A lot of debt and a slowing economy;
Slower-than-normal sales tax revenue takes decisions that already are tough and makes them that much tougher.
This is unfortunate for many reasons. Okay, sure, maybe four to seven years ago no one could predict the recession coming, but it was pretty clear that Bush and the Republicans were not creating a lot of jobs, not to mention we were spending billions in Iraq which has zero payback unlike spending Federal dollars on education and infrastructure.
But on to Sioux Falls. Mayor Munson’s approach to the booming retail tax collection was to spend, spend, spend and borrow, borrow, borrow. When Dave took office the city was $90 million in debt and was keeping up with growth and infrastructure. Now at the end of what was considered for the most part a booming economy for city coffers we are close to $340 million dollars in debt and close to $100 million behind on infrastructure, and trying to play catchup in a sluggish economy.
Where did we go wrong?
When the money started flowing in seven years ago the prudent thing would have been to start prioritizing. I think this simple list would have saw Sioux Falls in a lot different spot today.
– Make a concerted effort to pay down our debt and build a strong reserve for emergencies and quality of life projects
– Catch up on infrastructure like road maintenance, sewer, water, etc.
– Put together a joint effort with developers for growth and new streets
As you can see this is a very simple list. Not only could we have all the same things we have today, we could have done it on a balanced budget. Instead, I believe Munson’s administration squandered our money on growth and quality of life projects that was not needed.
I feel very sorry for the next mayor.