South DaCola

Editorial Cartoonist from South Dakota

Downtown Sioux Falls

1st Amendment Curt Soehl Downtown Sioux Falls Open Government Open Meetings SF City Council Sioux Falls

Sioux Falls City Council Chair doesn’t like being yelled at

l3wis 4Comments

Curtist the Blurtist had a plan last night. He pulled an item from the consent agenda. The city was allocating $150K for two new ambassadors for DTSF. While I think it is awesome DTSF is creating jobs, I doubt the employees are making $75K each for the summer, but as DTSF says they need money for ‘training’. LOL. Why did Curt pull the item? Because he thought this would be a great opportunity to talk about the great thing these ambassadors are doing. Well, he was wrong. While our country is going into a tailspin because of a very stupid person, constituents are NOT happy, and they certainly won’t be happy about the city spending more money on the transient issue by spending more money NOT ON THEM!

So some constituents weighed in, and it wasn’t pretty. While they were certainly not friendly in their testimonies, they weren’t wrong. After the trip to the woodshed, Curt was unhappy so he said something like, “I didn’t know we were going to get yelled at . . .” First off, Curt, that is really your main job, listening to constituent complaints, and secondly if you want to POP off at constituents during a meeting you are VIOLATING a rule MMM put in place, NO CONSTITUENT INTERACTION WHILE THEY ARE AT THE PODIUM. So Curt, if you want to change the rules, which I am ALL for, to allow councilors to interact with constituents during public input, DO IT! But until that rule change is made I suggest you such your pie hole and take it like a big kid, or better yet RESIGN. Your disdain for public engagement is getting old, like you (as you pointed out in the meeting.)

1st Amendment Downtown Sioux Falls Sioux Falls Trump

Over 1,000 show up for Anti-Trump Rally DTSF

l3wis 3Comments

Some are saying towards the end it was closer to 2,000 and they plan to do this almost every Saturday until Sally Tomato leaves office. I will try to find a video a friend shot while riding on the back of my Pedicab down Phillips. People lined the street on both sides from Keloland to Minerva’s. It was crazy! but when you have crazy in charge, this is what happens. Where were these people before the election? I think I am more bitter towards non-voters then I am with Trump voters, you weren’t going to change those morons minds anyway, but people who sat it out because they didn’t like either candidate. Call a whaabulance, I have never liked anyone who has ran for office, I just pick the one that will do the least damage, that would have been Harris, this wasn’t rocket science. This won’t end well for us or anybody else involved.

Downtown Sioux Falls Sioux Falls Traffic Control

Solutions for a dangerous 14th Street?

l3wis 8Comments

I would agree this street between Minnesota Ave and Cliff is dangerous. I cross it several times a day and have learned that it can be a drag strip and has been this way for decades. I like this solution;

Several neighbors, including Zach DeBoer and Joe Batcheller, shared support for the idea of implementing a “road diet” to bring 14th Street from a four-lane road to a two-lane road with a turn lane in the middle (similar to 26th Street between Cliff and Minnesota Avenues.)

I would go a step further and put protected* bike lanes on either side of the street. I would also put more decorative mediums in the center lane (flower beds, etc.). If we are going to do it, do it right. The city is ‘considering’ a test of the lanes, but I think the council should just make the change in ordinance and require the city to re-stripe it within 6 months then work on the other upgrades the next year. I would also explore building a decorative pedestrian bridge over 14th at Phillips Avenue. Think functional but like the Arc of Dreams, you could do an RFP for a functional sculpture and get local sponsorships to help pay for it.

*protected bike lanes have an elevated medium between the bike lane and vehicle lane for extra protection.

Downtown Sioux Falls Elections Erica Beck Former Mayor Jim Entenman Mayor TenHaken Sioux Falls

So Erica Beck wants to run for mayor? LOL.

l3wis 4Comments

Not sure what is going on, but several months ago I was told she was running and had the endorsement of Poops. Then this Micah guy showed up and I thot the Beckster was done. Now she is resigning in June and said, “I want to hang with the grandkids.” Oldest excuse in the book. We know you are running. You have been running the city since you have been COS as one of the first thing’s Jumping Jack Flash did was give her the authority to sign mayoral documents when he is ‘absent’ and she has been running the city ever since.

What I find completely arrogant is as her tenure as our shadow mayor nothing has gotten accomplished except shipping dusty monkeys to the East Coast. So many failures under her leadership it is hard to keep track.

But this is what happens when you pull authoritarian leadership and the people (the council) tunes you out.

I have written in the past the former folks who worked with Beck at Lloyd Companies have told me the same thing, SHE IS NOT A CONSENSUS BUILDER. I have also heard from multiple current and past councilors that she is a brow beater when it comes to the mayor’s agenda proposals, and they ain’t happy about it.

The irony of all this is Erica reached out to me after she quit the city and we had coffee and a long chat (mostly her talking). She was a different person. She told me she quit the planning department after MMM forced her to write the Sanford TIF in which she said to me, “This TIF was precedent because this has never been done before for a recreational event center.” Oh, and she was completely opposed to it. She also tried to bring a casino to Sioux Falls (Flandreau Tribe) to use their revenues to pay for the event center in which they pledged $10 million a year towards the bond payments but Mike refused to meet with them because he didn’t want a ‘casino’ in town. LOL. The town is nothing but casinos, but I digress.

She had a good head on her shoulders, but after tasting the power of working for Lloyd she seems to think she has the Chutzpah to do the job. Not even F’ing close!

Besides the horrible management of the city, Beck embraces non-transparent government, which costs taxpayers $$$$. She can’t even say why she is quitting. So I guess your mayoral campaign strategy is to keep this secret as long as you can then surprise people? Weird. If you are running, you tell everyone and your sister, and you continue to let that steam out. Huether won because he was relentless and not mysterious (what a weird dude, and this is coming from a weird dude). The one thing I learned about running successful city campaigns is you come out early and you pound constituents with information about your candidacy. I guess Beck’s strategy is to keep it a secret until election day and hopefully peeps will be confused and vote for her. I can’t believe we are letting this putz run our city (into the ground).

My hope is that she will run for mayor, spend $500K and come in dead last. The chamber folks might think you are the best thing since sliced bread, but their 100 votes won’t get you past the finish line. Can’t wait for you to announce. Jim Entenman part II.

1st Amendment Bishop Dudley House Downtown Sioux Falls Homeless Mayor TenHaken Open Government Open Meetings SF City Council

The City of Sioux Falls doesn’t understand transparency and open government

l3wis 7Comments

Here we go again, concocting some ‘solution’ for an issue in the city and not bringing the public along in that ‘solution’;

City officials say more information on a $150,000 marketing campaign aimed at addressing “nuisance behavior” and discouraging panhandling in downtown Sioux Falls is coming soon.

There have been several ‘rumored’ ordinances that are awaiting the council’s approval including making it illegal (trespassing/camping) in our parks. But why not have a public discussion where the citizens can offer solutions?

Asked for an update this week, TenHaken’s communications officer Vanessa Gomez said, “I would expect us to be able to share more in the next month or so.”

So what’s the big secret? If you are instituting new laws shouldn’t you tell the public in advance? My guess is that they are going to be very controversial and I wouldn’t doubt the ACLU gets involved. Just like the Brockhouse animals you are going to drop this in our laps at the last minute.

I told a city official last week that every country and community that has either solved homelessness or made virtually invisible did it one way; Transitional housing. I suggested the city buy four Tzadik properties on bank foreclosure, remodel them to be 1 bedroom and studios and gift them to the St. Francis house and offer them a yearly subsidy for handling the transitional housing. We seem to be throwing money at ad agencies to educate the public, but we are doing very little to actually help these folks. For $150K you could house 25 people for a year!

I suggest that moving forward, the council tells us what they are planning, and NOT next month, TODAY!

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