Have you been to a public building in recent weeks? Minnehaha County Admin? Post Office? Library? SF School District’s IPC? Was there an armed guard greeting you when you entered? If so, did they request you make an appointment before visiting any department? Imagine if every time you had to go to the county admin office to vote early, get plates, pay taxes or register to vote you first had to make an appointment then check in with an armed guard. Sounds ludicrous, right?
Well that is what has been going on at City Hall, and not just for the mayor’s office.
While they have had an armed guard for awhile in the lobby of City Hall, now when you enter the facility they request you have an appointment in advance before going to visit any department in the (public) building or you are asked to leave.
Besides the incredible amount of unwarranted paranoia, how on earth can they tell citizens they cannot simply walk to a department’s office in a public building?
The comical irony is the person who probably requested this stupidity in the corner office is hardly there to begin with. Maybe we need to build a security fence around City Hall? Maybe we need a security detail to travel with the great one?
Pro gun people paranoid about guns, oh the irony.
Yes, I noticed this a few times I frequent City Hall to conduct business between myself the city. Unless you walk in from the Ground Floor to pay a Utility bill, where there is no Security Officer, you just walk in and pay the bill, if you walk into City Hall on First Floor you are greeted by a Security Officer, but he has never really stopped me from going where I needed to go, other than to help point me to the direction I am looking for.
This was put in place by Mayor Huether – the original intent was to help direct citizens to the proper city office they are looking for, remember, prior to 2012 – the city utilized Kiosks to present a Map of each floor. The intent was to have a full time security/administrator available to the public in order to help them find where to go.
I would beleive during all the COVID regulations, this Officer has sine been used to lock down and secure the building, whereas many of the daily services are now down the street in the New “Public Administration Building” where you walk in and speak to Public Officials.
The new look of the Old City Hall is now simply the “City White House” housing the Mayor’s Office, City Attorney Offices, Human Resource Offices, and Finance Offices, with the exception of ground floor which is still accessible freely by the “public” in order to pay Public Utilities.
I suppose for any activity you need beyond the Administration Building or Ground Floor of City Hall, you are to obtain permissive access to 1st Floor, 2nd Floor, 3rd Floor Offices which I guess today are “Secured”.
I guess if you wish to do a First Amendment Audit of floors 1, 2, and 3 – you must today request permission to walk around with a Video Camera in order to conduct a news story on how City Hall Operates, let alone provide the citizens a tour of the Building itself.
How wrong can he be again: “This was put in place by Mayor Huether”. Never once in all the years Huether was in the corner office did I have to hit a buzzer or get cleared by an armed guard to go to any city hall office.
Paranoid Paul put this in when he was afraid of voters actually showing up to his office like he had told them they would be able to after he was seated in the office.
The only people allowed into the inner offices are developers and friends of developers going to see the chief of staff.
Pretty sure this was PTH program. Funny that the City Hall building has an armed security guard, but the new City building with more employees does not??? Who are we really worried about besides our selfie taking, self loving self.
Looks like facade improvement program is coming back for historic buildings? Where did it ever go in the first place? Who stopped it? Hmmmmmm…… Maybe there was enough funding in that program to hire a security guard.
For what it’s worth, the mayor’s office has bulletproof glass. Installed by not my man Mike. Rumor had it that he did in case Stehly became (more) unhinged. True story.
PTH shouldn’t be afraid. He hasn’t done anything since elected. Is this the Huether-Like end of term mayoral paranoia? Trumpets only attack the US Capital. One would think there’d be screening for Covid at the city offices building instead.
At least the homeless can still crap outside the mayor’s window.
We all hear our crazy rumors. Stehly as far as I know doesn’t own a gun or probably even knows how to use one. I did hear that MMM installed it, but the reason wasn’t for safety, it was because he was paranoid that the FBI was listening in on office conversations (they used to have an office nearby city hall). I’m sure there are dozens of rumors going around but I have to call BS on being scared a piano teacher who BTW starts her day with devotionals and prayer was going to shoot up city hall like the Godfather. LOL.
I want to know more about this FBI paranoia. I know he always wore a jacket like JFK and decorated his rectangular office like an oval one, but did he fear the ghost of J Edgar, too? And remember, the BTK guy always went to church, too. Just saying. AND, I miss the days when Knobe took the door off its hinges, but since then, the people have become too unhinged. Best to put the hinges back to use and be safe. Is that the FBI over there? What about there? Why are they all going to church? Hamilton was right about mob rule. It will take more than a Broadway play to pacify them, however. It’s always the next act that scares me. Burr get your gun was initially the saying before Annie’s time…. Black SUVs and bullet proof glass, it’s just so stereotype.
Theresa unhinged is the kind of junk you read on councilor paulsons blog…siouxfallspolitics.
Maybe instead of a receptionist PTH should just hire a bouncer from Wiley’s?
Hmmm… I believe the correct term is bullet-resistant glass.
“a bouncer from Wiley’s”? Is that liquor still in the city file cabinet?
Is this how you talk during public comments during public meetings? If so, do you blame them for putting public input after ALL Agenda?
Aliens!!! Mayor and buddies he’s appointed must be guarded.
Mike, I go back to prior restraint and the 1st Amendment. I suggest you look it up. Respect is earned not granted. Can you imagine if our founding fathers chose politeness over revolution? We would all be eating spotted dick and drinking tea instead coffee and donuts.