Entries Tagged 'Munson' ↓

UPDATE: As I have heard from others over the past couple of weeks, Munson is considering a run for the legislature and NOT the city council.

A South DaCola foot soldier tipped me off tonight that Munson has been hinting at ‘getting back into politics’. (I think one of the TV stations broke the news at 10 PM) I always assumed he would run for the legislature again, but it seems he is considering challenging Staggers. This would be an interesting matchup, for several reasons. For one, they are completely different kinds of Republicans. Munson is a big government, big spender Republican and not real keen on transparency. In fact he had to drop out of his 2nd term mayoral race at one point because of a middle of the night deal with Phillips to the Falls, which has been a complete failure. Staggers on the other hand is a fiscal conservative who is a strong believer of open and transparent government. I hope if Munson runs, Staggers takes off the kid gloves and shows Munson for who he was as a mayor, a backdoor salesman who blew millions of taxpayer dollars on unneeded quality of life projects while failing to upgrade our sewer system and roads. Munson may think his second term legacy is all that and a bag of chips, but he really wasn’t that good of a mayor, and I don’t see him being a much better city councilor. I’m just saying.

I also think it is odd that Munson would be stepping backwards from being mayor to being a city councilor, he wasn’t one previously, and I think he would struggle with how powerless the job can be sometimes.

I guess we will know more soon enough. February 24, is the filing deadline.

like it matters . . . Too little, too late.

It sorta reminds me of his silent endorsement of Staggers for mayor. What’s the point?

This part made me shoot vodka thru my nose;

But Munson is worried that other economic factors are getting lost along the way.

“I applaud the Mayor for continuing on with the process because I think it’s important,” Munson said. “But what it’s going to get down to at the end of the day is money.”

Munson says not a lot is known about how Sioux Falls will pay for the $100 million dollar proposal, and that too much of the focus has been on the debate between the arena site and downtown.

“Not only do you build it, but after you build it, you’ve got to pay for the operating of the facilities,” Munson said.

Dave, Dave, Dave, I rattled your balls about this numerous times when you were mayor, just like I said on Tuesday night, now all of sudden the torch has been passed to you to champion these issues? Go away. Please. This is no longer your fight, like it ever was to begin with.

I don’t really know what to say about this video, except that is it worthless, typical, Perry Groten reporting. Get a bunch of random people that don’t know their ass from a hole in the ground and ask them about economic impact etc. It reminds of when Perry did a story about luxury backyard BBQ’s and a guy spent over 10 grand on his, and when the Stormland TV crew showed up, he was cooking hot dogs on it. I wish I could dig up the email I sent Groten that day.

Dave! Say it ain’t sooooooo!

Rumor has it he is working for the trustees or something at SE Tech. Anybody have info? Would love to know.

UPDATE: Josh @ the AL sent me this (it was page 5 news);

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Ex-mayor to head tech school foundation

Dave Munson is going back to school.

The 68-year-old former mayor was hired Monday to serve as interim director of the Southeast Technical Institute Foundation through the end of the year.

With about $750,000 in net assets, the foundation primarily pays for student scholarships and short-term loans. It will be Munson’s job to raise money from corporate and individual donors.

“I’m a strong advocate of Southeast Tech Institute,” Munson said. “What I want to do is build corporate awareness of what the value of STI is to Sioux Falls.”

Munson said Sioux Falls School District Superintendent Pam Homan first approached him about the job about the time he left office. He toured STI’s facilities and liked what he saw.

He starts Sept. 1 and will make $33,400 for four months of work. Munson and STI President Jeff Holcomb agree that it’s a temporary arrangement.

The position has been open since May, but Holcomb has found it difficult to find experienced fundraisers during a recession. Munson will help maintain continuity in STI’s fundraising efforts while Holcomb continues to search for a permanent director.

“I didn’t want to rush that process,” Holcomb said. “I want to get as good a pool (of applicants) as possible.”

In the meantime, he expects that Munson will be a good fit. Holcomb said Munson knows the community and the businesses and individuals to contact to “keep those connections moving.”

“He truly is an engaged member of the Sioux Falls community,” Holcomb said of the former mayor. “This was truly an opportunity that I couldn’t pass up.”

For Munson, it’s a chance for the former teacher to get back into the education field and get out of the house. He said he has spent the past few months cleaning out things that he has accumulated during 32 years of elected office.

“I really spent a lot of time boxing things, throwing things away that aren’t relevant anymore,” he said.

Reach reporter Josh Verges at 331-2335.

Dave’s greatest tool

This ringing endorsement of King Dave’s accomplishments comes from the same people who once depicted him as a Dr. Suess character. Besides spending record sales tax revenue like a drunken sailor and racking up a record debt I still struggle with what Dave’s accomplishments really were. Because I can shoot holes in all of these, real quick;

the man who grew up in the historic North End ultimately did not accomplish some things that many of us – maybe even he – had hoped for. Time, economic conditions, his own style and an often-fragile relationship with the City Council,

Fragile relationship? You mean the fact that he could only get 6-7 councilors to rubberstamp his agenda and budgets?

Phillips to the Falls became a reality – perhaps, in public perception, his greatest accomplishment.

What? He broke city law to approve a 100% over budget expenditure on the project, and after 5 years the land still remains undeveloped and as far as I know, still owned by the city. The only thing that was accomplished at Phillips to the Falls was a plaque of Munson being erected and a massive bilking of taxpayers.

He rescued the Orpheum, stabilized funding for the Lewis & Clark pipeline, cleaned up the Loop and gave downtown a welcome face-lift.

The taxpayers of Sioux Falls rescued the Orpheum, we are getting suckered in higher water rates for a pipeline we don’t have yet and downtown has become a very boring place to hang out. When I turned 21 over 16 years ago there was more than two live music venues downtown that played Rock & Roll. There was also a dance club. As Rocco said to me the other night when he was hanging out in Sioux City on fourth street.

“People aren’t a bunch of stuck up yuppies on fourth street like in downtown Sioux Falls. Everyone is cool.”

Munson has turned downtown Sioux Falls into a Mayberry for elitists who think there brat kids who are enrolled in club sports deserve handouts from the city, and I don’t think Mayor Subprime will be much different.

There was one thing Dave was good at; using his gavel at council meetings with people he didn’t agree with. I still think he has no respect for the First Amendment and freedom of speech, and for that, all I have to say is ‘good riddance!’

At least Rosenthal still loves me!

Joel spreads his lovefest about King Dave, then he goes into a strange rant about the library;

Last Friday Mayor Munson’s record of accomplishment was highlighted by the ribbon cutting and re opening of the Main Library in Downtown Sioux Falls.

Taking MY money to build something for ME is an accomplishment?  How is spending other people’s money on things that are obviously good for EVERYONE community an accomplishment? Kinda sounds like he was ‘doing his job.’ Good for him. But I wouldn’t label it as an accomplishment.

Many deserve kudos for this spectacular addition to our City. The most important group responsible is the Sioux Falls Taxpayer, without whose money, it would not have been built. It surely could not have been built with library fines or user fees. Some quality of life facilities require community investment.

He finally thanks us towards the end, but only so he can take a jab at an imaginary politician that lives in his head.

Sidebar – Remember in the last election all the nonsense about if you don’t use it you should not have to pay for it?

Joel, which councilor voted against the library expansion? None of them. While amendments were offered to get rid of expensive roof trim and unneeded wiring in the floor (could have been done cheaper in the ceiling) not one single councilor voted against the expansion. So who are you talking about? You really need to stop listening to the voices in your head.

As expected, Munson appointed as many people as he could before leaving office to volunteer boards at his last city council meeting (Item #4). This will may or may not make Mike’s job easier. These are all good people, and I didn’t see any glaring appointments, but I wonder what Huether thinks of it? Who cares? He really can’t do much about it.

Munson takes a swipe at Mike Huether in this interview, without mentioning his name. (FF 24:00 minutes) It is interesting.

This is from a photo I saw in the Argus Leader in the Sunday edition. The original photo was taken by Elisha Page for the Argus Leader.

I will update this story later tonight, but I thought this comment by Kevin Kavanaugh was dead on, and it has verified all my suspicions I have had of Munson;

Kavanaugh said Munson’s difficulties became a hindrance. “To me, his relationship with the council was always a strained one. I attribute that to either not having the leadership skills or not wanting to deal with it. He’s a nice guy, but he never took the time or invested in making sure people were on board. When you don’t do that, you’ve got people questioning you all the time and fighting you.”

This also has chapped my hide for a long time;

In February 2006, the council chairman asked for a legal opinion on whether Munson had violated the law (Phillips to the Falls). The next day, Munson stunned the city, saying he had become a distraction and would not run again. With Munson a lame duck, councilors dropped their pursuit of a legal opinion and the field for mayor swelled to 10 candidates.

Gerald Beninga, another councilor, saw it otherwise. There was no majority for an investigation, he said last week. “I don’t know that we even considered a vote on that.”

Of course you didn’t, because you are a bunch of gutless weasels who look out for each other. Birds of a feather. Boy, if Munson would have gotten investigated, then, just maybe, the rest of us will. The rubberstamp council prevails again.