Here is the copy of the proposed pothole funding supplement ordinance; Pothole Supplemental TS

Funny how these things work;

Thanks to the absence of precipitation in the coming days, the Public Works Street Division is increasing the number of crews dedicated to this spring’s pothole repair efforts.

“It has been a rough winter for our city streets,” says Mark Cotter, Director of Public Works. “The current condition of our streets has prompted us to take a more aggressive approach to our annual spring pothole repair efforts.”

To increase its emphasis on patching potholes, Street crews will be working the following adjusted work schedule for the next three weeks:

Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.: Public Works will have a minimum of six crews addressing potholes.

Monday through Friday from 4 p.m. to midnight and from midnight to 8 a.m.:Public Works will have a minimum of one crew addressing potholes in high-traffic volume areas.

Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.: Public Works will have a minimum of three crews addressing potholes.

 

While the media got their panties in a bind over being put between the mayor and the council (give me a break!) it seems Pat and Theresa’s pressure may have gotten the public works department to re-think the pothole situation moving forward. As I have been telling many people over the last couple of days, it is the Mayor’s job to run this city (direct Public Works), it is the council’s job to set policy and budgeting. No reason to get our shorts in a bunch.

I would also like to thank all the ‘grunts’ in our city’s workforce who have gone above and beyond to help people. You are appreciated, even if I am tough on the mayor and council, I do want you to be happy with your employment. I also would like to hear about any private contractors who decided to help the city out with flood management or cleanup. I haven’t seen anything in the media about that, but maybe they are just silently helping out?

26 Thoughts on “UPDATE: Potholes and Open Meetings

  1. Blasphemo on March 14, 2019 at 11:42 am said:

    Councilor Starr wisely articulates near the end of the press conference that the task force voted 2/27 to open the meetings. The mayor’s office neglected or elected to share this important info relevant to a public controversy in a timely manner. The timing of their email/press release AFTER Councilors Starr & Stehly announce their related scheduled press conference is a shameless act of CYA and/or “now I got you, you SOBs”. Not a good image for such reportedly sharp young entrepreneurs as the mayor and his inner circle. This is just adolescent contrariness.

  2. anonymous on March 14, 2019 at 11:47 am said:

    TenHaken has proven his lack of leadership on both of these issues.

  3. Did you notice how the media got mad at them for bringing citizen concerns forward? It just shows how very little our local media understands city government and our charter. It’s mind boggling. Let’s go over this again; the mayor is the city administrator responsible for running the city and mostly managing the employees and departments, the council is responsible for policy and the purse. This isn’t something new. ANY councilor has a right to bring budgeting and policy issues forward, it is the mayor’s office that is out of line for trying to do the council’s job. The last mayor decided that he was going to be policy maker, that was his choice, but it doesn’t mean it was right. Besides Pat and Theresa I think others on the council are trying to set the record straight, and I guess there is a learning curve for our local media. If you want to by angry about being stuck in the middle, ask TJ why he is nosing around in the council’s business. Otherwise, go back to doing stories your qualified to cover like missing dogs and cheeseburger battles.

  4. "Very Stable Genius" on March 14, 2019 at 2:00 pm said:

    It’s fun running for mayor, but not so much fun being mayor, is it?

    See what marketing gets you, when there is no substance to back it up?

    #SoMuchForBrandingThatDoesNotLast

  5. l3wis on March 14, 2019 at 2:39 pm said:

    I’m holding my tongue as far as it goes with leadership from our latest Hizzoner until the latest disaster passes. Makes you wonder if the Bloomberg Leadership group has a webpage on pothole repair?

  6. anonymous on March 14, 2019 at 3:57 pm said:

    I wonder if it was Bloomberg Leadership who told him to wear a tie when there’s a crisis!

  7. l3wis on March 14, 2019 at 4:12 pm said:

    Makes you wonder how many times Bowlcut called him offering to help. LOL.

  8. "Very Stable Genius" on March 14, 2019 at 4:35 pm said:

    “I wonder if it was Bloomberg Leadership who told him to wear a tie when there’s a crisis!….”

    I noticed that, too…… Bahahahahaha….. But someone needs to teach him about a full windsor and the appropriate shirt collar…. Unless, he wants to go half windsor like John Kerry, but you still need the appropriate shirt collar….

    And speaking of potholes, there is one on 41st that is so big, that it has its own gift shop…. (I got that one from Letterman, I must admit.)

    #IMissLettermanAndITrytoMissPotholes

  9. My Mistake Mike on March 14, 2019 at 5:01 pm said:

    The flooding provides a timely diversion for PTH. Potholes now become an “inconvenience” given the millions of dollars in damage to parks, homes, streets, etc.

    But, seriously, if the media did its job – they need to pull newsfile from 5-7 years ago when the city did the cheap asphalt overlays to Minnesota Ave, West Ave, 41st Street to extend the life of the crumbling concrete streets for another 5 years (just long enough to outlast MMM’s second term). This explains why these 3 streets are SO bad, and why pothole patching won’t fix the real problem.

  10. D@ily Spin on March 14, 2019 at 5:44 pm said:

    Potholes are a serious problem this year. It’s been a weird freeze thaw excess precipitation cycle the city could not have prepared for. Rather than blame the city, it’s time for the mayor to declare emergency budget for streets repair and flood control.

  11. scott on March 14, 2019 at 5:46 pm said:

    roads are nice around the denty.

  12. l3wis on March 14, 2019 at 7:02 pm said:

    This article about how European roads are better because they dictate how long they should last (40 years) instead of dictating what materials or process is used to build the road. In other words, whoever is the most innovative in building a 40 year road wins the contract. The public gets a better road and the contractor makes money.

    https://www.patheos.com/blogs/janetheactuary/2016/07/why-are-americas-roads-so-much-worse-than-europes.html

  13. "Very Stable Genius" on March 14, 2019 at 7:28 pm said:

    But l3wis, aren’t Europeans just a bunch of socialists?…They probably have public pre-K education, too.

  14. l3wis on March 14, 2019 at 7:57 pm said:

    I heard the secret ingredient in the asphalt mix is hemp.

  15. D@ily Spin on March 14, 2019 at 8:06 pm said:

    How many panels blew off the Denty today? I’m betting dozens but what’s the spread?

  16. D@ily Spin on March 14, 2019 at 8:34 pm said:

    Huether diverted federal flood control money into play palaces. Now we’re a disaster. Should he be brought up for Cohen-Mannafort prison sentences? There’s nobody to pardon him. He could get 19 years.

  17. Blasphemo on March 14, 2019 at 10:38 pm said:

    Mayor Paul is a bright guy. I’m not so sure he’s bright in the ways we need a mayor to be. But, he is brighter, apparently, than one or more inexperienced local journos who are easily intimidated when they question and/or report about inconvenient issues the likes of Starr, Brekke and Stehly raise. If some journos are whining about “being caught in the middle”, PTH is likely laying some guilt trip – or outright anger – on their reporting.

  18. Conservative Here on March 15, 2019 at 11:09 am said:

    This recent weather and disaster it has cost Sioux Falls really ticks me off at the last administration. If we had invested the money in the Waste Treatment facility instead of toys maybe some folks would not be under water and our systems could have handled the excess rain better. We need to hold these @#$&^%@! accountable to do stuff for us EVERYONE needs instead of certain groups.

    The pot holes are another issue and out of control in town, I find myself taking back ways to get places to avoid them. I hit a pot hole so bad on North Cliff several years ago and blew 2 tires and ruined all 4 of my rims and required my car to be realigned.

    Why can’t govt prioritize real stuff like water, sewer, streets, ya know the infrastructure stuff, instead of making downtown cool. Uggghh venting today as this weather has really messed up some stuff for folks. Hopefully some good will come of this and maybe more citizens will wake up and demand our city work on the important things.

  19. Just think how much better our streets and flood control would be if we weren’t taking $10 Million a year out of the 2nd penny for a mortgage on the Denty? How great is 7 Garth Brooks concerts when your house and car are floating down the street? As I have told people, no where in the city charter, state constitution or US constitution does it say it is the government’s responsibility to entertain us. Bread & Circus.

  20. In a way the potholes are helping with flood control, as they fill with water, that is less running down the streets 🙂

  21. I have also been reminding people whether you believe in Global Warming or not, it is pretty obvious to climatologists that since Katrina our weather patterns have changed, big rains and big storms is the new normal. Everyone keeps saying, “Have patience, it will soon go back to normal.” Sorry, that’s not going to happen. You also have to realize this is just the beginning of Spring, we have a good 2-3 more months of melting and rain and if temps go from 40 to 70 in a matter of a week or even two weeks, the flood we are experiencing right now is just the tip of the iceberg.

  22. Conservative Here on March 15, 2019 at 12:32 pm said:

    Scott you had me all the way up until we did the Global Warming business. Regardless of whether you think its real or not, I personally don’t but, that is a topic that will never be settled. Its a planet thing not a USA thing and if folks were REALLY serious about it. We would make China & India reduce their emissions ASAP. The US is not the problem in the grand scheme of life if you go down the logical path and look at all the countries.

    The reason I don’t believe in this is all the so called experts that tell us how bad this is are the ones living in Mansions, using private jets (look at Davos last year), driving carbon spewing machines. Its hard to take them seriously when they dont practice what they preach. Kind of like gun control folks in govt, they want to regulate us but, have a swarm of security with guns to protect them and live behind walls. Its really hard for me to entertain your logic and thoughts when you live by a different set of rules than the common folk.

    Its funny it used to be called Global Warming but, since that didn’t work now its called “Climate Change”. The Climate has always changed folks, we had a thing called the “little ice age” that occurred from 1300s to around mid 1800s then it began to warm back up, strange huh. There were no cars, planes, etc. The planet was very different I am sure 1 Million years ago as well. So my problem with all this crap is very simple, if a weather man cannot tell me what the weather is going to be in 2 weeks or 3 weeks, how the F can someone tell me what its going to be like in 10-50 years. He can’t and its all best guess work based on some data. According to Al Gore we died 10 years ago. AOC says we are going to die in 12 years, etc. The weather always changes and always will, the REAL question is whether man is contributing to the changes or not and that is NOT definitive. I am not willing to make any massive changes to our economy just because some believe something that has yet to be proven true.

    Back on track though, the city screwed the pooch and I am pissed about it. Scott I think we conservatives and liberals need to band together on items we BOTH see as problems and fix them. The partisan items will have to be what they are partisian but, shit like this everyone is on board with. When I flush my toilet, I want it take care of properly, when I turn on my water I want it clean. When I drive down the road I don’t want to feel like I am playing Mario Kart avoiding stuff (potholes). I want people to pay for their OWN entertainment not my tax dollars. Government should focus on needs 1st, and wants 2nd. I don’t think that should be partisan its called common sense we all have to live with here!

  23. matt johnson on March 16, 2019 at 9:57 am said:

    We can not do much about the pot holes- a fact of life with thaw/freeze cycles. However, Greg Belfredge (sp?) telling us not to try to mitigate the problem is outrageous. He claims we should not worry about pot holes when the streets are flooding and that the city is doing everything it can to get the drainage system to work. Maybe they should have found the problem spots (drainage inlets) before the storm- not after the fact.

  24. Lemming on March 16, 2019 at 10:10 pm said:

    “Look at me!” Same ol’, Same ol’ from Edith and Archie

  25. "Very Stable Genius" on March 17, 2019 at 11:49 pm said:

    “Kind of like gun control folks in govt, they want to regulate us but, have a swarm of security with guns to protect them and live behind walls.”

    Do you know why that is? Because they are more of a potential target, than the average person. That security is there to not only protect the person involved, but also the office and the integrity, and the continuity of that office. Most of us are not targets and any common sense American should welcome that security for our political leaders because it is an important part of our overall national security.

    “The reason I don’t believe in this is all the so called experts that tell us how bad this is are the ones living in Mansions, using private jets (look at Davos last year), driving carbon spewing machines. Its hard to take them seriously when they dont practice what they preach.”

    The Davos crowd are not the “experts.” Now, experts do attend Davos, but most of Davos are political and business leaders. You do not need Davos to prove climate change. Scientists do it often without unnecessary or extravagant uses of cars and planes.

    As far as your mention of the “little ice age,” it is my understanding that the “little ice age” ended primarily due to the Industrial Revolution, which began late in the 18th century, and the pollutants which came with it.

    In fact, scientists can drill into ice glaciers and tell the weather history of our planet for many centuries back; and the level of carbon trapped in the layers reflects a direct correlation between an increase in carbon intake in our environment and global warming or climate change.

  26. Rachel on March 18, 2019 at 9:23 pm said:

    Pat and Theresa seem to be the only two Council
    Members who do their job in the purest form. It was heartbreaking to see the flood damage done to the Johnson trailer park, Cliff Avenue greenhouse. Potholes? Was in the Twin Cities over the weekend and there weren’t any. It’s not Midwestern weather that is to blame, but poor planning on the part of the city to repair roads with a long term emphasis.

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