The world is coming to an end or is it just the wink wink nod nod way of holding Sioux Falls meetings. On January 17, 2017 the Sioux Falls Parks and Recreation Board held its monthly meeting at the Oyate Center. We know, WHERE? Go look for it, the search is always on in the noisy places filled with kids as they are leaving school. Not places where you feel like you can hear the proceedings because you legally cannot fully close the doors. Oh and speaking of closed doors, one of the board members could not hear so he closed the door. Should we file an Open Meetings violation with the States Attorney? It is going to be added to our list of violations to be dealt with.
The city of Sioux Falls is going to start seeing or at least being able to hear these exciting meetings. The lack of public scrutiny of the meetings has made many of these boards very cozy and comfortable for the members to work with their departments. Our efforts to record these meetings is aimed at this comfy behavior.
So be bored with this meeting and more of them. By letting us see how little is discussed in the open lets us know the real decisions are made before the meetings actually are called into order. We appreciate the citizens who sit on these boards and want them to be able to make the decisions they are charged with.
They don’t want transparency videos because it’ll be funnier than the ‘Parks & Recreation’ show on TV.
Pretty sure “open” meetings have nothing to do with the status of the door, and merely refers to the fact that the public can attend. Unless South Dakota is weird.
HG, Open Meeting from the beginning has meant the door is to remain open, not locked or sealed. A government meeting in South Dakota requires the door to be at least ajar so people can just walk in.
Do you have a statutory reference for that Bruce? I may have overlooked it when I took a cursory look through the open records materials. I’d be curious to see actual language.