Councilor Neitzert makes some interesting statements

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Oh, the irony of former chief bullsh*tter having a press conference about his 123 page book (that I presume has been extremely edited, or should we say ‘polished’) the same day Councilor ‘Mama’s Boy’ Neitzert makes his re-election bid;

“We need an honest, informed and principled leadership more than ever to address the many challenges and opportunities as our city continues to grow. I believe I have proven to be that type of leader.”

I’ll let the honesty and principled statements slide for now, we will have plenty of time to talk about those, but I hate to remind Greg that if he were truly ‘informed’ he would have NEVER fought for the Bunker Ramp, in fact, any city official (elected or not) that helped to push that thru was anything but ‘informed’ and maybe just a little bit ‘dishonest’. And let’s continue with that theme;

‘update annexation policies to foster more neighborhood cooperation’

The annexation task force did a quick 180 after Theresa Stehly used her own resources and time to notify NON-RESIDENTS of the potential annexation efforts by the city of Sioux Falls. She certainly did not have to do that, but because of her efforts the task force members, including Neitzert and Kiley found out what a pitchfork up their rears feels like.

And speaking of Theresa, she still hasn’t decided if she will run or not. But the rumor around the South of 57th street water cooler is that councilor Erickson and Mayor Paul are helping her potential opponent, Alex Jensen, with fundraising and organization. I also heard Neitzert’s potential opponent is getting a little assistance from a former mayoral candidate, no worries, it’s NOT the zombie guy.

Sioux Falls City Councilor Stehly suggests changes for Whittier Neighborhood

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August 26, 2019

Dear Business owners, Board members of the Bishop Dudley house, St. Francis house, Banquet staff and Whittier Neighborhood Citizens, 

As we move forward in our discussion about safety, economic vitality and social services in the Handyman/Whittier neighborhood area, I wanted to let you know what my plans are as your At-Large City Council member. 

First, let me assure you that I have been a strong advocate for helping those in need in our community. Through the years, I have personally contributed to the St. Francis House, The Union Gospel Mission, The Salvation Army , The Family Connection, The Vincent De Paul store and The Good Shepherd Center . I have supported City funding for the Bishop Dudley house even when the previous mayor had recommended that it be cut from the budget. I spent a night last fall sleeping in the Bishop Dudley Parking lot as an advocate for that facility. I have served at the Banquet, and I have housed a homeless person in my own home.

The challenge we are currently facing in our community is to find solutions to ensure that homeowners, business owners and people in need are all provided for in our City.

These past weeks, I have been blessed to have conversations with many of the stakeholders involved in this issue. From those conversations, I have developed a list of tangible goals/priorities that I would like to work on with all of you. My goal would be to implement these in the next year, and then do a reassessment. I welcome your feedback.

1. Designate stronger police presence in the Neighborhood. We currently staff our schools with approximately 15 school resource officers. I recommend that we designate a resource officer for this area of town.

2. Add additional foot patrol officers to rotate in the residential areas and businesses. 24/7

3. Add a small precinct in the new development where the Chinese restaurant was. If this area does not get developed then put the precinct in another building in the immediate area.

4. Place restroom or porta potie facilities on public land and open spaces in the area.

5. Develop more stringent vagrancy /loitering ordinances.

6. Develop new parameters of Liquor establishments near homeless shelter.

7. Aid in forming a neighborhood /business association in the Handyman/Whittier area.

8. Develop a tax incentive program to assist homeowners and small businesses in fixing up their property.

As I mentioned above, I welcome your feedback. I look forward to working with the Mayor’s office and my Council Colleagues as we find solutions for our citizens. Having a yearly checkup on the progress /needs and frequent communication by all involved, will be imperative to protecting the economic opportunities and safety concerns for our community.

Best Regards, Theresa Stehly

City Councilor-At Large

Phone: 605-367-8806, Cell: 605-929-8783

Email: tstehly@siouxfalls.org

STEHLY REPORT • AUGUST 2019

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Greetings Dear Citizens, The topic at hand this month is Citi¬zen Safety. I am grateful that our Mayor Paul TenHaken organized a Town Hall meeting on gunshot violence on July 30th at the Kenny Anderson Center. The Argus Leader reported that over 350 citizens showed up to voice their safety concerns to the Police Depart¬ment about the increasing gunshot/gang activity. The messages I heard were: 1. Lock your cars and homes. 2. Start a Neighborhood Watch Group. 3. Call 911 for suspicious behavior. No one wants a gunshot outside their home or into their home. We all need to watch out for each other as our community grows. Let’s keep Sioux Falls a safe place for all citizens.

SCHOOL SUPPLIES FOR OVERTIME PARKING FINES

On August 13th, Councilor Pat Starr and I will be proposing a resolution asking the Mayor to consider allowing citizens to make a donation to the Banquet’s school supply program in lieu of paying an overtime parking fine. The City collects approximately $250,000 a year in overtime parking fines. The school supply program has been heavily supported by the generosity of Kmart and Shopko. Of course we have lost both stores. We would like to give citizens the option of donating their fine to help the school supply fund for a week or two in the month of August. Overtime tickets are $10.00. Citizens can also donate now to the SOS program by dropping off school supplies to the Banquet.

PETITION DRIVE STARTING FOR CHARTER CHANGES “The Triple Check the Charter petition drive” will allow (1) a re¬turn to simple Council elections, (2) allows the Mayor to leave the Council to concentrate on the town plus (3) require a super majority of members to pass bonding. (Providing a safely gauge for the tax¬payers.) The charter amendment process requires voters to sign petitions and then vote to improve the Home Rule by implementing positive functional changes to the Sioux Falls City Council. To sign or get one to circulate call 376-8087.

10TH STREET BUSINESS OWNERS BRING CONCERNS TO THE CITY Last month I had the pleasure of attending several meetings with business owners in the 10th street and Indiana area. (This is also known as the Whittier neighborhood.) I listened to concerns about crime, vandalism and vagrancy. We have a vibrant gleaming down¬town area. The businesses on the east side of the 10th Street Bridge deserve to have the same opportunity for economic growth, safety and beatification. After several initial conversations, I was concerned enough to ask the Handy Man employees to help me facilitate a meeting with City staff and Police to seek solutions. I want to give a special word of thanks to Handy Man and Andy’s Alignment for being leaders for this effort. Some suggestions from the meeting were: 1. Provide porta potties for the Bishop Dudley residents. 2. Increase Police foot patrol. 3. On site Police officer for the Bishop Dudley. 4. Prohibit single serve high potency alcohol in the Bishop Dudley area. 5. Establish a small Police Precinct in the area. 6. Develop a drop in day center for Bishop Dudley residents. 7. Develop a business association district. 8. Make stronger laws for public intoxication and vagrancy. We look forward for good things to come for homeowners and businesses in this area.

EVENT CENTER STUDY GROUP UPDATE by Cheryl Rath I have attended all meetings of the Events Center Campus Study Group since March 2019 when the meetings were opened to the public. On august 1st they met to discuss the draft for their final recommendations. The final recommendations and attached costs will be presented at their August 21st meeting. It is scheduled to be at the Convention Center at 8:30 a.m. #1. Demolish the Arena #2. Double the Convention Center’s flat floor space to 120,000 square feet #3. Seek a Public/Private partnership to build a second on-site hotel #4. Demolish and Relocate the Sioux Falls Baseball Stadium (*re¬quest a new Task Force be formed to look at this option) There was NO media present at this meeting, and NO mention of putting this to a Public Vote. 

CHARTER DRAFTERS PROPOSE CHANGES IN THE CHARTER by Joe Kirby Twenty-five years ago, we started drafting the Sioux Falls City Charter. We feel the mayor council form of government we put in place back then has been a huge improvement over the commission form of government it replaced. But, not all aspects of city govern¬ment have worked as well as they could. So, we are in favor of look¬ing at ways to make it operate even better. Here are some possible charter changes we believe would improve city government: • Return to plurality voting for council seats, or in the alternative, adopt ranked choice voting. • Reduce the legislative role of the mayor by eliminating his tie break vote. Keep the veto power, however. • Require a super majority of 6 on bonding issues. We see these changes as a thoughtful, good faith effort to restore the intended power and function of the city council, to return our city elections to a more logical system and to enhance the protection of taxpayers from a mess like they are experiencing with Village on the River.

COME ON OUT TO LEVITT AT THE FALLS AND ENJOY A FREE, FAMILY-FRIENDLY CONCERT BEFORE THE SEASON IS OVER! Everyone is welcome. For more info, visit www.levittsiouxfalls.org. The High Kings Thursday, August 8 7 PM Farewell Angelina Friday, August 9 7 PM KORY & the FIREFLIES Saturday, August 10 7 PM

THERE’S STILL TIME FOR FREE BUS RIDES AND LUNCHES FOR KIDS by Cathy Brechtelsbauer Thanks to a group of sixth-grade girls who went to the City Coun¬cil, the children of Sioux Falls ride city buses for free in the summers, and more could. (Thanks also to City Councilors, who unanimously approved their idea.) Until school starts, there is still time to go out and enjoy getting around the city. Your school ID serves as your bus pass. If you don’t have one, get a “Freedom Pass” at the SAM office, 500 E 6th St, with proof of age. Last summer, kids took over 9000 free rides and showed them¬selves to be well-behaved, respectful citizens of our city. We’d love for kids to get to the free lunches on weekdays. Free summer meals help reduce hunger and prevent the summer learn¬ing slump. To find lunch info, google “summer meals Sioux Falls” for locations, dates and hours.