Green Bay City Council District 7 candidates Adrian Liddicoat, Alyssa Proffitt vie for open seat

GREEN BAY - Green Bay central city voters on April 2 will choose a new voice to represent them on the Green Bay City Council for the next two years.

Adrian Liddicoat, a sales manager, and Alyssa Proffitt, a health care supervisor, will vie to succeed outgoing incumbent Randy Scannell, who chose not to seek reelection this spring. District 7 is one of three districts where incumbents chose not to run again.

District 7 covers parts of the central city on both shores of the Fox River and East River. The district includes parts of Fort Howard, Northwest Railway Gardens, Fisk Park, Olde North, Joannes Park, Downtown, and Whitney Park neighborhoods.

Ahead of the April 2 election, the Press-Gazette requested each City Council candidate provide some background about themselves and answer several questions issues like funding road construction, spending and housing. Responses were limited to about 200 words. Candidates are listed alphabetically.

For information about registering to vote and polling locations, visit the MyVote Wisconsin website at myvote.wi.gov/en-us.

More spring election coverage:As Green Bay City Council candidates raise cash, worries about dark money, attack ads arise

Adrian Liddicoat

• Age: 37
• Occupation: Sales manager
• Highest level of education: Associate's degree in computer support from Northeast Wisconsin Technical College
• Campaign website: Adrian Liddicoat for District 7
• Why are you running? To serve and be a voice for the citizens of District 7 on the Green Bay City Council. This is one of the lowest income districts in the city, and the hundreds of people I've talked to feel under-represented and under-served. They don't know the person who says he represents them, they feel their streets lack basic maintenance and security, and they feel their concerns are ignored. I'm going to speak for them.
• What two issues most need to be addressed in Green Bay: Equitable access to city services: My constituents have major concerns about how their district is served in terms of law enforcement and maintenance, and I have a list of those concerns to bring to the council, and a list of households to report back to. Smart spending: We owe it to the people who have the least and struggle the most to spend tax dollars in an intelligent way and give them an intelligent investment in their community. I'm going to treat the city budget like my budget.

Alyssa Proffitt

• Age: 27
• Occupation: Supervisor of physician coding liaisons for the Hospital Based Specialties
• Highest level of education: Medical coding specialist technical program at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College
• Campaign website: Alyssa Proffitt for City Council - Green Bay District 7
• Why are you running? After I got involved in our neighborhood association, we identified questions and concerns that ultimately led me to a lengthy sit down with the current alder. We discovered some projects within our neighborhood would require city council approval. After bringing a project proposal through the city process, I began to watch all the committee and council meetings. I have passion and persistence for the city that’s rooted in what I experience as a neighbor myself.
• What two issues most need to be addressed in Green Bay: Housing for all income levels needs to be a priority within the city. There’s many exciting developments on the horizon and currently under construction. I look forward to the opportunity to further support growth while being mindful to engage neighbors along the way. Infrastructure within our city is without question a top area of concern for many neighbors. We can and should put work into a comprehensive, sustainable, and equitable approach to address the needs of our city’s infrastructure.

Green Bay is currently studying the feasibility of a transportation utility to fund road construction costs like water or sewer service. Why do you support or oppose this idea to replace the wheel tax? 

Liddicoat: I would prefer to study the numbers, study the impact on the average household, and then discuss this issue with my voters. District 7 citizens already feel like they lack communication from the mayor and City Council — I wouldn't want to commit to advancing a position that would potentially cost my constituents hard-earned money without discussing it with my constituents at their doorsteps first.

Proffitt: I believe the wheel tax accelerated much needed repairs in many neighborhoods including my own, and eliminated what could often be costly special assessments out of many neighbors' budgets. However, I’m eager to hear the results of the feasibility study of the transportation utility. I listened to the consultant presentation both at the committee and council meetings. The reality is the wheel tax addresses vehicles that are licensed within the city, and the transportation utility has the ability to go beyond just those vehicles. I’m thankful the city is continuing to look into various avenues that could assist with more accelerated road repairs.

How can Green Bay better address residents' need for affordable housing and the general shortage of housing units?

Liddicoat: I've been discussing this with some of my voters already, and they share the same concerns. They've given me suggestions like tax breaks for builders of affordable single family homes, and tax penalties for corporations that buy up so many of the single family homes to rent them back at a significant profit over the mortgage payment.

Proffitt: To address housing shortages goes beyond the notion to simply build more housing. I absolutely support the need to build more housing for all income levels throughout the city. I also support the idea of a community land trust in which the city is currently looking into. A community land trust is a unique opportunity to preserve affordability of housing in our community. In addition, after conversations with neighbors, I’d like to take a deeper look at parking in relation to multifamily housing units currently in our city.

Almost any significant budget cut will involve personnel cuts, which impacts city services. If you want to cut property taxes, what services should be cut to do so?

Liddicoat: Before committing to any budget change in print, I want to go through the budget, treating it like my constituents — who are among the hardest struggling in the city — would go through their household budget. And then I want to discuss it with my constituents. More than anything, District 7 citizens feel like they lack communication from their city leader and representatives on issues that impact them the most.

Proffitt: I’m thankful for the services provided by the city. Though we have seen an increase in property taxes, I do not wish to cut city services or personnel.

Green Bay's recent population growth has been driven by our Hispanic, Black, Native American, biracial and Asian communities. Yet recent Wello surveys show nearly one-third of residents feel like Green Bay does not accept people with different ideas. How can the Green Bay City Council help increase acceptance and well-being as we grow?

Liddicoat: When I go out to knock on doors, I don't ask for votes. I ask what concerns the homeowner has for their neighborhood and their city. And when I approach that household, I don't check to see if the window has a law enforcement sticker, if the vehicle has a firefighter plate, if the flagpole has a Trump or Pride or any other type of flag. I knock on the door, and I listen to the person inside tell me their concerns as an individual. We need better communication from city government, and we need to meet people where they are in life and listen to those individuals and what they have to say.

Proffitt: To increase acceptance and well-being in our community means to include neighbors in more decisions, remove what barriers are within our scope to remove, and to demonstrate as a collective council that we welcome every voice in our community to have a seat at the table. Our current council does not reflect the diversity within our community. There is work to be done to ensure all neighbors feel their voice is not only heard but valued. I hope to be accessible and approachable for all neighbors in our community.

Contact Jeff Bollier at (920) 431-8387 orjbollier@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JeffBollier.