Developers

UPDATE: City of Sioux Falls ‘Lame Duck’ update

l3wis August 5, 2025 3Comments

UPDATE: I reported about this a year ago that peeps are camping in our parks, it took the geniuses at city hall a year to figure out how to stop it, but I am NOT sure I am completely on board (Item #45):

This ordinance amendment addresses dwellings in public places and areas not intended for habitation. This ordinance reflects our growing concerns around public health, safety, and the responsible use of our parks, green spaces, and other public areas.

While our trespassing laws would work in there current form, I’m not sure adding more layers to a simple law that works well is the solution. When I brought up this issue, it wasn’t so the city would make it illegal to camp, all I was asking was to enforce our current trespassing laws and interact with these individuals to give them options. How does the SFPD handle it now? They just chase them out of an area, and they are back the next day. If you are not giving these folks an option for REAL shelter, and you are NOT arresting them on trespassing charges, what are you doing with them? Just chasing them to another picnic shelter. We need to work on PERMANENT removal instead of whack-a-mole. I thought about buying Foam Mallets for the police that they can use to chase the transients from the picnic shelters. If you are NOT going to enforce the common sense laws on the books now, the police might as well look just as ridiculous as the enforcement itself.

If you look at some of the city business over the past few weeks, it is obvious a lame duck is in charge, and he has really been flailing since the real mayor of the city resigned last month and now Poops can’t use the Erica Auto Pen anymore.

MAYOR TENHAKEN TO APPOINT FORMER CITY COUNCILOR RICK KILEY TO THE CHARTER REVISION COMMISSION (Item #49)

Let’s pretend for a moment that Rick was qualified to take this position (he is not), being a former city councilor he has a conflict of interest because he was only appointed to protect the interests of the city, the mayor’s office and the city council and could care less about changes that benefit the community as a whole. He was appointed to be another sock-blocker on the CRC tamping down citizen initiatives. I would encourage the city council to vote him down, but we know it will be an 8-0 vote of his approval, so I am looking forward to his arrival on the board You do know that the public interacts with the CRC during these meetings unlike the chicken sh!t council that is scared of their own shadows. Rick doesn’t handle public interaction well, frequently talking down constituents at the meetings, it doesn’t roll that way at the CRC. Better put on your big kid pants Rick, this isn’t another day in the park city council meeting where you hide behind made up rules. Can’t wait for him to start telling his HS science teacher stories and how it applies to city law I wonder if he will tell the story about the student in the hallway?

TRE MINISTRIES BACKING OUT ON ORIGINAL PROPOSAL AFTER LYING TO CITY COUNCIL, Planning Commission (Item #5A)

So after they lied to the city council about investors and a developer so they could get a $500K, interest free loan (that never has to be paid back) to demolish the buildings on the existing property, including an historical building, they are having a change of plans. I hope the neighborhood shows up to bitch about this. They are basically scaling back the housing portion and are putting in an office building, like we need more office buildings in this town, right next to a bustling residential neighborhood. Tre really needs to sell the property to an apartment developer and put in housing instead of their indentured servant program they plan to run in the name JC. It often cracks me up when these supposed religious organizations lie in public meetings to get tax dollars. Maybe they need the 10 Commandments tacked up in their break room.

REZONE FOR DATA CENTER MOVING FORWARD EVEN WITH OPPOSITION FROM THE CITY OF BRANDON’S RESIDENTIAL GROWTH AREA (Item #46)

I don’t have a problem with a Data Center in the middle of a cornfield, but the problem is the City of Sioux Falls is sticking their noses in the County and specifically the City of Brandon’s residential growth map. Brandon is opposed to the rezone to allow a data center because they want the land to be developed residential as it is zoned right now. Also, the foreign owned company who owns the property has been very secretive about their plans, which should be worrisome. As for jobs? Sure, it will create hundreds of jobs for out-of-state contractors while being built, but very few once open, it’s just a gigantic building sucking electricity full of servers. The planning commission justified their zoning change because the owners will still have to go thru a permitting process. Hogwash. If you would have refused this rezone abruptly this whole process would be over and Brandon would get to keep the land for residential development. So what do we need more of in SE South Dakota? Data Centers or Housing? I think you know the answer, but does our city council? This would be a very easy NO vote, but they never make anything easy. Hopefully they can defer this until they have the full plans from the FOREIGN company proposing this.

CITY BALL FIELD TO BE NAMED AFTER FINANCIAL INSTITUTION WITH NO DOLLAR VALUE OF SPONSORSHIP (Item #44)

In one of the strangest park sponsorships I have ever seen, they are granting a 30 year naming sponsorship to a financial institution for a new ball field with NO DOLLAR AMOUNT mentioned in the sponsorship. I have never seen this before. They only reference what they will be paying for;

WHEREAS, HBA and the City agree that one of the conditions of such gift is to name the ballfield
“Sammons Field at Prairie Meadows Park” for the life of the Improvements and may be referred to as
the “Sammons Field” on any signage; and

While it is great they will be paying for the improvements (and why would we accept this field from Harrisburg?) there should be a yearly spending cap, so what is it? Transparency is just a turd to flush to this current administration. Don’t be fooled, the taxpayers of SF will be paying for most of the improvements, while we slap a financial institution’s name on it because they bought a couple of park benches. Even the rich and powerful now control our parks, while we have to pay to maintain them.

WHY DOES THE CITY OF SIOUX FALLS NEED A MARKETING STRATEGY?

I saw this ridiculous RFP listing from the city last week;

Media Planning and Buying Services and Strategic Marketing Support

First off, the city has a large media department, this can be handled internally, and secondly, the city doesn’t need a ‘Marketing Strategy’ you are a non-profit, not a for profit business. What we need is a qualified public information officer whose only job is to disseminate information to the media and public thru press releases, press conferences and city link. We give thousands to the SF Development Foundation each year to do this, that is LITERALLY their main purpose, DO YOUR JOB!

DAKOTAFREEPRESS IS BACK AT IT

This is unrelated to city bizzo, but Cory is back at it. I figured he would return, everyone needs a break. I will probably take a break after the 2026 city election.