Levitt Sioux Falls has yet to release Annual Reports for 2021 and 2022

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I will be clear; I fully support the Levitt and think it is one the greatest things to happen to our community in a long time.

I also SUPPORT funding the facility thru local tax dollars as well as private donations and grants. 50 FREE outdoor concerts – c’mon on!

But what troubles me is that a non-profit that benefits from city subsidies has yet to release ANY financial documents from the past two seasons.

Why is this important?

Because taxpayer subsidies to non-profits should be PUBLIC!

I already assume of what I will see, a program that has tons of private support and does good financially. Wouldn’t you want to show this off?

Maybe it is the exact opposite, maybe they are struggling financially?

I can tell you that as an attendant of MOST of the concerts that the staff of Levitt and the volunteers bust their ASSES! The adult beverage staff is also wonderful and really knock it out of the park when they have a long line. I don’t think Levitt would be as successful without the director’s, Nancy Halverson, direction.

That being said, I think the annual reports would shine a light on how razor thin their budget is, and how people can help.

I implore them to send me the annual reports and tax filings (I’ve tried thru various other avenues and hit a dead end).

We love the Levitt! Let’s show the community the love that is already been shared!

TenHaken’s Pumpkin Policy Advisor doesn’t believe in mandates

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In this interview with the administration’s newest advisor, she revealed something I have known about PTH for awhile;

“Our goal is to put something together that is realistic and achievable and well accepted by a diverse group of stakeholders and the public,” Harris said. “Sustainability should be a choice, and our job in government is to provide an education so people can make those choices. We aren’t doing mandates or forcing it on people because that isn’t how we want to govern. That isn’t how the mayor sees his role. He wants to be a uniting mayor.”

I would agree that a mandate doesn’t always solve an issue, in fact it can make it a lot worse, but when it comes to climate change we have exhausted most options. Letting industry decide if or how they are going to tackle climate change in their respective private industries means they will just choose to NOT do what government suggests. They already are on record for that. Sustainability isn’t a question of giving options you have to give and mandate direction, you also need followup and enforcement.

Just look at the over 4,000 property owners over the past 2 years that were MANDATED to repair city owned sidewalks because of the multiple ADA lawsuits filed against the city. So when the city is under fire from the FEDs to get their poop in a group they turnaround and mandate taxpayers fix the very sidewalks they are being sued over. City ordinance is pretty clear, the city has the authority to MANDATE just like they would when it comes to sustainability. I would even argue that global warming is a much bigger threat then cracks in a sidewalk.

If this mayor wants to UNITE the community, why not UNITE them around cleaner air and water? Recently the Argus Leader touched on that very problem;

Everything in the EPA’s dataset looks squeaky-clean for South Dakota, except for one category: water releases in Sioux Falls. In 2021, Sioux Falls disposed more than 5 million pounds of toxic waste into the Big Sioux River, about 2.5% of the nation’s overall generated water waste.

Nearly all TRI-registered water releases in the city involve one source: Smithfield Foods’ Sioux Falls facility, formerly known as the John Morrell Co. meatpacking plant.

In many ways, the Sioux Falls meatpacker is one of the worst water polluters in the U.S,

So while the mayor and his policy advisor want UNIFICATION I think mandating a communist Chinese owned packing plant would be a better approach since ‘suggestions’ are NOT clearly working. Now let’s all join hands and sing Kum by yah while the earth is burning.

6th Street Bunker Bridge starter kit

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The day after the bridge funding was approved by city council a foot soldier told me that the price overrun was odd to him considering this is just a deck replacement. I asked him what he meant. It was his understanding that since the bridge isn’t that old (I think constructed in the 70’s) that the piers would remain and they are simply replacing the deck like they did with the 8th street bridge.

I didn’t want to jump the gun on that prediction so I have been watching the demolition and noticed the preservation of the piers and according to this media report, that is the case;

That’s to build cofferdams to protect parts of the piers in the river that will be reused. 

So for a $10 million cost overrun we are not even getting a total bridge replacement? The taxpayers are certainly going down a certain creek without a paddle.

WHERE ARE THE CITY’S 2022 FINANCIALS?

Speaking of speculative book keeping, the city finance department has yet to release it’s audited or even unaudited 2022 financials. Usually there is a report to city council and the public by March of the following year.

Another foot soldier speculated to me that maybe the reason we haven’t seen it is because the mayor’s office is trying to figure out how they are going to explain the massive reserves the city coffers are nesting on.

Maybe we should institute the 1st Annual Sioux Falls Pothole Day Saturday April 1st and any citizen that volunteers for 8 hours on that day to fill potholes will receive $100 cash and a Sioux Falls ONE pin. That would be a quick way to spend some of that moldy money.

The Photographic Backdrop of Falls Park forever ruined

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Ever wonder why no one takes a picture of themselves at Falls Park with their camera pointed North?

Oink! Oink!

It seems we have another hog trough to the South of Falls Park except these pigs are gorging themselves on TIFs.

I often wonder if the architects, developers, engineers, investors and city planners behind this project ever thought about the skyline they were creating when families and tourists take photos at Falls Park? Maybe they knew exactly what this obstruction of pre-fab concrete would look like and why no mention of the future skyline.

When planning large developments around tourist attractions (our only one) the city planning office should have been more cognizant of the final skyline.

I also wonder if Experience Sioux Falls will change all of their marketing photos of Falls Park showing off the new condolicious skyline of our namesake?

I’m not sure what this ‘One Sioux Falls’ thing is all about, but it certainly isn’t about community collaboration and input.

Mayor TenHaken’s advice on Civility

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In The Dakota Scout’s print addition that appeared today, Paul has a column about his goals for 2023. Most of it was wordy unreadable or confusing double-talk. But I found this item curious;

Is he calling out himself?

Only truth, honesty and transparency can unify a community. Discussions don’t become inflammatory unless you are doing something, behind the scenes, that are concerning constituents. Like a $10 million cost overrun on a bridge, changing a recommended sustainability study that took volunteers over a year to compile or rejecting a mural selection with NO explanation (or even what this supposed mural looks like).

Honestly, I have no idea who likes to have an inflammatory discussion about local government policy (I kind of do) but other then this outlier, most people just want their local leaders to be competent, trustworthy and transparent and they would rather not engage city hall. The proof is in the low turnout in our city elections.

Division in city government doesn’t start with the low man or woman plowing or patrolling our streets, it begins at the top in leadership, specifically our policy body the city council that sits around and waits for crumbs from the mayor and the mayor himself.

If you want people to stop criticizing you, it begins with YOU! You would be amazed at how positively people respond when you are honest with them.

Speaking of our policy body, they have a shingig Saturday morning at Leonardo’s Cafe at the Washington Pavilion from 9-10 AM.

While I applaud this event, I also think the location and time is perfect, ON A DIFFERENT SATURDAY! There will thousands of people downtown Saturday celebrating St. Pats, not sure they are going to be driving over the top of each other to attend this event. Either move it to a different Saturday or different location.