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UPDATE: GETTING TIFILICIOUS!

l3wis June 5, 2024 12Comments

UPDATE: I just got a tip this morning that the project for the RR Redevelopment will be requesting a TIF. With inflation and property taxes going thru the roof this is a horrible time to be handing out TIFS. 80% of property taxes in SF are paid by residential property owners. Why are we subsidizing parking ramps for NOT workforce or even low income housing!?

Maybe we could afford a food tax cut, if we would just stop giving these Developer Welfare Queen Grifters massive tax breaks! Want to jump start the economy in SF, lower property taxes and stop giving OUT GODDAMN TIFS! THEY DO NOT WORK!

Still waiting for that independent comprehensive study on TIFs in Sioux Falls and the State. Oh that’s right, we can’t do a study showing how awful they are, then we would have to stop handing them out to our friends.

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At the informational meeting (Wednesday) the city council will get an update on our public transit system and an update on the supposed development directly east of the 8th & RR Building. It seems they will contract with a developer from Des Moines (you can see they do the boring crap SF likes). I do know that some local developers proposed some housing in the area and their RFP was declined and it wasn’t Lloyd 🙂

At the regular meeting, also on Wednesday, they will be voting on sending the tiny house community more money (Item #46, 1st reading);

This ordinance will provide an additional $200,000 of funding for the ongoing construction of the Veterans Community Project tiny home village. The funding will come from the restricted cash balance, in the General Fund, set aside by Ordinance 52-23 – Liquor License Proceeds.

I supported this project initially, but over the past couple of years I have gotten suspicious of this private non-profit. I have asked several friends who work with or at the VA and DAV if they work with this group and they said NO. I have also asked people who work at affordable housing solutions if they work with the group and they said NO. So why are we giving them money? And why don’t they work with veterans and housing partners? Seems odd to me you call yourself a Veteran’s Community but you don’t work with some of the largest Veteran organizations in our country.

I also see we are taking the money out of the Liquor License Fund. I thought that money was going to be used for youth prevention? Maybe we should use the money to give every adult a beer at the July 4th hot dog festival. Makes about as much sense.

It’s not a cornstalk, but . . .

l3wis June 4, 2024 3Comments

Remember when the news only covered random plants growing from the street . . .

Sioux Falls City Council to propose an election task force

l3wis June 4, 2024 5Comments

A city councilor sent me this last night;

I’m considering putting together a 3 month task group to look at plurality/majority/approval voting, vote centers and moving date to match primary. Not sure where I stand on primary date and approval voting but I want to push the discussion.

It is worth the discussion for sure.

This is a reaction to the last election being so poorly attended. There are many factors as to why the turnout was so low. Closed government is the main reason, but there are several.

I am opposed to having the election during the primary because that is a partisan election. Just look at the ballot in Sioux Falls today, good luck finding a Democrat or Indy, it’s ALL Republicans. So bad idea. Indies and Dems would stay home.

I live in District 10 and the only person on the ballot was Democratic candidate for president (I am a registered Indy, and the Dems are nice enough to let me vote with them 🙂 even though the state party has turned into a bunch of agists (I guess age discrimination is okay with them).

It would also be confusing to voters as to why some candidates have a letter behind their name and some don’t. I think if we had open primaries it would work because it takes the partisanship out of the election, but I am not sure it will pass in November, people in both party’s leadership seem to be opposed. Since they made the change in Alaska they have seen more common sense, moderate candidates from both parties and the extremists seem to be thrown to the wayside. WE NEED THAT IN SOUTH DAKOTA! Sixty years of one-party rule has only held our state back. That and they like to destroy taxpayer property with holy water 🙁

Vote centers sound good in concept, but they usually just confuse voters. Keep consistent precincts and polling locations and that would improve voter turnout. Give them more places to vote, not less.

Living Large in Sux Falls!

l3wis June 4, 2024 4Comments

So a foot soldier googled ‘—- ——-‘s watch’ and the picture below popped up. This person has made themself very rich in SF by harvesting email addresses. They like to show off their toys. I think he should have taken the picture in front of a microwave instead 🙂 oh, and pick up some hand lotion.

Did the Washington Pavilion save any of the old Balusters while replacing them?

l3wis June 4, 2024 1Comments

A baluster is an upright support, often a vertical moulded shaft, square, or lathe-turned form found in stairways, parapets, and other architectural features. In furniture construction it is known as a spindle. Common materials used in its construction are wood, stone, and less frequently metal and ceramic.

Someone was driving past the Pavilion recently and saw the workers throwing the balusters down the tube above. I looked into the dumpster and all I saw was broken terra cotta, which could be a combination of parapet and balusters?

Maybe they already saved some of them? I know the discussion was to give them away to WHS alumni or have some charity auction with them.

Would be curious how many they saved? If any.

I have said the baluster replacement was a waste of money ($6 million), as you can see from my photoshop below, you wouldn’t even miss them.