SF City Council

Sioux Falls City Council Agenda, May 26, 2020

l3wis May 25, 2020 6Comments

State of the City Address (Online only) • Tuesday May 26, 1 PM

Some on the council are questioning why this is only online. Just two hours after the address there will be a PUBLIC meeting at Carnegie. Heck even last Thursday the council candidate forums were open to the public. Once again, I’m pointing out the hypocrisy of our mayor who seems to be hunkered down while the rest of us are working and getting on with our lives. Heck, I even sat on a patio yesterday and had a beer and a bite to eat at one of our fine downtown eating establishments. If I could ever accuse Mayor ‘COG’ of one thing, it is how inconsistent he is on his decision making process. But this is something we should expect from a guy who wears a suit and tie when Denny’s checkbook is out and trucker hat when talking to constituents about a pandemic.

Special City Council Meeting • Tuesday May 26, 3 PM

More inconsistencies, while it is true the 4th council meeting of the month is usually considered ‘special’ what is not special about it is it should be held at it’s regular time of 7 PM. This administration has done these meetings at many different times, 10:30 AM, 2 PM, 3 PM, 4 PM, 5 PM and 6 PM. This is a backdoor way of preventing the public from showing up to testify. Even if you don’t have to work at these times, will you even know the meeting is being held? It reminds of the transit task force and their eventual plan. Nobody knows what it is, because it keeps changing. Heck, we don’t even know if it is moving forward. During a crisis, there are very simple, common sense rules all elected leaders should follow, the easiest one is consistency, this city government (not just the mayor) has failed miserably at consistency.

Also notice in this meeting, the general public input at the beginning of the meeting has been eliminated. This is not a violation of law, because they are still having public input during the items, but proves once again how much this administration HATES transparency and open government.

Item #4, 2nd Reading: AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF SIOUX FALLS, SD, REPEALING ORDINANCE NO. 47-20 ADOPTING THE SIOUX FALLS BOARD OF HEALTH BUSINESS REGULATIONS PERTAINING TO THE NOVEL CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) DATED MAY 1, 2020.

So this is interesting, on one hand, they are passing an ORDINANCE (a city law) to lift the restrictions then pass a resolution (a suggestion with no legal teeth) telling people to be safe;

Item #5, A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF SIOUX FALLS, SD, ENCOURAGING THE PEOPLE OF SIOUX FALLS TO BE DILIGENT IN THEIR ACTIONS AND BEHAVIOR TO SLOW THE SPREAD OF THE VIRUS THAT CAUSES COVID-19 AND TO PROTECT VULNERABLE POPULATIONS.

• Wash hands often;
• Take precautions every day to keep space between others (stay a minimum of 6 feet away, which is about two arm lengths);
• Keep away from people who are sick;
• Maintain an adequate supply of essential items;
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched services;
• Avoid all cruise travel and non-essential travel; and
• Call a health care professional with questions about underlying medical condition, COVID-19, or if you are sick.

Only this administration and city council would pass a law lifting restrictions why telling everyone (nicely) to restrict themselves – all in the same meeting. I know, weird.

I’m still waiting for them to pass an ordinance that requires all administrative and manager staff with the city to go back to the office.