Does this guy even understand how a representative government works? Well first you would have to show up to the office a few days a week.
While I agree with him using an app, or the city website to report potholes is a good idea, it doesn’t always work, especially with government. Sometimes the good old fashion way of calling or emailing an elected official gets results. Besides, isn’t that their job? Representing us and getting results? I can see PTH’s 2022 campaign, ‘Re-Elect TenHaken, there’s an app for that!”
Only agenda item is a going away party for Departing Members Pauline Poletes and Robert Thimjon. They accomplished their very successful shut down of charter amendments. Party on Garth.
Sub Item #25, $136K to YMCA for after school programs and
Sub Item #26, $111 to VOA for after school programs.
I wish the merits of these four items would have been discussed in the regular meeting instead of stuffed into the consent agenda.
Item #7, Change orders, we will be handing about $1.5 million to Journey Construction for the Village on the River Bunker Ramp.
Item #20, Transfer of 2020 Retail Liquor License, with video lottery terminals, and 2020 Package Liquor License from Badlands Gaming LLC, Badlands Gaming, 1600 West Russell Street, to South Dakota Veterans Alliance Inc., 1600 West Russell Street. It looks like this deal is moving forward.
Item #25 (29-30), 2nd Reading of TIF agreement with Lloyd Companies and Sioux Steel Development. As I have said in the past this will pass. I guess councilor Stehly will be absent from this meeting and NOT voting on the issue due to previous commitments. I have said that a better approach would be to gift them the River Greenway property (so they can develop it at their expense) and give them a $10 million dollar TIF only for that redevelopment. I think it is a crying shame that local lawmakers across the country are suckered into these kind of agreements which are truly developer handouts and little else. I’m praying for an amendment, but I don’t think it will happen.
Item #26, 2nd Reading, ordinance on campaign financing and elections. I feel there will be some amendments to this item and it will be an interesting to see what is slipped in. I still think that this ordinance should be amended so it is NOT implemented until after the municipal election.
Item #27, Supplemental appropriations for police overtime pay for special events. Like I said yesterday in a post, I fully support this, but I think a discussion should have occurred with the council before the mayor’s office proposed this. It is the council’s job as laid out in charter to be the legislators, not the mayor’s office.
Item #28, Parks and Rec fee increases. You will notice that some of the biggest increases are at the Midco Aquatic Center.
Item #31, Resolution approving preliminary plan for the controversial Golden Gateway addition.
Item #32, A RESOLUTION REMOVING UNCOLLECTIBLE, DELINQUENT ACCOUNTS FROM THE RECORDS. Interesting that these accounts are confidential?
Item #34, Resolution, allowing Landscapes Unlimited to modify the noncompetition clause under the Management Agreement.
Item #35, Charter Revision Commission presents their ballot amendments. I’m urging a vote NO on amendment ‘B’ which would increase the number of signatures needed for a charter revision petition.
UPDATE: I got word today, that I may have jumped the gun on this. There may not be any surprise announcements next week. While it is still a possibility, there are some other things going on behind the scenes that need to be situated before the announcements can be made. Stay tuned.
I’m getting word today there will be some ‘major’ announcements next week when it comes to the city council races. Candidates could pickup petitions starting today and have until February 28 to turn them in.
I’m keeping quiet about some of the rumors I have heard because this all could change by next week and at this point it is all pretty fluid. But let’s just say, some will be pleasantly surprised, and some will be crapping their drawers.
Section 2. That the use of the unobligated fund balance of $300,000 for the 2020 Police budget is authorized for expenditure of overtime pay for special events in the city of Sioux Falls, SD.
This of course is a one-time appropriation for 2020. They will be forming a taskforce to figure out what to do in the future which should have been done to begin with instead of the Mayor’s office pulling this from their rears.
During the Informational meeting yesterday, Stehly thanked the Parks Department for doing the Project TRIM experiment. She also brought up other things we subsidize each year. She said that the money could easily be budgeted for the city to trim their own trees in the boulevard.
There was also a discussion about the golf contract with Landscapes Unlimited and how they want to amend the contract so they can possibly provide management for Brandon’s Municipal Course (which I think is a conflict). They cleverly claim that people who will work at the Sioux Falls city courses won’t work at the Brandon course, yet what they fail to mention is that LU is a corporation with multiple management locations all over the United States. Corporate headquarters knows exactly what is going on at both locations simultaneously. They also talked about ‘opportunities’ between the two locations. I’m not sure how people paying to golf at Brandon’s course is an ‘opportunity’ for the taxpayers of Sioux Falls. I have often said we should just have a flat lease for the courses and let the contractor do as they please, and maintain them at their expense. This would be more beneficial to taxpayers, and would eliminate any contract conflicts.
There has also NOT been any determination on how the golf cart shed fire started. During the contract discussion, LU admitted they received $100K from insurance for lost carts, etc. When the Director of Parks, Ding-Dong Don was asked how much the city got from insurance for the destruction of the facility, he responded that they have received nothing yet. When asked why, he said it is because they haven’t figured out yet how they are going to replace the facility (stand alone or along with a new clubhouse). Sorry, but a damaged building value has NOTHING to do with what the new facility will cost. I find this very odd, and wonder if a determination on the cause of the fire will ever be revealed. Of course, this is coming from the same guy who lied about no-mow zones (and various other crap). Can we impeach him?
l3wis 
