Category Archives: Downtown Sioux Falls

Jesse from the Blues Bashers kicks it in front of The Touch of Europe

The Gargoyle Leader did a story about the lagging business downtown, but fails to talk about the real problems with Downtown;

The tough national economy has slowed or halted progress on a number of downtown developments, but the news isn’t all bad from an area of town considered by Sioux Falls leaders as one of the city’s top attractions.

While the economy is probably a big part of the problem, there is also other factors;

• The Washington Pavilion is doing fewer events then they first did when they first opened

• There is no dance halls or major live music venues downtown

• Downtown does not appeal to a broader audience, just people who live there and those who can afford fine dining

• Parking meters and lack of convenient parking

• Lack of leadership and marketing from the organization Downtown SF who charges DT businesses a boat load to market them

• Moving events to Phillips to the Falls instead of keeping them on the street in the main DT area

• Lack of weekly DT festivals during the summer

I have often said the City and DTSF have used too much caution when promoting DT. I say ‘Try anything’ and if it fails or causes problems, try something different. Leaders in our community often talk about SF as being progressive, give me a break. Progressives try new things and don’t put stipulations on those ideas. I’m 37 years old, and I have told people that DT SF was a lot more fun and hopping when I was 21 then it is now (in terms of entertainment). Time to turn back the clock.

Over the past few years I have heard constant complaints from downtown business owners about the org DTSF. The same crap is heard frequently;

• What do they do with their membership fees?

• Why did they move all the festivals to 4th and Phillips?

• Why do they charge so much for a booths during festivals?

• What really is their purpose?

• What do they spend their money on?

A few years back some DT business owners discussed starting their own group ran only by them, the idea fizzled, well, because DT business owners work their asses off and don’t have time for it. Downtown SF will argue they are a lobbying entity that gets things for DTSF, you know, like gigantor expensive planters that actually take up too much space. Or handouts in the form of ‘grants’ to a select few DT property owners who need new windows so they can sell more tobacco and liquor. While I understand paying lobbyists, we also expect those lobbyists to do something for that money.

Let’s take this winter storm for example. It seems Public Works found all kinds of time to plow the entire f’ing city, but they could not plow DT before Saturday evening? It’s not like this was some crappy Saturday night at the end of January, it was the day after Christmas! No spaces DT were plowed but to make it worse, the city decided to plow in front of the parking ramp entrances, so you couldn’t even get into them to park. A result was most DT businesses were closed Saturday Night. I know for a fact that Minervas, Touch of Europe and Sushi Masa were all closed.

But I don’t blame the city street removal on this one, I blame DTSF for not getting on the horn. Really?! How long would it have taken to plow Phillips avenue four blocks and clean out the entrances to the parking ramps? Idiots. I kinda wonder how many thousands of dollars of revenue was lost at DT businesses because of it.

If I were the next mayor, I would disband DTSF – they suck.

UPDATE: READ COMMENT #17 FOR CLARIFICATION

A downtown business owner told me an interesting story last night that is strangely not being covered in the local media. In fact this was the first I heard about it. I am a little short on the details, and I don’t have links to the state law code, but this is what I remember from the conversation;

According to state law you cannot sell alcohol on public property without a proper permit, some call it a ‘Tavern Permit’. But SOME downtown businesses have been breaking this law ever since the city started selling patio permits for places like Stogeez. As I understand it, it is okay for someone to drink alcohol on the patios if you are legal age, you just can’t purchase the alcohol on the patio. In other words, it is legal to go to someplace like Stogeez, go indoors, buy a drink and then sit on the patio and drink it, it becomes illegal when a server comes out on the patio and sells you the drink and brings it to you. Why? Because it is public property, not private, and according to state law the silly permits that the city sells, do not cover the tavern clause.

How did this all come about? The owner of Buffaloberries has a patio, and she follows the law, but she noticed that other bars and restaurants downtown do not. So she filed a complaint. But here’s the kicker; he city knows that it is illegal (or I suspect they do) because they are in the process of writing a tavern permit ordinance. But in the meantime, they are using the ‘Home Rule’ excuse that they do not need to follow state law. Okay, if that is the case, why are writing a new ordinance if you think you are exempt?

I want to be clear, I am not blaming the business owners, the city is the one who enabled DT business owners to break the law. Should the business owners know better? Sure. But the city shouldn’t be defending the practice when they know it is illegal.

The city needs to admit they made a mistake, fix it and move on. But as usual they make excuses for their mistakes. 

I need a drink.

Bag Boy move