenda or read except public hearing items and 32, 33 and 88.

PUBLIC HEARINGS

#10 Appeal of Demolition by Neglect on 121 Langdon St – no registrants, Bidar moves to uphold the finding, Verveer seconds. No discussion, voice vote that seemed unanimous.

ALRC public hearings
#11 Baymont – no registrants, recessed, re-referred to ALRC
#12 La Torta Loca – no registrants, move to grant, passes on voice vote
#13 Doc’s Smokehouse Madison – Andrew Robinson (Milwaukee), David Loper, Brian Atkinson all representing Docs, in support and available to answer questions. Move to grant with conditions. Verveer clarifies there are no conditions because the notes on the agenda have been satisfied to staff’s satisfaction since the meeting, there are no conditions. They approve granting on a voice vote.
#14 Grace Coffee, no registrants, recess public hearing, re-refer to ALRC, passes on voice vote.
#15 Pattywax Candle Bard, no registrants, recess the public hearing, re-refer to ALRC, passes on voice vote.
#16 Applebees, Aaron Myat of Applebees in support and available to answer questions, move to grant, passes on a voice vote.
#17 Arandas Mexican Bar and Grill, Jesus Ramirez in support and avaiable to answer questions, move to grant with conditions, passes on a voice vote.
#18 Fairchild, Ataro Negano in support and avaialable to answer questions, move to grant, passes.

No discussion on any of these items, if not designeated recessed the hearings were opened and closed with no further comments.

Board of Public Works

#19 – Vilas Ave and Campbell St Assessments – no registrants, opened, closed, moved approval, no discussion passes on a voice vote.

Plan Commission

#20 Downtown setbacks – no registrants, opened, closed, moved approval, no discussion passes on a voice vote.

#21 Capital view height projections – no registrants, opened, closed, moved approval, no discussion passes on a voice vote.

#22 Ward 147 added to district 1 – no registrants, opened, closed, moved approval, no discussion passes on a voice vote.

#23 Ward 148 to ward 7 – no registrants, opened, closed, moved approval, no discussion passes on a voice vote.

ITEMS REMAINING FOR ACTION

Visions

#32 Visions Nightclub entity reorganization

#33 Visions Disciplinary matter

Bidar moves to place 32 on file without prejudice and item #33 is to move to accept stipulated agreement, Verveer seconds.

Jeff Scott Olson representing Visions and wishes to speak. He says #32 is a change of organization involving new officers that is contingent upon the sale of the business. The sale of the business is on the ALRC for an issuance of a new license to new buyers so it doesn’t make sense to consider #32 until that is approved or rejected and that is why both the ALRC and the local alderman have recommended the action that they have on 32. #33 is the result of evidentiary proceedings and negotiations between the business and the city attorney’s office and the has the recommendation of the ALRC.

No questions, no discussion. Passes on a voice vote.

Truman Olson

#88 – Truman Olson development team

James Furmas neither supporting nor opposing and not wishing to speak.

Laurie Ann Carrie in support and wishing to speak but she is no longer there.

David Hoffert says he tried to have it on the consent agenda if he was the only speaker and he was flummoxed. He’s in support, the main motivation for recommending Rule was that the possible timeline for a grocery store is much faster and he supports that reasoning but he also wants to call out the tremendous amount of affordable housing included in Rules’ proposal, an impressive number compared to the proposals we often see, this city desperately needs as much affordable housing as they can build.

Motion to adopt.

No discussion.