City of Sioux Falls to hire a new city clerk

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(PIC: LinkedIn)

I was informed yesterday that a new city clerk was chosen and an announcement would come on Friday, but I guess they decided to announce it early;

Mr. Washington serves as the current City Clerk in Box Elder, SD, and has a bachelor of science degree in management information systems from Midwestern State University (Wichita Falls, TX) and a bachelor of science degree in information technology from National American University. In addition, he is a member of the International Institute of Municipal Clerks and the National Association of Parliamentarians.

Mr. Washington served in the U.S. Air Force for 13 years and was stationed in Sheppard Air Force Base (TX) and Ellsworth Air Force Base (SD).

While Mr. Washington brings the experience and education and seems like a great candidate, I hope he is not overwhelmed.

The population of Box Elder is about 12,000 people, Sioux Falls is 204,000.

While military experience does give applicants an advantage for government service, you wonder if his appointment was under the recommendation of former City Attorney, Stacy Kooistra who is an Air Force reservist member.

I wouldn’t want our diligent eight city councilors to work to hard to find a good candidate. I do know they had around 200 applicants. Maybe the city really doesn’t have a retention problem 🙂

Sioux Falls water plant expansion should be bonded thru 2nd Penny

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Sioux Falls water and sewer is funded thru enterprise funds (user fees). Those fees go towards maintenance, operation, general expansions and pipe replacements. They also go towards paying the salaries of the employees of this department (while all other city employees are paid thru the 1st penny operational fund).

While the concept of enterprise funds works well for normal operation, paying salaries and bond payments for major expansions out of this fund is what is draining the coffers and a cause for fee increases.

The 2nd Penny fund was created for road maintenance and soon got hi-jacked for all infrastructure projects. But that is what is it is for, major infrastructure like an expansion of our water and sewer plant.

This is really about allocation of tax money.

We say we need to pay down the bonds for this facility with user fees but we don’t use user fees to pay down the bonds for the Events Center, Pavilion, Zoo, Tennis Courts, Midco Aquatics and the list goes on.

It is ludicrous to have $80 million in a reserve fund for infrastructure projects while raising water rates to pay down bonds for a needed infrastructure project.

Huh?!

Why not re-finance the bonds thru the 2nd Penny fund and avoid a water rate increase? I wonder what Bloomberg thinks of that?

Sioux Falls installing ‘See how long before it is broken’ park

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The Parks Department (or probably the mayor’s office) is building a fitness pad park by 26th and Southeastern. Many have asked ‘how long will the equipment last’? I went by the park yesterday while they were installing the equipment in the ground. While the frames of the stationary bikes and equipment are made of very durable cast steel the rest of it is plastic. Even with normal wear and tear and the weather this stuff will have trouble lasting more then a few seasons but it’s the vandals that concern me more.

What’s going on with the Bunker House?

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An attorney said to me last week that if there has been this much silence from the city AND the defendant it is likely they are in mediation to settle.

Some would argue the city has legal standing in what they are doing, and on some level they do, but some would also argue that the constitutional and federal rights of the defendant is a much stronger case.

What would a possible settlement look like?

I don’t know, because to be honest with you I have never had to deal with such a thing, and I haven’t combed through every detail of the case.

In the simplest terms the city will probably allow him to finish the house and not demolish it, because as Judge Lange stated that would be a total waste, or as someone stated to me, tearing down the house would be the ultimate dick move by the city.

I don’t think the city has many other options.

COUNTY COMMISSIONS AND CITY COUNCIL HAVE BECOME DEFERRAL QUEENS!

The heck with the rubber stamps these bodies have, they have exchanged them for unexpected vacations and deferrals. Have you noticed lately that when the Lincoln and Minnehaha Commissions as well as the Sioux Falls City Council have to make an important decision one of the members will skip the meeting for a ‘scheduled’ vacation or they end up deferring it.

I wonder if any of them realize that when you put off an important decision it makes that ultimate final decision much harder for the public to swallow. Look at Pettigrew neighborhood. Past mayors, councils, officers and administrators have failed to make a dent over the past 30 years and the problem has gotten worse and the mayor calling 20% of the residents in Pettigrew alcoholics doesn’t help the situation.

As I have told councilors and mayors for the past 20 years, if you can’t do the job or are afraid to the job please resign so we can replace you with someone that can. I will agree that personal attacks that are unwarranted towards elected officials is unacceptable, but attacking your competence has always been free game. This has nothing to do with the character of those supposed leaders, it has to do with their courage, or the lack of.