Wednesday, December 21, 2005

100 Main Street ?

Contributed by: popo
Is there not supposed to be a pizza joint there by now? I thought that's way the liquor license was not taken / reviewed by the council. If so why has this not been looked into again?

The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: Anonymous on Wednesday, December 21 2005 @ 09:23 PM MST
As with most things Ben Ganther brags he's doing for this city, this too has feet-dragging written all over it. Snags here and snags there. "Snags" and "delays" seem to be Mr. Ganther's middle names. Is he up to date on paying the taxes he was in arrears with 8 or 9 months ago?

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: Mike Norton on Wednesday, December 21 2005 @ 09:38 PM MST
Was not "Cranky Pat's " suppose to be up and running by December. Look like no activity in the first floor at 100 N Main Street ,from what I see.

Cranky Pats is turning into a "Exclusive Company Situation " - more talk than action.

Maybe the pizza place will be up by the end of this decade and not into next decade.

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, December 22 2005 @ 07:41 AM MST
Are we still holding the liquor license for them?

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, December 22 2005 @ 09:09 AM MST
Yes indeedee! What Ben Ganther wants, Ben Ganther seems to get where this city is concerned.

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: DP on Thursday, December 22 2005 @ 03:47 PM MST
Once again the city council is alright with bending the rules by "holding" this liquor license. I hope that Cheryl will ask Bain and Scheuermann how long the council will be willing to make this exception for Mr. Ganther. Where is the accountability?

I say give it to someone who will open up an establishment with better payouts on their gaming machines!

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: admin on Thursday, December 22 2005 @ 07:47 PM MST
Thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately, neither Tony or I even thought about this issue at the time, but the show is already taped. It starts airing Monday, 12/26. I will pass the concern on to both Bryan and Meredith, as well as Paul Esslinger. Let's see if we can't get an answer for folks. Thanks again.

- Cheryl

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, December 22 2005 @ 08:05 PM MST
Hello to all-Good question. I will pose it to the City Manager and get you a response.

Merry Christmas

Meredith Scheuermann

PS If you ever have a question for us, feel free to contact me on my city website email or my home phone number.

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, December 25 2005 @ 06:39 AM MST
It was stated in Saturday's Northwestern, that Cranky Pats is to
open in March.

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, December 26 2005 @ 12:27 PM MST
Sounds like Ben Ganther needs to get a better handle on how to estimate timelines for his projects. He's always late with everything, including paying his taxes on property he's gotten good deal on. That should be his new year's resolution.

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, December 26 2005 @ 02:18 PM MST
Are we still holding a liquor license for him?

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, December 26 2005 @ 05:09 PM MST
Yes.

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, December 26 2005 @ 05:31 PM MST
Classic example of special treatment given by city hall to its favored developers. It's no wonder people get angry.

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: popo on Monday, December 26 2005 @ 08:23 PM MST
Pretty amazing that none of our council members followed up on this after they were assured that this was going to happen by Mr. Ganther.

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: Anonymous on Wednesday, December 28 2005 @ 04:02 PM MST
Seems like you guys are dumping on Ben for cleaning up a part of town that looked like crap before the building was built. Did lots of others step up and take any risk on this, or was it just him?

I am an outsider, just discovered your little world here, sorry if I missed the boat that just left the Pioneer.

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: Anonymous on Wednesday, December 28 2005 @ 05:31 PM MST
Since you're an "outsider" as you say you are unaware of the ongoing saga with Ben Ganther. It might be wise to know more of what you are talking about before putting your mouth in the "engage" mode. No one is dumping on him for cleaning something up. It's the rest of the story that is the sore spot for many people.

You also asked if others stepped up. Yes they did. But it was Ben Ganther who got to be in executive sessions with our city leaders, not the others and it was Ben Ganther who got a TIF district created for him and was given the land for $1 or less. Too bad you did not know those things either before engaging your mouth.

It is too bad you missed the boat that left the Pioneer. Not to worry though. They'll be plenty of others for your to catch once our $286,000 floating docks get built next spring.

Sincerely yours,
An Insider

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: OshRocks! on Thursday, December 29 2005 @ 09:21 AM MST
Way to bully someone looking into what's going on. Please just comment on the 'comment' rather than on the author. This sort of response is not conducive to an open forum which this site encourages. I would think it discourages newcomers.

Ironic, isn't it, that someone refers to themselves as an outsider - rather than a newcomer. With the response that the writer received, it's no wonder. I say WELCOME - let's hear what you have to say!

Regardless of the additional time that Mr. Ganther took to get a first floor tennant (isn't the rest of the building filling up nicely though) - he's got one and progress is being made. It's good to see this 100 Main move ahead.

Peace and Good Will in the New Year!

VB

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: admin on Wednesday, December 28 2005 @ 09:50 PM MST
This is the response forwarded to me by councilwoman Meredith Scheuermann from city manager Richard Wollangk...

"A liquor license is granted for a year at a time (July 1st - June 30th). Last June when the liquor license came up the question was raised about what Mr. Ganther was doing with his for the 100 block and he said, I believe, that he would surrender it if he did not have something going by I thought it was September. By September he had a commitment from Cranky's Pat for the pizza place and the council did not bring him in for a revocation hearing. The latest I heard is that the construction has started and they are opening in February. (what I saw in the paper) If the council wants us to do something else let me know and we will proceed accordingly."
- from Richard Wollangk, Oshkosh City Manager, 12/27/05

As a follow-up to that, Mrs. Scheuermann added the following comment...

"I am of the opinion if indeed, construction is taking place, then we should allow it to continue. I will admit it might be prudent for someone (not sure who, council, city manager, city clerk's office, someone) to keep a closer tab so we don't have an Exclusive Company incident where 'they are coming,' 'they are coming,' etc. Again, it appears that they are on target to open shortly, so we should allow the liqour license to stand. Additionally, in my view, this is not because it is Ben Ganther, I believe we would have the same feeling if it was anybody who was eager to invest in our city. Sometimes accomodating an unknown situation is best for all parties."
- from Councilwoman Meredith Scheuermann, 12/27/05

Eye on Oshkosh thanks both of them for their timely response. Bryan Bain also had begun making inquiries on this request and we also thank him for his assistance.

- Cheryl Hentz

100 Main Street ?
Authored by: admin on Sunday, April 09 2006 @ 06:32 AM MDT
The date is now April 9. The last the city was told was that this pizza place was to open sometime in March, was it not? Is it just me or do there usually seem to be delays with projects Ben Ganther is involved with?

- Cheryl

Tuesday, December 20, 2005

Common Council candidacy announcement - Mike Domke

Contributed by: Mike

I would like to announce my candidacy in the spring election for Oshkosh Common Council. As you may recall I was a candidate for the council in 2005 and it was a very positive experience to participate in the election. Since then I have had the opportunity to participate in the Citizens Academy, where I gained insight into both the structure and process of Oshkosh city government. I have also continued to follow the actions of the council and the various actions which affect all residents of Oshkosh.

For those who may be unfamiliar with me or my background, here is a quick biography: I am 35 years old and have been employed by the State of Wisconsin-Department of Corrections for 15 years. My current position is as the facility Work Release Coordinator at Winnebago Correctional Center. I have been an Oshkosh resident for the past eleven years. My family consists of my wife of 8 years Amy and our two children Brianna 4 years old and Kyle who is 11 months old.

My reason for running is I want the citizens to have someone who will look out for their best interests, yet still remain open-minded about changes from which Oshkosh and our residents may benefit. I feel that the council needs to have members who will be willing to make the tough choices associated with state mandated freezes. As a council member I will weigh the concerns of the citizens in my decision-making process and vote for what is best for Oshkosh as a whole. I feel the current council members too often come into meetings having their minds made up and not willing to consider options presented. I don't think Oshkosh residents are best served with that kind of governing style.

In closing, I would greatly appreciate your support of my campaign whether it’s in the form of your vote, signature on my nomination form, placement of a yard sign or any other support you can give. Please feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns you may have. I can be reached by phone at 920-410-2919 or via email at mdomke1@new.rr.com.

Thank you,

Mike Domke

Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Board’s, Stephany’s attitudes height of arrogance

As most of you know a fishing pier donated to the city last summer has caused a flurry of debate among residents, many of whom are neighbors to the Miller’s Bay area where the pier is scheduled to be built next year.

Many oppose the location, but the other reason this has become such a controversial issue is because many feel the public was not given time to voice its concern on the project, nor did the city council have ample time to consider it. The parks advisory board voted on the issue on a Monday (in a meeting that lasted 20-some minutes and included other items on the agenda) and the very next evening it was before the city council for a decision.

The issue of the pier’s intended location is still being debated and fought through various legal channels, but City Councilor Bryan Bain, who also serves on the parks board as its council representative, has recommended that the board’s monthly meetings be scheduled on alternate weeks from city council meetings. That way this kind of thing will hopefully not happen again and more time for review and consideration will be added to the process.

But his suggestion has now been met with arrogance and defiance by board members and parks director Tom Stephany alike, who basically have said “There is no need to change the way we do things. Things work fine just the way they are.”

Clearly, folks, they do not. If they did much of this firestorm over the pier could, and likely would have, been avoided. But this is even more indicative of the fact that Stephany seems to possess an attitude that the parks are his and he can do with him what he and his cronies want. He seems to forget that the parks belong to the people of this community. That’s why they’re called public parks.

The city has some problems:
First, it has a parks board that has a member of the Otter Street Fishing Club on it. This is the very group which donated the pier and member Terry Wohler voted on it. Certainly that gives the image of a conflict of interest.

Second, we have a parks director who wants to defy a city council member who is trying to improve things so problems like this do not come up again. And let’s not forget this is the same parks director who stumbled and stammered all over the place when he tried explaining to the city council how he decides who will be notified of impending parks projects and who won’t. I know some people have written letters to the local newspaper praising Stephany for all he does for our parks. Granted most of our parks are beautiful. But he has destroyed Menominee Park and this pier will not help improve that situation. Moreover, let’s not act as though Mr. Stephany is so benevolent in his efforts to make our parks looking nice; after all taking care of the parks is his job, a job he is paid handsomely for.

Third, at the time this all happened, the city council talked about finding out what other cities do to notify residents of prospective park projects. What is happening with that? Councilor Meredith Scheuermann said at the time that even if other cities did not have a formal notification policy there was no reason Oshkosh could not be a leader in that area. We need to make sure our city council stays on top of that.

Additionally, it seems Bryan Bain should now draft a change, put it on the council meeting agenda and shut Stephany out of the process as he seems to want to do in certain cases with citizens. The council then needs to approve Bain’s recommendation. If Stephany and certain parks board members don’t like it they can either live with it or move on. But clearly the council needs to help rein in Mr. Stephany because our city manager doesn’t seem to have a good handle on the situation.

- Cheryl Hentz

The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.

Board’s, Stephany’s attitudes height of arrogance
Authored by: Jim B. on Tuesday, December 13 2005 @ 01:49 PM MST
Don't plan on the "Good ol boy network" ending any time soon! What bothers me about this as much as Stephany, is in the article in the Northwestern two other "Board" members took the same approach. That it is basically the Councils job to table these issues if they require more information or thought. Now this may be true, but how about cleaning your own house before you rip someone elses? Could it possible hurt to at least be open to a change in timing?

The arrogance that this is "not our problem", and, "this is the way we have always done it" astounds me. Are these people living in the same century as us?

Thank you Brian for standing up, and don't let this one go! I am sure you will have the support of the citizens on this issue!

Jim B.

Board's, Stephany's attitudes height of arrogance
Authored by: admin on Tuesday, December 13 2005 @ 02:12 PM MST
Jim I couldn't agree with you more. Bryan Bain will be taping a show with us soon and I will be sure to ask him how he feels about this latest "stunt" and what he plans to do about it, if anything. People like Tom Stephany, right along with these parks board members, need a wake-up call as to who pays the bills and who is the boss in this city.

- Cheryl Hentz

P.S. Now, if Bryan can only get enough council members on his side to do the right thing on this issue.

Board's, Stephany's attitudes height of arrogance
Authored by: got it on Tuesday, December 13 2005 @ 04:41 PM MST
Just curiously, Cheryl, how did Tom Stephany ruin Menominie Park? I don't get there too much; just curious what your opinion is on how things have been poorly done.

Thanks.

Board's, Stephany's attitudes height of arrogance
Authored by: admin on Tuesday, December 13 2005 @ 06:09 PM MST
A wolf exhibit that has destroyed a beautiful view of the lake through the park (by the way, how often do the wolves really come out where they can be seen by people?); an elk exhibit that I believe was just approved this year; and he wants to put a bear exhibit in the park in the near future. Garbage cans have also been removed from the park, which he cited good reasons for doing but if you talk to people it is a pain in the rear-end and seems ridiculous. Those are just a few of the shining examples. Unless someone has lived here many years, they may not be able to appreciate the lost view because of the exhibits with their stockade fencing. Is the park still a nice park? Yes. But that portion of it now looks like something straight out of "F Troop" and looks extremely tacky.

- Cheryl

P.S. Let's also not overlook the pristine view Mr. Stephany and the Otter Street Fishing Club want to ruin with the fishing pier in Miller's Bay at the end of New York Avenue.

Board's, Stephany's attitudes height of arrogance
Authored by: shors on Wednesday, December 14 2005 @ 04:17 AM MST
Stephany does not seem to think the OSFC nor Parks Board has done
anything wrong. According to them, their system works and the
Common Council is accountable for all actions. The Common Council
has been rubber stamping the Parks Board, trusting their expertise and
time put into projects on the table. It is disappointing to see no
movement (other than Bain's attempt to change the Parks Board
meeting time) by the Common Council.

What I don't understand is that a while back, old playground
equipment was moved from various parks because the Parks Board
and Council members were concerned that children could get hurt and
it was a liability issue. Now a childrens fishing pier with no railings will
be put up with no question? Why don't they care about safety in this
case? And to top it off, they will put a Xmas Box Statue in a park to
mourn children who have died.........yet it is ok for the Parks Board to
put up an unsafe structure for kids? Why doesn't the Parks Board put
pressure on the Common Council to retrofit the pier to safety
standards? If this is how they think, then they should be asking the
Common Council to be accountable because safety is in their hands,
not the Parks Board.

Teri Shors

Board's, Stephany's attitudes height of arrogance
Authored by: Jim B. on Wednesday, December 14 2005 @ 01:41 PM MST
Cheryl,

I am not sure I would go so far to say Stephany has ruined the park. Being a season ticket holder to the Zoo, I take my children quite often. It is convenient and easy to get in and out. We actually see the wolves almost every visit. It really is not unlike other zoos where it depends on the time of day you are visiting. The area that houses the wolf's and future exhibits was not really used in the past anyway. I guess the fence doesnt bother me, and we should consider ourselves lucky to have a zoo like this for a city the size of Oshkosh.

As far as the garbage, this is something that irritates me. Visit any other park in the world (Golden Gate, Central Park, California beaches, etc) and they all have garbage cans. I have heard directly from Tom that people don't pick up their garbage and seagulls get into the cans. the cost to pick it up is too much! Give me a break! More people will leave there garbage lie if there is no where to put it. Also, you can't tell me there is not a can on the market that can keep out seagulls?? We have more goose poop in the park than we can deal with, but we can't pick up garbage?

I guess I should be careful, they might create a new fee to pick up garbage in Menomonee!

Jim B.

Board's, Stephany's attitudes height of arrogance
Authored by: admin on Wednesday, December 14 2005 @ 04:13 PM MST
Jim, I guess you are among the fortunate ones who gets to see the wolves practically every time you go. I've talked to a number of people who rarely see them. They are, after all, a basically shy animal.

I said earlier that I think Menominee is still a nice park but the fencing bothers plenty of people, including me. If you've not been here a long time you cannot appreciate the view that we lost as a result of this stockade fencing. That was careless and destructive, and all because Tom wanted a wolf exhibit.

Frankly the park is simply too small for the ambitious plans Mr. Stephany has - unless he wants to turn the whole thing into a zoo. He is trying to incorporate everything he had in his previous town here in Menominee Park and the plans he has for the zoo are just a little on the ridiculous side. Plus the taxpayers always seem to end up paying for some of these things, even though the zoological society said that wouldn't happen. The public misled and lied to again. What a surprise!

Again, I'm glad you enjoy the zoo. But we cannot keep stuffing 10 punds of stuff here and 10 pounds of stuff there into a 5 pound bag.

As far as the garbage cans, don't even get me started on that. It's just more silliness from Mr. Stephany.

- Cheryl

Indecent Exposure in the Park
Authored by: shors on Thursday, December 15 2005 @ 04:50 PM MST
I think a friend and I caught the first glimpse of what is to come if the
fishing pier is inserted into the NY avenue location. This past weekend,
a friend and I were walking the park and we were at the junction of
NY ave and Menominee Park. We noticed that there were ice houses in
Miller's bay--something we had not noticed in prior years. Then we
noticed two men with ice fishing gear. One sitting on a pail next to
the coniferous trees at the NY location and one man in the trees. I
asked my friend what they were doing.......she pointed out that the
one guy was urinating in the trees and indeed he was.

One of the arguments that people had in regard to this location for a
fishing pier was that it was not near facilities (which would be
especially helpful for handicapped individuals). Stephany and Engel
adamantly pointed out that it was a 2 minute walk to facilites---well--
-these able-bodied fishermen didn't do the two minute walk and it's
likely a lot of other people fishing will not either. We just caught a
glimpse of what is to come.

Does anyone know what the penalty is for indecent exposure or public
urination? Just curious. I'd be tempted to call the police if it keeps
happening.

Teri Shors

Board's, Stephany's attitudes height of arrogance
Authored by: shors on Thursday, December 15 2005 @ 04:55 PM MST
Cheryl,
I've never seen the wolves either but I have heard them in the early
morning hours. If the zoo continues expanding, there will have to be
higher fees---or will they add a zoo fee to our property tax bill?

Teri Shors