Well, you know how it goes, when you can’t tough it out in the real world, you suck on the government teet. The Skab has been successful in scooping up public notice revenue all over the region because of a moronic law in Pierre that requires local governments to PAY a local publisher YOUR TAX DOLLARS to print public notices.
I know, as someone who is all about transparency, I’m not sure I am benefitting from this unless I have a magnifying glass to read the 4 PT type. I have argued several times you would save the taxpayers millions in this state if we just required to have the documents online, available for print outs at local libraries, city halls, police stations, etc. instead wasting ink and newsprint. This isn’t a Skab issue, it is an issue across the state.
What ever happened to the media being supported by subscriptions and advertising, and GOOD truthful non-partisan news? People would pay for that. I also laugh about the supposed libertarian slant of the Skab while they have their hands in the cookie jar all the while complaining about Noem’s misuse of state funds. We get to see misuse every time we see your rag. And what about more ‘regional’ coverage? And the weekly ‘Where’s Jon Hansen’ column doesn’t count.
I have noticed that since they started printing the notices, the paper has become much thicker, but the NEWS(?) content has become much smaller. Must be spending a lot of time finding ways to spend our money.
But hey, I don’t blame the Skab for this cashflow, everyone has their ‘NUT’, I blame the unethical Sioux Falls City Council for setting the precedent after every single one of them voted for this after receiving campaign funds and advice from one of the Skab’s investors, King Paulson. One of the most corrupt, unethical, quid pro quo votes I have ever seen. Never once did they question the investor, they just marched forward and purposely hid it from the public. Then they wonder why the public screams at them at public input. Your inactions speak louder then words.
I know at least one legislator has tried to revise this law, Greg Jamison, but it is always met with massive opposition from the newspaper association. I have argued in the past, if your news content and advertising is good you should be able to support yourself, why do you think I only make $600 a year do the math.
Last night while listening to testimony from immigrant activists, immigrants, and children of immigrants one thing was clear; what is happening right now in our country is horrible and riddled with misinformation, lies, and lots of RACISM. About a month before the presidential election, I knew Trump would win. I did the math 20 different ways from Tuesday and the result was always the same. No surprise. The Democrats, while having good intentions, have no follow thru, so while running against the most racist president since Jackson they put up a Black Woman which almost ended up dead last in the last Democratic presidential primary. To say the Dems F’d this past election up is an understatement. To hear all these immigrant horror stories is troubling, and not reflective of our Democratic Republic, which was built on the foundation of immigrants. As I had a lot of mixed emotions last night, after each speaker I kept circling back to why this happened; WE ELECTED TRUMP AS PRESIDENT. None of what is happening is surprising, and the hippie beads, tie-dye shirts and protests with flowers and handmade signs isn’t cutting it, the old way to battle the racist Republicans isn’t working anymore, and you have to fight fire with fire and play their silly reindeer games. But what I kept coming back to after each testimony is this question; ‘WHY THE FUCK DID WE ELECT A RACIST FOR PRESIDENT?’ Heck, even Black and Hispanic men voted for this clown in record numbers. We can point fingers at a lot of people, but I keep pointing my finger at the very people who showed up last night and those on the dais who voted for this rotten person at least once if not three times, YOU ARE TO BLAME FOR THIS SITUATION AND SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELVES. I LOATHE YOU! The racists got what they wanted and you played right into their hands. Do I think a majority of this country is racist? NO, but they certainly are ignorant and mis-informed to vote for a felon, sexual assaulting, racist (and perhaps pedophile) to the highest office in the land, you made this bed, and now you gotta sleep in it. It is hard for me to feel sorry for those on the dais who have played into this BS. I have struggled over the last 7 months, trying to come to grips with a voting public who is more concerned about the color of your skin and your immigration status then they are about saving a country. And there is more to come, a likely recession, high unemployment, homelessness, lack of healthcare, and the list goes on, all the while instituting a national sales tax (tariffs) on the ones that can least afford it.
(I updated the following paragraph)
After public input the Mayor told the speakers to take a moment while they leave the chambers, and in the hot microphone ‘someone’ on the dais says ‘THIS SUCKS!’ (FF: 4:44:15) While it was hard for me to determine who said it, I’m am pretty sure it was Curt Soehl. AND, It does suck Curt and Paul, and we can thank you for voting for this man likely three times while blindly standing at a press conference that stunk of racism and ignorance. It would have been like being invited to a Klan rally and when you attended you felt like you were mislead. You stepped in it big time, you are really living up to your nickname your daughter gave you. Poops tried to blame ‘misinformation’ before the presser as to why he showed. Gee, doesn’t it SUCK when someone isn’t transparent with you, how does it feel? It’s a gut punch when our government hides stuff from us, how does it feel when the shoe is on your feet? My assumption, whoever said this SUCKED, was a bit irked they had to sit there and listen to this, but you are part of the problem. While I commend all those who spoke last night, it was like a bear crapping in the woods, the officials didn’t hear a word you said, or cared. I am hoping this city and country wakes up before the next city election in June and the midterms in November, because this racist economic policy will be the death of this country, and when the smoke clears, we will be different, and not for the better. A light can never be seen in this darkness.
I also spoke on several other agenda items at the meeting last night.
This Wednesday at 6:00 PM, we’re going to fill the Sioux Falls City Council chambers in downtown Sioux Falls and demand our representatives exercise HOME RULE AUTHORITY to draw a line in the sand against government overreach with Governor Rhoden’s Operation Prairie Thunder program.
Basically the SD Dems are arguing since the city of Sux has a home rule charter they can tell Rhoden to go to Hell. Which is partially true on some matters. In fact the Mayor with the Council backing him could tell Rhoden that he cannot use our police force for immigration matters, and they wouldn’t even need to vote on it, the city attorney could just send a letter and the only recourse for Larry Buck would be to have the AG sue the city, which would be messy. Public input should be very entertaining. Public Input probably won’t happen until 8 PM.
As Poops’ term is coming to end, many directors and managers are announcing their retirement or resignation. Directors are leaving from most of the major departments and several assistant directors and deputies are also leaving.
First, the obvious question? Why are so many leaving throughout the organization? It is not uncommon for directors to resign after a mayor ends their term, some are just brought in for the administration and don’t expect to stay afterwards, but this many directors and management leaving after a mayor leaves is a bit suspicious.
There has been a lot of gossip and rumors from various sources that the city got investigated for financial reasons. I have heard a whole host of reasons why, but nothing solid, so I’m VERY SKEPTICAL this occurred (besides an ARPA audit), but it makes you scratch your head a bit when pretty much Poops entire administrative team is leaving with him. Are they gonna leave the next mayor holding the bag? What will the books look like? Good question.
There is a positive in all these resignations, the next Mayor will be able to pick their team, but this will take several months and hundreds of interviews. I would encourage the next mayor to hire a national recruiter to find qualified employees instead of depending on our internal HR department. But this will still make the first year of the mayorship difficult for the next mayor because they won’t have a permanent team in place when they are sworn in.
So what do these directors know that we don’t? Not sure. This has been the most secretive administration in the history of our city. Huether tried to cover up stuff, but he was really bad at it, Poops turned it into an art form, and if there is one thing he has accomplished it has been a militant closed government.
I hope the next mayor is transparent with the public and tell us what kind of damage the current mayor incurred upon us, but with being ‘SD NICE’ they will likely just sweep it under the rug and not look back. While I agree we shouldn’t dwell on past indiscretions, we should be told what they were, so the public can make sure we never elect or hire folks like this again. History is important, and if we don’t learn from it, well, you know what happens.
UPDATE: Well, I guess the cat is out of the bag, or should we say, Greg Jamison. Yesterday on the Belfrage show, they mentioned that Jamison is considering a run for Mayor. This is true. I also heard another mayoral candidate will announce either this week or next, he has already been mentioned in the past.
I was in a pretty good mood yesterday, even as I was sweating my ass off on the pedi-cab. After Erickson’s announcement last week, I was feeling a bit bummed. The run-up to this year’s mayor’s election was going to be boring as Heck, even though I do think the council races will be fun to watch. It seemed to me Erickson has it in the bag so what’s the point of even following it. I know I have held out hope of a Darkhorse candidate coming forward, I am sorry to report, there isn’t one. But there may just be a more Salted Caramel Horse candidate coming forward. I am excited to hear about these new prospects and look forward to their announcement. (no timeline has been set) Let’s just say in certain circles, we are thinking we have hope in installing a mayor who truly wants to help the people instead of the chamber. Let’s keep our fingers crossed on this one, if all else fails depend on superstition, or prayer, whichever you prefer
And Woodstock says, “Aren’t they one in the same?”
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?
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.
l3wis 
do the math.
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