Warren wanted me to start this thread – and I am glad he asked.
Snow removal in Sioux Falls is pretty good, but over the past few years, I have noticed it is not consistent and the quality has been going down hill.
Last year Theresa Stehly ran for SF city council on the platform of taxpayer money being spent on services for taxpayers (gee, what concept) like tree trimming on the boulevard, sidewalk repair, and snow gates.
Councilor Staggers even wanted to buy two snowgates to experiment with. That proposal went down in flames, and Vernon Brown even had a little hissy-fit over buying the gates- because he says they don’t work (even though we have not tried them yet) he must have a crystal ball(s). Snowgates actually work good as long as snowfall isn’t over 6″. And since we only get about one or two snowfalls a year that hit that mark, it seems they would be pretty effective. The nice part about them besides keeping the ends of our driveways clear, they are great for cleaning intersections (something our city is very inept about).
And this is my bitch. What’s the point of clearing the main routes like Cliff and Minnesota if you pile 4 feet of snow blocking the sidestreets? This is where snowgates would work good.
Got anything to add Warren?
We have it pretty good here, snowgates or not. The entire city of Tulsa (pop ~ 500,000) has a total of about a dozen snowplows and very little budgeted money for sand and salt trucks.
While it doesn’t sno there often, when it does, it’s a huge clusterf*ck. Ice storms are even worse.
That being said, snow removal in SF has really gotten inconsistant over the last few years.
Yeah, it’s the little things that they don’t do, like cleaning the intersections for DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYs. Luckily the casino by my house always plows early, so I just go through their parking lot to get onto Cliff.
I had gone to the city link earlier this morning to look at the brochure they sent out in the mail. (The better half must have thrown it out along with all those Natural Ice beer cans) Read it, and maybe I missed it, but I did not see where the city would invoke a snow alert based on amount of snow. Maybe I’m wrong, but I thought in years past they didn’t drag their snowplowing equipment out til there was 2 inches of snow, or say they claimed. More on that later.
Also read the Argus article today on ticketing. They claim most of the tickets are from zone 1. I disagree. My parents still live in their home in zone 2. I go over there to make sure things are OK a lot, and take care of their sidewalks and driveway. I have noticed this over the years concerning zone 2. I believe it is bordered by Western Avenue on the west, Cliff on the East, 33rd to the south, and Russell Avenue to the North. The city seems way to anxious to get to plowing these streets as quickly as they can. One time I was at my dads cleaning his driveway after about an inch of snow. I didn’t even use his snowblower…just just his push shovel. So I moved his car to the street to remove the snow from the driveway and twenty minutes later a plow went by followed about 5 minutes later by a patrolman putting a ticket on my dads windshield. I thought WTF.
And I see this going on all the time in zone 2. This city is taking advantage of a population that in many cases has no place to put their vehicle but out on the street. My parents are lucky in that regard. Way too many are not. The city knows it, and that’s how we pay people like Jodi Schwan.
You live, I guess from your writing, in Zone 1. Is this, in your opinion, where most of this revenue comes from?
Well, we lose money on plowing the streets, I can guarantee that, but I do think their ticketing and towing is bologna. I also have an issue with the cops who are either lying or don’t know the ordinances. Last year there was a snow alert in DT. According to how the ordinances read you can park on the street in a zone during a snow alert ‘as long as’ the street has been plowed. Well last year I did just that by the DT post office. I came back out to see a cop ticketing my car while the tow truck was jacking it up. I said, What up? The cop claimed to me that you can’t park ANYWHERE on the street while the snow alert was in affect DT. I said “but the street is plowed” he said, “Nope, they still have to remove snow from the corners” where they piled the snow. And apparently the trucks need the ENTIRE block to pickup snow on the corners. Trust me, I was ready to tell him he was being prick, but I had, had a couple of beers and figured it could get ugly. I had planned on leaving my car there overnight and walking home. The $25 dollar ticket didn’t bother me as much as the tow. He could easily just ticketed me and left my car there since it wasn’t in the way.
I do agree that the cops are ticketing too much and they are getting worse. It’s like I joke around with Kermit, they don’t have enough to do so they create crime and work for themselves.
I do agree that the cops are ticketing too much and they are getting worse. It’s like I joke around with Kermit, they don’t have enough to do so they create crime and work for themselves.
Case in point would be enforcing open container laws around Jazzfest. I wonder how many people didn’t fight those tickets and get them thrown out? Total BS and the City Attorney agrees.
I’d like to hear more about the jazzfest experience. What you talking about?
A bunch of my friends were walking down from a house party to Jazzfest when a couple of cops stepped out from the shadows and wrote them tickets for open containers – on the sidewalk, right in front of one of their parents’ house.
At least two of the ticketees got them thrown out for being complete BS, but I have to wonder how many people got those tickets who just paid them.
Apparently, the residents of Prarie Tree decided they didn’t like people littering on their lawns, so the police did the obvious thing and handed out open container tickets – to people who “may litter in the future”.
If people litter, give them a ticket for it. But don’t give them an open container ticket just to be a dick.
Never been to Jazzfest. You can be at that event with your own refreshments?
No. But people sneak stuff in or drink on the walk there.
Dude – the swine would have a hey day in my neighborhood. My neighbors party every weekend in the summer and walk back and forth across the street with their Bud Silos. It’s funny, because you will see a garbage can out front full of beer cans and by morning the homeless guys have already snagged the cans to take to the recycler down the street so they have money to buy beer.
Talk about trickle down economics.
I’ve found that the law and order practiced by our SF finest in this town is mostly discrentionary.
I’ve found that the law and order practiced by our SF finest in this town is mostly discrentionary.
And mostly based on how much fun it looks like you’re having – especially if you’re young.
They don’t have enough minorities to profile, so they pick on kids.
Let me take a guess at how this JazzFest thing works. You can’t take in any type of refreshment, but once you’re in, you can purchase all the domestic beer you want for $4.00 a pop…right?
Yeah, but the entertainment is FREE.
And, the beer they sell can be purchased in identical containers from a local grocery store and brought in via a purse that won’t be checked at the gate. Plus, even if the cops see you with a beer, they can’t do anything unless it’s open.
Dude, you said “I’ve found that the law and order practiced by our SF finest in this town is mostly discrentionary.”
You are absolutely right. I see it all the time. When one of my kids was in high school he had a early seventies muscle car. Looked sweet. But as I found out, not the thing for a teenager to be driving around on SF streets in the 90’s. He told me he felt he’d been singled out. So we switched cars for a few days. I drove that thing like a granny goin to Sunday church, and got stopped. I think the patrolman were a little surprised and embarrassed at who was driving. Was sent on my way with a smile.
Another disretionary point. I go to near all the downtown beer fests and ribfest. I see a lot of adults leaving those things with no right at all to be behind the wheel of a car. Yet it’s done, and I rarely, if ever, see a patrolman around any of those events watching for drunken driving. If you want to find a patrolman, just J walk anywhere between 10th street and Rice Street on Cliff Avenue.
They could also pick up some DUI’s if they just hung out around the exits of our city golf courses. Can’t do that though. Might interfere with liquor sales.
“Let me take a guess at how this JazzFest thing works. You can’t take in any type of refreshment, but once you’re in, you can purchase all the domestic beer you want for $4.00 a pop…right?”
and
“And, the beer they sell can be purchased in identical containers from a local grocery store and brought in via a purse that won’t be checked at the gate.”
Jazzfest continues to be free because of the revenue generated by concessions. The “I’m not paying a $5 cover to see original music” and “I’ll sneak my beer in and save $10 tonight” attitude is weak. I’m not saying this applies to either Warren or Dude, I’m just saying it pisses me off.
It lies at the root of what is wrong with the music scene in this town.
Warren- I’ve always said the best way to end drinking and driving is to not allow bars to have parking lots.
AG- Though I do ‘prime’ before I go to JF and have a couple nipper bottles in my pocket, I still at least buy $20 worth of beer tickets when I go. If you were to go to a blues festival with that much talent anywhere else in the country, it would cost you about $250 just for the ticket.
I usually spend plenty on food/beer/cigars and Jazzfest memorabelia myself.
How anyone could actually get drunk AT Jazzfest is a mystery. By the time you’ve waited in line long enough for another beer, the first one’s through your system.
Besides, the real way to drink there is to bring in a flask of vodka to pour into one of the lemonades.
Ribfest is decidedly not worth attending unless you’re a huge Cory and the Fireflies fan – especially if you own a functioning grill/oven/smoker/brain.
I HAAAAAAAAAATE Ripfest! Not only is the food and beer twice as much as JF, they charge you to get in the gate to see a washed up 80’s band. They would make much more money if they put the event on a grassy knoll (not a parking lot infested with flies) and it was free.
Funny story. At the first JazzFest, I had friend that is kind of crazy, that brought a 64 of Old E in his backpack. He drank almost all of it, then the Cops busted him. They just wanted him to dump out what little was left and throw away the bottle. He was more crazy at that point and he dumped it out but wouldn’t throw the bottle away because he said he wanted to recycle it. The Cops told him he had to throw it away, he refused and ended up stuffed and cuffed.
L3wis, you might remember this guy as spider web boy at a Halloween party you attended.
Angry Guy, my intent was not to piss you off. I was leaning more towards the double standards that exist in this city. A bunch of kids having a beer fest “with their own beverage of choice” and they’ll throw the book at you. But if it’s done under any of the city “beer events” or city links, drink til you tip over.
JR- and he wonders why ‘nobody likes him’. I have done the OE 64 experience. Woke up on a patio balcony with my shirt off.
WP- Yeah, anytime Republican puddknockers have one of their cockswinging events DT, the oinkers turn there backs. Especially Hot Harley Nights.
A few years back right after Tim Kant got the loop closed to groups of 11 or more people so he could have 200 obnoxious yuppies drink in front of his hole, they supposedly had a ‘zero tolerance’ policy DT. One night during HHN’s where there was 40,000 drunk yuppie bikers at 5th and Phillips a cop decides that I’m the one causing problems. It was about 10 PM and I was riding my bike down Phillips Avenue. He followed me from about 10th to the corner of 12th where I jumped my bike on the sidewalk and coasted my bike about 30 feet to chain it up. He whips his lights on and gets out his car as I am chaining up my bike. He says “Hey, you can’t ride on the sidewalk” I didn’t even look up, and I said “sorry, won’t happen again.” and I proceed to walk into the Touch of Europe. He says, “Please step in my car.” I thought I was going to get a warning, so I didn’t care. He gave me a ticket for $70 and told me about the Zero tolerance policy DT. I said “You gotta be kidding me?” I said, “You will gladly see me in court.” he seemed a bit surprised. I called Staggers about it and he had the city attorney dismiss it. He agreed, with 40,000 drunk yuppie bikers on the corner of 5th & phillips, the cop had better things to do then to hassle a bicyclist. I told Staggers I wanted to go to court, but he had it dismissed anyway.
Here’s an older post about the cops;
http://www.southdacola.com/blog/2008/08/donuts-cops-a-sioux-falls-tradition/
L3wis. Who is Tim Kant?
(Bite my tongue, bite my tongue, bite my tongue)
He owns Stogeez and Copper Lounge DT. He was instrumental in getting the loop closed to teenagers so he could open his bars. He pounded on the podium like Hitler at the council meeting where they voted on the closure, in which he said “We gotta get rid of those kids!”
And Timmy won.
That’s what I thought Tim Kant owned. Wasn’t certain. I have friends who like to go downtown on a warm Friday nite and sit in front of Stogeez. The first time I went I thought it was OK. But the more I went, the more out of place I felt. Classic yuppieville. Nine inch long cigars and itty bitty designer doggies with their heads sticking out of a purse might impress some folks, but not me. Anyway, the beer isn’t that cold, or good, for the prices they get.