l3wis

UPDATE: Mayor TenHaken to announce re-election campaign a day before trying to sneak in a tax increase thru resolution?

UPDATE: This is NOT a fee increase, just an annual notice that the fee exists and renewed, it has since 1992.

City Council Members and Council Staff,

Good afternoon. A resolution (per City Ordinance 96.033) will be presented at Tuesday’s City Council
Meeting to levy an annual front foot assessment fee for street maintenance and repair. The special
assessment funds are used to partially fund the highways and streets operational budget for the
repairs and maintenance of our city streets to include pothole patching, asphalt surface
maintenance, and street sweeping.The front foot assessment fee has been in place since 1992.
The front foot assessment fee will be $1.00 per foot for 2022 and has not changed since 2009.
Attached is the resolution and on the back is the amount that has been collected for each respective
year since 1992.
Thank you, Mark Cotter


It looks as though Mayor Poops is finally going to announce he is running. The irony of this is astounding when you consider that on Tuesday night he is trying to push an over $9 million dollar tax increase thru resolution (item 21) which is legally dubious since tax or fee increases normally go thru the ordinance process of 1st and 2nd readings AND a presentation to the council in advance. Some councilors I spoke with didn’t even know it was on the agenda.

According to the math (thanks Mike Z – I updated his numbers);

Looks to be a new tax being created assessed on the residents of Sioux Falls, is this true?  $1.00 Per foot per property along our ‘streets’. If we have a total # of 900 centerline street miles in this city (1,800 if you include both sides of the street), and each mile is roughly 5,280 feet, this tax generates $9,504,000.00 for the city to be used to maintain and resurface highways, streets, and roads in the city. With a $654,000,000 million revenue stream, is a new tax really necessary?

Once again Paul is showing us his lack of transparency and his dark hatred towards open government. Most government’s would have put this thru a vetting process with it’s public works department, the city council and the citizens. Not to mention in the same night there will be a property tax increase (item 15). You also have to remember we spent most of the $50 million in Covid money on play things and gave away $144 million in tax rebates this year. It looks like we will be heading into the dark abyss for another 4 years unless Paul gets one heck of a challenger.

UPDATE: Is QAnon sponsoring a park bench in Sioux Falls?

UPDATE: Last week I noticed that the ‘Q’ on this bench was removed. It was confirmed to me by a reader that it was ‘professionally’ removed and not just tore off by some punks after he inspected it. So was it really sponsored by a ‘Q’ supporter? Another city mystery like the 24 hour Panhandler Sign 🙁

So this is an interesting new sponsored bench next to bike trail in Yankton Trail Park. I would be curious who paid for this and what it stands for? Is it a person? Not sure.

Sioux Falls City Council Agenda, Sep 14, 2021

Informational Meeting, 4 PM

Presentations on the City Council and Mayor’s 2022 Budget and Covid
(what is surprising in the City Council Budget is the expenditure of over $200K for the City Election. I have NEVER seen it that high. I would be curious about the explanation on that one.)

Regular Meeting, 6 PM

Item #6, Approval of Contracts, Sub Item #20. It’s a mysterious what this is, but it seems like some partnership for transit. Be nice to have a presentation and explanation instead of burying it in the consent agenda.

Item #15, 2nd Reading, Property Tax Increase. Of course the Rubber Stamp Council who gave away $144 million in TIF tax rebates this year has NO problem with raising our taxes by millions in a Covid economic recovery.

Item #17, Resolution, Moving the Sculpture Sea Dream from the DT Dog park location to Prairie Green Golf Course. I wonder if the artist was ever consulted about this? I know once when I talked to him about the sculpture at an Augustana art reception (he used to be a teacher) he was irritated that people would call it ‘the golf ball’.

Item #21, Resolution, Levy Front Assessment of $1.00 per foot. Maybe I am missing something here, but shouldn’t this be 1) a 1st and 2nd Reading and 2) an explanation as to why we need this in conjunction with a property tax increases?

#22, Resolution, One Sioux Falls. So this is a perfect example of something that belongs in the resolutions category on agenda, meaningless word games from the mayor’s office.

Med MJ Dispensaries are bad, but dropping off kids at a Bar Parking lot is okay?

I have been thinking about this for awhile. I drive by this place a couple of times a day, imagine my surprise when I see almost a dozen kids using a bar parking lot as a pickup and drop-off for the school bus. I get it, it is technically the entrance to the trailer park where several school kids live, but to pick this location?

I bring this up because there has been this argument by local government officials that we can’t have MED MJ dispensaries 1,000 feet with-in sensitive use because MJ is harmful and dangerous to children. I will go along for the sake of the argument. But isn’t the perception of using a bar parking lot as a school bus pickup just as ‘dangerous’. Couldn’t the kids be picked up just as easily 1 block east or west?

Also realize that MED MJ can only be purchased at these dispensaries for pain relief, etc. Sales are to be discreet and private within the facility and NO use can proceed on the premises and only allowed in the ADULT customer’s homes. Juxtapoz that with a bar, that clearly has an alcohol sign on the building advertising the consumption of that product on the premise and it is okay to drop kids off right in front of the patrons of this establishment?

We certainly have a whacked view of the dangers of alcohol compared to the dangers of MJ.

Should Mayor TenHaken Mandate Covid Vaccinations for City Employees? YES!

Like I have already said, we could avoid all of this if people just voluntarily got the FREE and EFFECTIVE and SAFE shot instead of making this a political issue.

While I kind of understand the back and forth on mandating vaccinations for private sector employees (Noem is not only allowing it, but she is essentially promoting it) I feel that public employees who receive their pay and health benefits from taxpayers should be required to be vaccinated, especially if they work with the public (which is most of them). This has more to do with me as a taxpayer investing in the city employees health and wellbeing and wanting them to be healthy instead of sitting in a hospital on a ventilator or out of work for a few weeks.

President Biden announced today sweeping vaccine mandates, and since the city of Sioux Falls receive Federal dollars, they really should follow suit. So should the counties and school districts within Sioux Falls.

I find it a bit hypocritical of our Health Department promoting Covid Vaccinations to the general public when they are not encouraging it with city employees. I wouldn’t even be opposed to a $100 bonus to city employees who get the shot. Or have someone from Falls Community Health go around to the different city offices and give them the shots in the comfort of their workspace.

It often seems odd to me the mixed messaging we are getting from our elected officials on Covid. Do as I say, not as I do.