Appleton’s fire chief is planning to retire early next year.
Chief Len VanderWyst told city council members last night that he’s going to leave in March. He spent nearly nine years as the department’s leader, besides a brief stint in retirement in 2013.
VanderWyst says it’s time to pass over the reigns to somebody else. He says he wanted to give the city more time to find a replacement.
VanderWyst has been a member of the Appleton fire department for 23 years. After about 15 years, he left to become the chief of Neenah’s department. He then oversaw the merger with Menasha, and he was the chief of Neenah-Menasha Fire Rescue.
