The Fodness family is suing the City of Sioux Falls for Negligence over the Copper Lounge Collapse. The suit alleges that the city’s building services who provides building permits and construction inspections failed to heed the warnings of what was going on with the construction of the Lewis Drug.
More details to come. (Filed Doc:Â Fodness 2018-09-18 Complaint)
LLOYD PURCHASES LACEY ESTATES?
As I understand it, Lloyd Companies ultimately purchased the property after all and after the rezone may bring in a development much different (and more detrimental) to what they proposed originally. We will be watching.
CHILLERS AT OLD ICE CENTER JUNKED OUT?
The word on the street is that since the ice chillers were not in use and not maintained since the closure they are no longer useable and have to be junked out as surplus. When the place closed I guess they were still operable and thought they could be sold eventually but it seems since they were not maintained they no longer work. More tax dollars in the burn barrel.
This civil class begs the need for a State grand jury into criminal issues involving the building collapse.
Sure, OSHA has referred it findings to criminal inquiry, but any criminal charges which might come from that have to do with violations of federal laws concerning safety and truthful cooperation with federal investiga
tors. Only an investigation and or grand jury by our State’s Attorney can address the issue of criminal negligence and whether the contractor involved in this collapse might have committed such an act.
And what is important to understand in this distinction between federal inquiries and state inquiries is that only a state inquiry with a grand jury will assure that our system works and works for what is right by potentially holding those accountable for any felonious actions, and thus informing the community as a whole that such acts will not be tolerated or overlooked.
A reality I would allege, too – state charges – which is more potent than federal charges, because federal charges, even with a stiff penalty and or imprisonment, do not guarantee that the system will work better in the future to the degree that state charges would, because state criminal issues will always be germane in a jurisdictional sense with an issue like this, but not necessarily in a federal sense. Plus, state charges, or at least a state inquiry, would prove that there is no invincible good old boy network, but if there is one that develops, that it can effectively be challenged and thus proven that the system does work.
The city uses lengthy stall tactics such that this matter will be in court for years. City ordinance states subject to judicial review meaning they do not recognize appeals into court. This is a state and federal matter such that their escape clause may be overcome. However, there are compound issues requiring separate hearings. One may cite pending another decision and there may never be resolution. Petitioners should eventually realize there’s no justice.
If the city can build Olympic swimming and subsidize indoor tennis, why can’t they manage a minimal cost outdoor ice rink?
Having spent a lot of time at the old ice center back in the day – the ice chillers were on their last legs the last couple of years they were in place and were (if my conversations with the staff were correct) going to need a LOT of work/money to fix to keep them up and running if not a full replacement of the system.
Anyone who thought the could be sold as something other than scrap was being…optimistic.