January 2014

Liberals Libertarian Media

This letter doesn’t even make sense

l3wis January 7, 2014 7Comments

This letter to the editor is so stupid, I don’t even think it would qualify as a bad comment on my blog;

Letter: Find new audience for ‘leftist liberal writings’

Written by G. Malcolm Jameson, M.D., Yankton

I’m not quite sure what the Argus Leader’s Jonathan Ellis might have been puffing on, but his continuous leftist liberal writings suggest some obscure mind-bending malady.

He seems to find impartial discussion, supposed insider disclosures, political fairy tales and terse comments much easier to do.

Perhaps Iowa might be a more fertile field for his politics.

Okay, Doctor ‘G’, we get it, you are a Right Wing Wacko that hates liberals, but could you give us a clue as to what these ‘liberal’ writings were about? I know that Ellis has claimed to be a bit Libertarian on some issues, and I haven’t always agreed with him, but ‘Liberal’? Hardly. I wonder if Ellis crapped his pants laughing when he read this. Hopefully the letter was written on a piece of toilet paper.

If you really want to rant about a political reporter at the AL, I would have to point towards Montgomery, while he is very talented and in depth in his reporting, he tends to lean a bit right.

Mayor Hubris Mayor Subprime Mike Huether Michelle Erpenbach Mike Huether Rex Rolfing Sue Aguliar

The first Sioux Falls municipal election financials are in

l3wis January 7, 2014 12Comments

And the big winners are Erpenbach (over $9KÂ and Huether (over $50K). Documents:

What I find even more interesting is the in common donors. And these are not just dead beat rich folk in town. Who says the mayor’s office doesn’t work with the city council. Besides Michelle & Huether double-teaming the termination of Owen, looks like they send their contribution letters to the same peeps;

Doug Hajek (handles a lot of legal work with bonds for the city, including the EC. Doug is married to state legislator, Anne Hajek.

Craig Lloyd (the owner of the largest development company in Sioux Falls and also the recipient of the most TIF’s in Sioux Falls)

Jeffrey Scherschligt (awarded a TIF and a taxpayer funded bulk head along the river greenway)

Dana Dykhouse (Head dude at First Premier Bank)

Michael Crane (developer and partner with Huether and his wife on projects)

Michael Bender (commercial realtor)

And the developers, attorneys & bankers don’t get what they want, yeah right.

I also viewed Rolfing & Aguliar’s financials, but did not post them. Neither raised any money in December. My guess that neither will seek re-election.

Sioux Falls Walfart

New phone survey on SF politics & Walmart

l3wis January 6, 2014 19Comments

A new phone survey has been running about building the Walmart at 85th and Minnesota. I haven’t heard the survey myself, but here is the gist;

â€¢ Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion on the proposed Walmart at 85th & Minnesota?(sic)

It was followed by a specific question.

â€¢ Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion about Mayor Huether?(sic)

It was followed by a specific question.

â€¢ Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion about councilor Greg Jamison?(sic)

It was followed by a specific question.

â€¢ Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion about the city council?(sic)

It was followed by a specific question.

â€¢ Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion about Bonita Schwan (SON organizer and council candidate)?(sic)

It was followed by a specific question.

â€¢ Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion about Dana Palmer (SON organizer)?(sic)

It was followed by a specific question.

I don’t know all the specifics of the follow-up questions, and I certainly don’t know who is conducting the survey (though I do have my guesses) but if anyone gets the survey and would like to help me fill in further blanks, that would be great.

What surprises me the most is the question about Dana Palmer (a private citizen). They used to pull this crap with Stehly. It is one thing to be running for office, it is entirely something else to be organizing a petition drive. Doesn’t matter if you agree or disagree with Palmer, if she is not running for office, and is working in her best interests as a private citizen, it should be hands off. Of course, that’s not how it rolls in this town, anybody who questions the kingdom’s court decisions shall be tarred and feathered, even though, we both know, it should be the other way around.

Planning Commission Sanford Hospital Sioux Falls Sports

What’s up with the ‘Sanford Frontiers’ ?

l3wis January 4, 2014 28Comments

Hey kids! Let’s play ball while your parents are drinking!

This came to my attention yesterday while I was reading the Planning Commission’s agenda (Item# 13)

While I don’t debate the Pentagon having adult beverages at the facility, I wondered why this needed to be hidden under the cover of another organization, called the ‘Sanford Frontiers’. According to this SFBJ article in September;

Pulling it together is Sanford Frontiers, a wholly owned component of Sanford Health incorporated as a nonprofit earlier this year.

Sanford Frontiers was created primarily to help the health system’s researchers bring their work to the marketplace, but its duties are broader than that. President Rich Adcock and his small staff also are tasked with facilitating certain property development, namely the sports complex near Benson Road and Westport Avenue.

They also play the ‘poor non-profit’ card;

Sanford hopes to break even, White said.

â€œOur overall goal on the entire complex is to just cash flow,â€ he said. â€œIf we could get to that point, we’d consider it a success.â€

While Sanford Health and Sanford Frontiers are nonprofits, that doesn’t mean the property involved in the complex is tax-exempt. Sanford likely will pay property taxes on all of it, said Kyle Helseth, director of equalization for Minnehaha County.

Sanford hopes to break even?! BAHHAHAHAHA! Is this just a way for Sanford to say that while all other hospitality industries in SF have to pay on the altar of entertainment taxes, we are doing this for the common good? As for the property tax statement, why not mention the almost $10 million in TIF rebates?

But what I want to know is why Sanford Health, and the Sports Complex want to create an entirely different entity? So they are not associated with greasy franchise restaurants and alcohol consumption? Or to hide profits? It’s certainly curious, and something I don’t fully understand, but if Kelby and T. Denny are involved with Lloyd, Huether and Smith, ‘Roses’ are not the smell I am getting for the public.

Art SF City Council Sioux Falls

This week’s SF city council consent agenda

l3wis January 4, 2014 13Comments

Before I get into specifics about these agenda items (CC Item#1) I want to say, that when IMPORTANT items as these come up, they shouldn’t be hidden in the consent, they should be talked about and debated on their own fruition. Hopefully, councilor Staggers will pull them out.

I have ‘mixed’ feelings about each item;

While I am all for funding community art programs, I would like to see a programming plan from the SF Arts Council. I would also like to know why the Sioux Empire Arts Council was disbanded, the Horse Barn mothballed and the newly formed Arts Council split from the Pavilion. Before we hand another check to the organization, I would like to have explanations to these questions.

As for the market analysis of Downtown, while I do see some obligation by the city to review this, I am wondering why out of the over 1,000 city employees, and several citizen committees, that the city can’t pull a team together internally to do this analysis? The dirty little secret about the city is that while they have highly paid professionals working for them* they spend millions each year on consultants. It’s silly and certainly not a PRUDENT way to spend taxpayer money.

With the recent controversy about the Salvation Army’s discrimination allegations, I think the city should review a better contractor for a warming site.

*Three of the highest paid city employees are dentists that work at the public health clinic. Two of them are #2 & #3 on the list. While I am all for the public health clinic, I find it a bit ironic the city spends almost $500,000 a year on dentist salaries but can’t justify trimming trees in the boulevard because they don’t have the ‘funds’ or ‘staff’. I guess pulling teeth is more important then the arbor health of the city.

1st Amendment Downtown Sioux Falls Sioux Falls Trump

Over 1,000 show up for Anti-Trump Rally DTSF

Downtown Sioux Falls Sioux Falls Traffic Control

Solutions for a dangerous 14th Street?

Open Government Open Meetings SF City Council Sioux Falls

City of Sioux Falls still can’t get agenda page to work correctly

Art Sioux Falls

What is the City’s Art’s Coordinator up to?