Over the years, Soldier’s Square in Appleton has disintegrated, former alderperson Christine Williams told Fox 11.
When land was donated in 1851 for the memorial to veterans, there was a stipulation that the land should be used as a public walkway, according to Fox 11.
“Since that time, the city has continued to erode, pick away at this public space,” Williams said. “Now, it’s no more than a concrete parking lot with a really nice sculpture on it.”
An effort is underway to restore the square.
“We all have veterans in our family; they’ve all made continuing sacrifices, and we need to honor that,” George Schoeder, executive director at Hearthstone Historic House, told Fox 11.
A 2019 fundraiser called Every Soldier’s Square sold historic bricks engraved with the name of a veteran to be installed on the square, but none of the bricks have been installed yet.
“We can’t use them because there’s been this continual problem of changing the design downtown, what’s going to be happening with the library, with the U.S. Venture project, with the parking ramp and moving the parking ramp,” Schoeder told Fox 11.
A resolution has been introduced to spend taxpayer money on the project.
“To spend taxpayers’ money to reconstruct a portion of a street that is in excellent condition was hard to do when we have so much infrastructure that needs work,” Paula Vandehey, Appleton public works director, told Fox 11.
Funding the Soldier’s Square restoration project would require the city to borrow money or take another project off its five-year list, Fox 11 reported.
Alderperson Chad Dora said the city is facing other major infrastructure needs. He called the Soldier’s Square project “more of a want than a need for the community,” according to Fox 11.
