During the informational meeting today, the Parks Department proposed turning over the community centers to the SFSD for a after school program.
Councilor Merkouris questioned how this was concocted behind closed doors without input from a majority of the council and school board. He didn’t put it that way and was little more clever and asked how the SFSD can send out notifications for this program’s enrollment before the council or school board approved this.
The SFSD and the Parks Department tried to tie in future proposed indoor rec and pool centers. So are they proposing the SFSD take over the Midco Aquatic center? Yankton Trail Park? If you are trying to justify these indoor rec centers, then justify them for city public use not for supplementing the SFSD after school programs.
I agree this is needed, but I am with Rich, why wasn’t our policy body, the council, working on this? I often question what the purpose of our council is if the mayor’s office is molding policy and sponsoring it on the agenda. Might as well just put eight tic-tac-toe playing chickens on the dais, probably make better decisions 🙂
Councilor Starr questioned if the city will be saving any money? It doesn’t appear that way, it looks like we will still be providing funding since the city will still have use of the community centers on some occasions.
While I agree the SFSD should be sponsoring this program, I’m not sure it is the responsibility of city coffers (sales taxes) to help with this. I have been a major proponent of Pre-K education and public funding of it, but that should come from property taxes, Federal grants and mostly state coffers. We have a child care crisis in this city and country, no denying it, but we need to direct funding from the correct coffer. When I have to drive over 6″ ice ruts down my residential street, I’m not wondering why the city isn’t funding child care, I’m wondering why they are not spending my sales taxes on the most basic of needs like road maintenance.
Community center sounds like everyone in neighborhoods. How is it that school age children should have to pay for the entire city? School funding can’t pay for teachers. Why should they owe for everything?
Teachers are already paid very well in South Dakota, they are guaranteed $48,000 a year for full time positions plus retirement, and healthcare benefits. How much are we suppose to pay them? They are making more than some in the private sector.
The benefit to subcontracting the services over to the Sioux Falls School District for one is a direct benefit that ‘we’ as a city get to save from paying Payroll Taxes which include Social Security, Medicare, Unemployment, Workman Comp, let alone it transfers all liabilities of providing pensions and retirement benefit from the City.
But…why did we tear down the former FORT at Elmwood Park, let alone why do not we not turn the Sioux Falls Arena into a “Family and Youth Entertainment Center’ to be operate by the Sioux Falls Park and Recreation Department and other Non-Profits such as the Boys and Girls Clubs, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, the School District, let alone other Corporate Partners…But we do not want to make the Arena look like an “ASSET” cause some in the community wish to tear it down, but yet Sioux City, IA revitalizes their AUDITORIUM to be just as our Arena should be.
So, let me get this right, citizens of Sioux Falls, who live in the Tea or Harrisburg school districts, would then be playing for a city service which another school district would benefit from and control?…. Is that right?
( and Woodstock adds: “Don’t worry VSG, you’re mostly taking about Taupeville… They’re loaded….. ” )
Not necessarily, you will want to do a Freedom of Information Act, or REQUEST a PUBLIC RECORD to get access to all info related to all “transfers” or checks written from the CITY to the Sioux Falls School District.
I would be presuming, that the CITY will most likely use its share of the Property Taxes they get from the residents of SIoux Falls primarily to COunty.
“WE” May have to do more research here, if YOU do not want Lincoln County ‘taxes’ funding the SF School District, then you want to discuss with the COUNCIL what ‘taxes’ can fund this Program(s).
The ORDINANCE is not adopted yet , this was a INFORMATIONAL MEETING, so you have two chances to dsicuss this in January…
To add on: I believe they plan on using a Federal Grant to fund this program, and the School District is going to manage it as a partner.