The Oshkosh Common Council on Nov. 11 authorized city staff to begin the formal process to acquire a storm sewer easement needed for Advocap’s childcare incubator and directed staff to prioritize negotiated solutions with property owners.

Tanya Marco, executive director of Advocap, told the council the easement is "critical to the timely construction of Advocap's child care incubator," a project the council unanimously approved Aug. 12, 2025. Marco warned that delay could force redesign, increase engineering costs and push completion dates.

Engineering staff presented four technical options to avoid acquiring the easement: two were hydraulically infeasible because they would move stormwater into another watershed and increase flooding risk near Jackson and Snell; two feasible options required extensive new or upsized storm sewer—roughly 1,100–1,200 feet of new pipe and additional easements affecting 4–5 properties—and would significantly raise costs and neighborhood impacts.

Council discussion centered on minimizing neighborhood impact while ensuring effective stormwater conveyance. Several council members said they prefer negotiating purchases with willing sellers—either for the easement or for the property outright—rather than immediately pursuing eminent domain. City legal staff explained that passing the resolution begins the statutory process (notice, appraisal and owner rights) and preserves the city's procedural position if court involvement becomes necessary.

The council then adopted Resolution 25-5-78 to authorize the determination of necessity and to proceed with the acquisition steps, with staff instructed to negotiate in the order of preference discussed and to return with negotiated offers or further recommendations.

Next steps: Public Works and legal staff will begin appraisal and owner-notice procedures and continue direct negotiations with property owners and Advocap to complete the project without unnecessary delay.