While the other TV stations have been hooping and hollering about the inside of the new McGovern Middle School, the folks over at KSFY have found a little problem with the exterior. No sidewalks leading to the school. (I just think it is a conspiracy to punish the School District for naming the school after a liberal);
The newly opened McGovern Middle School was built near a few busy streets in Sioux Falls.
It sits on Maple St. near Marion Rd.
The problem is, there isn’t anywhere for people to walk on those roads.
Including students.
It forces people to walk on the street which doesn’t even have much of a shoulder.
Ms. Bartness does a good job of ‘starting’ this story but comes up short at the end;
The school district tells us the city is in charge of making sidewalks in Sioux Falls.
KSFY News reached out to them earlier, but haven’t heard back.
First off Logan, there is more then one person you can call with the city about this. But what I find interesting is the School District saying the city is responsible for ‘making sidewalks’. While this is true most of the time, the adjacent property owner of new construction is assessed for the cost of those sidewalks. The city does it all the time with private businesses and homeowners, so why wasn’t the school district assessed for these sidewalks?
Once again, I see a case of a different set of rules being applied to government entities, like the school district. Reminds me of the school district parking lot next to the EC that doesn’t have ADA parking. Hmmm.
Good job Logan, now maybe you can track down Chad Huwe with the city and he can explain why the school District doesn’t have to pay for sidewalks out there.
Two facts you missed.
1. The area around the school (private land) is undeveloped and sidewalks aren’t required on undeveloped land. Much of the land is still zoned agricultural.
2. 100% of the students who attend that school are in bussed areas. 100%. This means students are not expected to ever walk to school due to the remote location. The district took the access into account when designing the bus routes and school boundaries.
1. Yes this is true, But the school itself IS school district property and they are responsible for sidewalks on adjacent streets.
2. I realize the 100% bussed in, but it is not realistic. Just watch the video, you see kids walking with backpacks along side the road. This school is very close to housing, maybe some kids just prefer to walk or ride their bikes to school? Is there any rules against that?
Nyet!! Major arterial street – City is responsible.
Another interesting fact yet to be reported – because 100% of the kids are bussed, and to accommodate emergency services to the school, the COUNTY had to shell out $1m to pave LaMesa Drive south of Maple.
Sucks how the school district and city, which get the bulk of the tax dollars, are always shoving special projects off on the county.
Since the ec is at substantially complete you will finally see the debt really climb as infrastructure and tifs for low income housing that mmm will benefit from with broin will really kick off to ensure they hose taxpayers in Lincoln county and minn county to the max then we will forget when he runs for governor down the road. Please don’t forget he is an a clown. Who are the adjacent owners who owe us ada sidewalks ?
Ruf, you are right, as I have been discussing this today with different people, the city is responsible for the sidewalks. Funny how they are concerned about pedestrian and bicycle safety, but they can’t build a sidewalk from the Mobile Home Park to the School.
No sidewalks in the Mobile Home Park – private streets.
There will be a built in path to walk on
once whatever they use on the winter streets hits the ditch or right of way.
Seen what just a splash does to foilage on 229N to Rice
divider islands and ramps.
Bridge does not look too hot either 400 cracks in surface just on one side of it.Bridge has the date on it cannot remember it 90’s mebbe.What did Odrama say the stimulus was for?Infrastructure RIGHT RIGHT.
In Art and Labor & 7.62 x51 tracer incendiary
OBG
Maybe moving to Hutchison County ya’ll keep it real in the DTSF.Extreme Sarc
In Art and Labor & my shit is packed hers is not.
OBG
I live nearby & can see the school. Initially, the last half mile wasn’t paved. I pointed it out here. It’s paved now like any rural road that’s county responsibility. There are deep ditches on both sides. The road surface will be very slippery in winter. I suspect there will be an issue with buses in the ditch.
The nearest sidewalk is more than a mile away. Sidewalks are not possible with ditches. It takes level roadsides with subsurface drainage & culverts. Marion Road is scheduled for widening but not sidewalks. Maple Street (front of school) has no plans.
Another problem is school bus offload & turnaround. There’s not enough room for 100% busing.
I BLAME THE CITY. With all the indoor sports castles, there’s no money for infrastructure and there’s to much debt for further bonding. Hollywood Mike used our credit card and the best we can do is minimum payments.
KSFY & KDLT have started to report city nonsense. Praise to them but where have you been?
I see the city has put their spin on it.
http://www.ksfy.com/story/26347064/school-adds-bus-route-to-offset-lack-of-sidewalks
Speaking of local TV personalities, I attended Democratic Forum today to watch Cory Maddville speak, and a well known weather person made the comment to Cory that many bloggers only post half-truths and don’t correct things when they are wrong. I almost busted up laughing. When do our local weathermen apologize when their forecasts are completely wrong?
….weather person made the comment to Cory that many bloggers only post half-truths and don’t correct things when they are wrong
Trobec used to have a blog. Jay stream I believe. The guy was way out there when it came to global warming. Any real scientist would scratch their heads at his pontifications. As far as current bloggers? I’d sure like to know who they are, besides you. I can also think of nothing you put forward as half-truths….unlike the corporate OWNED media.
Incidently, the school is not near the mobile home park. It’s out by itself a mile north and 1/2 mile west. The county should be commended for paving the road and adding a bridge half a mile to the school. They didn’t have to. The city was going to leave it gravel.
The county budget is 70 million versus the city 350 million. The county spends wiser. They’re responsible for welfare and the jail. They should get an extra 50+ million out of the city budget.
This is a rural state. Tax formulae and legal responsibilities are written to operate in a rural state. Doesn’t work for counties that have cities within them. Structurally discretionary against urbanization.
The City used “flagpole annexation” to bring that property into the city. They did that by annexing a narrow strip of public right of way along the road thus connecting the area to Sioux Falls. The school then avoided getting their building permit from Minnehaha county and saved some money. The county is now paving gravel roads in the area for safety costing the county some money.
Sidewalks are not required in the county.
This is another classic case of the schools, the city, and at times, the county worrying about their own projects and never communicating. Between Homan and MMM – that is a huge problem, and in the end, the people that are affected the most in their non communicative, non transparent leadership styles, are the great people they “claim” to represent.
Jeff, did the county pay for the new LaMesa asphalt pavement?
What’s the school district’s experience been like operating Renberg entirely within county boundaries – not city?
Street User
Yes
$250,000 plus labor
Listen to the County Commission talk about this at the latest meeting (FF to about 1:10) great discussion on how this happened and what the city pulled.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBk40xh_O6o