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1st Amendment Larry Rhoden Mayor TenHaken Paul Ten Haken Riverline District Sioux Falls

UPDATE III: A Generational Change? LOL!

l3wis February 16, 2026 20Comments

UPDATE III: As one person texted me after the presser, ‘I have more questions then answers.’ Yah think?

We heard very little about cleanup and redevelopment, and here are lingering concerns;

• Why was Mark Cotter secretly meeting with Smithfields over wastewater for a year? And what was promised? And how much of this expansion has to do with Smithfields? And if it is, what are they paying for the expansion? Does the council even know? Secret deals are never good deals, heck, the last COS was involved (oh and Poops announced that Vanessa is his current COS. I don’t remember that going thru a review process.)

• They are already getting a TIF thru the Development Foundation for the new plant. What other tax rebates and incentives were included?

• This will be an automated plant as assumed, so how many jobs will be lost in transition? Maybe none since they plan to almost double capacity.

• Denny is paying $50 million for the property and gifting to The Development Foundation which will parcel it off and make lots of $$$ from it. Will these profits be offered to help clean up the property?

• Who is paying for the cleanup? Like I said, an estimate 10 years ago was $100 million to properly demolish and remediate waste from the site. So why would Denny pay $50 million for a property that will cost another $100 million to clean up? Because we will be paying for it and the Development Foundation and their cabal of grifters will cash in. Someone told me they will likely call it the ‘Sanford District’. Oh Puke.

We have a few years before we have to face this, but I will damned if we are going to pay to clean up the communist’s mess! Not gonna happen. They have made BILLIONS from this community, they should do the right thing and pay for cleanup and sell the land privately.

UPDATE II: Lalley busted the cherry, they are tearing down Smithfields.

I guess we will find out more at the presser, but I have quite a few questions, like a timeline and what kind of handouts? If a new plant will be built in Foundation Park, they are already getting a TIF, so who will pay for the cleanup of the old plant? The Feds? The State? The City? These communists have made billions from us, they should pay to clean up the land, and sell it to developers. I guess we will find out how much this ‘generational change’ is going to cost us.

UPDATE: I figured perusing some DTSF bars tonight I would be able to dig up this announcement. I did. But I promised my source I would not reveal, but if you contact me personally, I will tell you. It is actually something most SF residents have wanted to have happen for a very long time. Also, the irony is I thot about this morning on a ride, ‘Maybe it is this?’ and I laughed and said to myself ‘Pipe dream’. Like I said, very positive for the community, but my concern is what will it cost taxpayers? It is so huge, we will have to partake, but how much? Also I heard the deal was inked by Rhoden and forced onto Poops, which should not shock anyone. The only drawback besides us bailing out this adventure is the transition will actually cut hundreds of jobs, but in a good way?

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We don’t have the tax revenue in Sioux Falls to make a generational change, and neither does Pierre.

So all week I was looking forward to just going out to a party on Friday night to hang out with friends and NOT talk about Sally or any politics. As I am walking out the door I get a text about Rhoden and Ten Haken’s ‘Generational Change’ coming to Sioux Falls and the announcement Monday morning. My guess is this was cooked up over the last couple of weeks because I know so many leaks in the Sioux Falls city government sinking ship that I would have been told what it was already.

So after the first text my phone started to blow up. ‘What is this?’ or ‘I think it is this.’ I gotta tell yah, I don’t have a freaking clue, but as I had discussions with folks we created theories and here are the TOP three;

• Convention Center

• Data Center

• Dumpling Factory

Heck, they might come out on all 3! Who knows. My top guess, and I am hoping one of my leakers fills me in before Monday, is the state will help fund a convention center thru low interest state loans. But how is this a generational change? It is not. A DATA center farm may be closer to a generational change, but that is also odd. And who can forget the millions the state and city gave away to bring in a dumpling factory that pays slave wages.

Just once I would love a politician to come to the podium and announce real change that doesn’t cost taxpayers a penny and is completely transparent. Who am I kidding?

How can you come out with such a huge announcement that has been shrouded in secrecy and expect people to get behind it? Rhoden is running for governor and if you see his latest poll numbers he may come in 4th in the primary and he is grasping at anything. Policy changes not expenditures make generational change. Throwing tax dollars into a burn barrel is not change, it is stupidity. But hey, a duck is a duck, and these ducks are walking us off a cliff.

What do you think it is? And if you have evidence showing exactly what this is, please send it to me, would love to make the announcement before them.

1st Amendment Cartoon Donita Trump Noem Humor Kristi Noem Political Satire Satire

Noemzi has a small problem

l3wis February 15, 2026 6Comments

1st Amendment Sioux Falls Uncategorized

What is the City of Sioux Falls doing with our Data?

l3wis February 12, 2026 3Comments

I’ve asked this question many times from city officials, never get an answer. You would think the city would share with the citizens what they are doing with the data? Because as you can see, it can be VERY useful for city government;

It can be very helpful to the public collecting and analyzing that data. In fact the city thinks it is so helpful the salary budget for the department is around $1 Million a year;

First off, the obvious. If the city is collecting data on citizens, that needs to be shared quarterly on the city website. Secondly, we need to be told what the data was used for and how it has improved our lives or made the city more efficient. I don’t think the city is using it for that. When you have corporate executive raises and over $100 million in no bid contracts, it seems to me the city isn’t depending on the data to much, because if they were, things would be a lot more efficient and fiscally responsible.

So why the secrecy and what do I speculate the data is being used for? I think ‘certain’ folks in the city are siphoning the data in some kind of quasi legal way. What could you use that data for? Well, any business owner that provides a service in town would eat that stuff up, so it could be sold, but not sure how they could get away with that. I do know the data is shared with other communities, which is good, and it could be siphoned off that way also. But my bigger concern is that a political campaign consultant got their hands on the data, it could be VERY beneficial when cross-referencing voter lists. I am NOT making any accusations, but it sure seems curious to me that the city spends a million a year to collect data on us and never shares it (accept on this terrible search engine that reminds me of Yahoo, 2003). Somebody is using it, while we are paying to collect it.

1st Amendment Employment Mayor TenHaken Sioux Falls

It pays to work in the Sioux Falls City Attorney’s office

l3wis February 11, 2026 2Comments

As I was perusing the salary data, I was alarmed at the massive wage increases over the past 4 years in the city attorney’s office.

DATA: 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026

First off, this is an 8-5 job unlike private practice and I can guarantee if you are a private attorney in Sioux Falls you ain’t pulling this much and you are likely working 60+ hours a week. But what else is astonishing is our city attorneys are rarely litigators. The city pays out MILLIONS each year in outside legal counsel and is constantly defending suits due to their lack of transparency, maybe this is why they pay them so well? Not sure, but when I was talking to some minion city employees about this recently their heads were about to explode. Some if not most of these attorneys were getting almost a 40% raise in 4 years! That is 10% a year! No for profit corporation gives out those kind of raises. I also find it ironic that all the assistant attorneys make the exact same amount instead of based on case load or experience. Very odd. We also have to look at sales tax collection over the past 4 years, not even close to the 40%! All salaries come from 1st Penny sales tax revenue. This is just blatant fiscal corruption on the mayor’s part (he can give any amount of raise he wants to). I hope the next mayor goes on a termination spree and gets the city’s management salaries in context with economic realities. And the ones that have a problem with it and go get a job in the private sector, preferably in a different town. There is also the irony the mayor cutting library hours and MCC while handing our ridiculous raises NOT based on performance.

Allenstein, Keith E Senior Assistant City Attorney $123,572.80-(23) $145,433.60-(24) $150,529.60-(25) $162,032.00-(26) 4 YEAR RAISE: $38,459

Bengford, Paul M Senior Assistant City Attorney $123,572.80-(23) $145,433.60-(24) $150,529.60-(25) $162,032.00-(26) 4 YEAR RAISE: $38,459

Engel, Amanda W Senior Assistant City Attorney NOT EMPLOYED-(23) $145,433.60-(24) $150,529.60-(25) $162,032.00-(26) 4 YEAR RAISE: $38,459

Golden, William H Senior Assistant City Attorney NOT EMPLOYED-(23) $145,433.60-(24) $150,529.60-(25) $162,032.00-(26) 4 YEAR RAISE: $38,459

Pfeifle, David A City Attorney NOT EMPLOYED (Outgoing salary of former city attorney was $180,000-(23) $217,360.00-(24) $227,219.20-(25) $236,371.20 4 YEAR RAISE: $56,370

Attorney Laurenz, Cheryl F Senior Assistant City Attorney $123,572.80-(23) $145,433.60-(24) $150,529.60-(25) $162,032.00-(26) 4 YEAR RAISE: $38,459

Attorney Leonard, Karen A Deputy City Attorney $147,971.20-(23) $180,481.60-(24) $186,804.80-(25) $192,400.00-(26) 4 YEAR RAISE: $44,429

Attorney Sage, Ryan J Senior Deputy City Attorney $123,572.80-(23) $154,752.00-(24) $160,160.00-(25) $173,700.80-(26) 4 YEAR RAISE: $50,128

Attorney Schlimgen, Catherine A Senior Assistant City Attorney $101,025.60-(23) $125,840.00-(24) $137,051.20-(25) $148,137.60-(26) 4 YEAR RAISE: $47,000

Mulder, Amber L Senior Assistant City Attorney NOT EMPLOYED-(23) $145,433.60-(24) $150,529.60-(25) $162,032.00-(26) 4 YEAR RAISE: $38,459

1st Amendment Downtown Sioux Falls Public Utilities Public Works SF City Council Sioux Falls Sioux Falls Parks and Rec

Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth

l3wis February 10, 2026 6Comments

During the city council meeting tonight there was a debate about how much money will be spent on the new Frank Olson Industrial Complex. The bond approved was for $47 million, but some kind folks wanted to give $1 million for the place, which was accepted. It is also a one time gift. The Parks department employees really want to spend the money on ‘extras’ because every time they walk to the podium they are salivating over all the extra crap they get to buy. Where the Kirby’s messed up was giving the entire amount all at once, this of course was a tax write-off and the reason the Kirby’s created the PRIVATE parks foundation was to funnel tax write-offs into our parks system. Not a bad idea, the problem is the money needs to be more focused and beneficial to the citizens. This EXTRA money is unusual because usually a major sponsorship like this would be over a decade and the money dispersed evenly over the 10 years and used mostly for operating. The sponsors should have handed the money to the Development Foundation and let them disperse the money over a decade to the city for operating expenses and signage (which should not cost more then $30K). I don’t have a problem with the gift, but it seems like the city is just going to piss it down their legs, BUT as long as the IRS is happy, who cares?!

THE ROAD(s) TO NOWHERE

The council also debated the new Minnesota Avenue expansion between 2nd and 7th for $12 Million, $7 million below expected bid. The design alone cost us $1 Million. I guess our city engineers do NO engineering, I heard they mostly run errands during the work day.

Curtist the Blurtist bitched about the medians and wondered about changing design, Cotter said, ‘too late’ design is all done and you would have to go out for new bids with changes. I don’t think this city council has a clue what our city departments are up to, and that is on purpose. They love to plead ignorance and they did it a lot tonight. So get ready for Minnesota Avenue to look like a scene from the Brutalist as Vernon Brown referenced tonight.

HEY TRE! DO YOU STILL EXIST?

Or did you take my advice and change the name to Lyre Ministries? Also, what is Ryan Spellerberg’s association with the org? He didn’t LEGALLY provide his conflict to the citizens during the meeting while participating in ALL of the other meetings leading up to the 2nd reading including voting. Dude really doesn’t understand muni government, which is astonishing being in the real estate business, or maybe not 🙂

Either way, a friend who lives in the neighborhood called me bitching,

“What the F— are they doing with this property? F’ing street been closed for months and no work. What the F—?!”

I of course laughed and said that the place will probably never get built and sold to some developer who wants to build a big apartment building or an oil change place casino, I also told him that the city closes streets all the time and nothing happens. There is a closed street on my block and they use it as storage. I have lived in my home for 24 years and the same two semi-trailers have sat on the land the entire time. No plates, no registration, no nothing. I have reported it to the county for licensing and they told me to go to Hell and said it was a city issue. The city did nothing when I told them, except that it was ‘private property’. NO IT IS NOT! IT IS AN EASEMENT!

My point? Don’t close streets in residential neighborhoods, it just attracts cockroaches and grifters.

If I was a betting man, my guess is there will NEVER be an indentured X-tian servant apartment complex built there. But, man, can’t we dream of a world where the White Christian Nationalist Housing and Coffee House becomes reality?

God, please save us from these folks. Please. As Jimmy Stewart would say, “God… I’m not a praying man, but if you’re up there and you can hear me, show me the way”. Or better yet, show the council. They sure could use a Clarence or a Kermit these days 🙂

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