Oshkosh City Council candidates focus on housing, water infrastructure and transparency at League forum

Five candidates for Oshkosh City Council discussed housing, water infrastructure, city governance and other local priorities at a League of Women Voters forum in Oshkosh ahead of the April 2 spring election.

Winnebago County Supervisor Jacob Flom, small-business owner Chris Larson, D.J. Nichols (vice president and assistant general counsel at Great Wolf Lodge), plan-commission member Christopher Ulrich and candidate Thomas Azuma each described their backgrounds and offered proposals on housing, budgets, infrastructure and transparency in city government.

The housing shortage in Oshkosh — particularly the availability of low- and moderate-income units — drew the most sustained attention. Flom called for remediation of blighted and brownfield sites and use of grant funding to convert underused parcels into housing, saying the center city and infill sites “are a great place to have a lot of those future developments.” Larson said he would push to reinstate a housing authority board, create a tenant resource center and change planning and building rules to make development easier; he described the need to address a perception that “Oshkosh is a harder place to build” than neighboring communities. Nichols urged public-private partnerships and pointed to regional examples, saying officials should study models such as Sheboygan’s Founders Point and consider using state options to extend incentives for low-income housing. Ulrich favored increasing overall housing stock and suggested including a percentage of units priced below market rate as new projects are built. Azuma emphasized current private developments that will expand supply.

Candidates also emphasized infrastructure and quality-of-life investments. Nichols prioritized the city’s water system — including completion of the Clearwells project, identification and replacement of lead service lines and pursuing state funding for PFAS remediation — and warned of past failures that reduced intake capacity. Several candidates said roads and bridges require increased investment; Larson and others said bonds or tax tools should be used carefully while also supporting growth and amenities that expand the tax base.

On form of government and transparency, candidates broadly supported retaining the council-manager structure in place under Wisconsin law (Flom noted Oshkosh is a Chapter 64 city). Several candidates invoked Wisconsin’s open-meetings rules and “walking quorum” limits when asked about conferring with fellow council members before meetings; Flom and others said deliberations should generally occur in public and that closed session is available for sensitive matters.

Other agenda items included parks and neighborhood stabilization, economic and industrial development, and whether the city should create staff-level director positions for diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and for sustainability. Most candidates said they would support hiring a DEI director and a sustainability director if the details and budgets were appropriate; Larson said the DEI office should have some procedural authority, while Azuma and others preferred to review scope and day-to-day duties before committing.

The forum also covered election logistics: the moderator noted the April 2 spring election and reminded voters that polls are open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., photo ID is required, and resources include vote411.org and myvote.wi.gov. Early in-person absentee voting was described as available at 19 East Irving (voters were told to check the city clerk’s office for times and any location changes).

The forum was hosted by the League of Women Voters of Winnebago County and moderated by the local League president. The candidates each made closing remarks and urged turnout for the April 2 vote.