Is Longfellow Elementary School at $1 a Good Buy for the City?

I viewed Director Smith talking to the City Council about the School District's offer to sell Longfellow Elementary School to the City for $1. I realize the City Council needed to know about the offer, but I would have rather heard Director Smith speak realistically about the offer than the pie in the sky, life is good, this may be a good deal outlook on the school district offer and we need to study it.

The $1 offer is not really a good deal for a city and it doesn't take months of study to figure that out. Capital dollars are tied up on many other projects out into the future. The school is two blocks away from McKennan Park so using the property for a city park doesn't make sense.

The building is old and needs to be refurbished, remodeled, updated for future use, whatever that might be. The city would have to do that if they wanted to use it as a city building. A community center is usually attached to an elementary school. A community center at that location doesn't make sense if it doesn't make sense for an elementary school.

It's awfully nice of the School District to try to unload their white elephant problem to the city by "giving away" their problem for $1 but we can't be that gullible, can we? That one buck will turn into millions of bucks to rehabilitate their problem. The city can be an attractive problem solver for the school district because the city has all that sales tax money available to them that the school district doesn't have at their disposal.

I suppose the city could buy it and try to economically develop it. Another TIF? Spend money on tearing the building down to ready the property for development? After all, economic development is supposed to be the Mayor and Director Smith's expertise, isn't it? Frankly, I would rather they stayed focused and direct their efforts on economically developing that Russell Avenue corridor near the Denny Sanford Premier Center and the downtown area. Priorities, people.

Instead of studying everything to death and putting the directors through a meaningless exercise in trying to identify possible uses, it is sometimes "prudent" to just say thanks, but no thanks and move on with the priorities already on one's plate. Vision, leadership and practical and prudent thinking, please.

Insulting SD Voters

Governor Daugaard's reaction to the defeated ballot issues is beyond insulting to SD voters. Here is what the Governor said on KELO-TV on November 7th:

"I think it showed a little voter fatigue on the ballot when you have that many measures, some with great complexity. It's bound to happen," Daugaard said.

Daugaard believes the ballots were long and issues too complex so by the time voters got to the back side of the ballot, they were in a hurry and the mood to vote "no."

"The voters don't have time to dig into and understand the facts that bare upon an informed decision and so when voters don't have that time then most are included to say, 'Well, I don't have time to dig into this and so I'm going to vote no," Daugaard said.

The state sales tax increase to send money to schools and medicaid programs was rejected by the voters. Governor Daugaard's education reform law was rejected by the voters. The economic incentive program requested to the legislature by Governor Daugaard was rejected by the voters.

These comments indicate the Governor is totally out of touch with reality when it comes to his constituents. The complete disregard for the intelligence of SD voters and their ability to understand the issues is mind boggling. Instead of insulting all those "ignorant" voters, maybe the Governor needs to take a more reflective attitude on why these measures failed by a margin of two to one.

Pure and simple, the voters did not agree with him or legislature on these issues and the voters said so in a resounding no. This Governor is obviously tone deaf to the voters in SD and that is a dangerous thing. His complete disregard for the voice of the voter is disturbing. His lack of being able to look inward to assess why the voters said no to these issues is disturbing. Sour grapes, pure and simple. Insult when you don't have a competent thought or valid self reflection on why something has happened.

Who does he think he is representing anyway? He is not in office for himself. He is in office to serve us, the voters. This is not a monarchy and he is not king. This is a democracy whereby the elected officials serve the general voting public not themselves or their particular ideology. Clearly, he has forgotten that by insulting SD voters and not taking responsibility as the state's leader for why these measures were voted down. They were voted down because the voters did not like them and did not agree with them, not because they didn't understand them or were uninformed.

Sioux Falls Sports and Entertainment District

The City of Sioux Falls held a press conference on October 23rd announcing the creation of the Sioux Falls Sports and Entertainment District.

This new district runs south of I-90 to Third Street and East of I-29 to Minnesota Ave. It encompasses a huge area. What is in this huge tract of land that the city plans to market and develop as the Sports and Entertainment District? There can be no surprise that the Denny Sanford Premier Center, or Sanford Place as the three buildings (including Sioux Falls Convention Center and Sioux Falls Arena) are called, and the Sanford Sports complex are the real drivers in this new district.

These facilities must drive the economic development to make this all work. The Denny Sanford Premier Center is the 12,000 seat multi-purpose events center scheduled to open in 2014. The Sanford Sports Complex is a 162 acre complex home to Sioux Falls Junior Football League, Sioux Falls Tennis, Dakota Alliance Soccer Club and the Sanford Field House.

Sources tell me that the Sanford Sports Complex project is driving economic development already. Frankly, I have more confidence in the Sanford organization economic development planning process than I do with what is coming out of the city's economic development office. This sports complex is going to be an exciting venture for Sioux Falls and will surely spur economic activity all on it's own. But it too needs sustainable "rooftops," hotels and restaurants and retail to succeed in driving activity out there in addition to the sports complex activities. That area probably has more of chance of succeeding in economic development than the Russell Street corridor.

Development in the Northwest quadrant of the city has been identified, studied and planned since 2001 when city planners proposed growth and future infrastructure needs for this area. It is kind of humorous that the city is now announcing this new district as if this is a brand new idea. The Northwest quadrant is humming along. What isn't humming along is that whole area on Russell Ave where the new Denny Sanford Premier Center is being built.

There lies the economic challenge. The plan talks about TIFs and hotel incentives needed to kick start development. The plan states that in order to support night time activity in this area there will need to be a significant number of "rooftops." Restaurants need residents. There is a need for retail to bring in activity to the area. You need corporate/office/education for daytime activity. The West Sioux neighborhood doesn't support the kind of significant number of "rooftops" to generate the kind of economic activity to bring life to this area. The Sioux Falls Convention Center didn't generate economic development in this corridor although citizens were told it would do just that if it were built.

The city planning office and the city economic development office is leading the charge to facilitate development in this new district. They hope to bring property owners and developers together, identify development resources and potential and maximize economic development opportunities resulting from significant public and private investments. Lofty goals that I hope the City Council follows closely to see what progress they are making towards their goals.

It is nice to create this big huge district so the city can take credit for already planned development  and growth in the Northwest quadrant and piggy back off Sanford's economic development plans for their complex. The real test will be how the city can promote economic development in an area that has lacked oxygen for decades and now must produce economic development without a significant number of "rooftops" to support real economic activity in the Russell Street corridor.

I have more confidence in the Minnehaha County Economic Development Association, the Governor's Office of Economic Development and the Sioux Falls Development Foundation to create economic development in this city than the guy who used the word "excited" 10 times in the last 60 seconds during his media presentation on the creation of the Sports and Entertainment District.

The city council should ask for periodic updates on this district and the economic development achievements created by the economic development office of the Community Development department. Otherwise, this plan is just another piece of fluff to be filed away somewhere.

RIP John Holsen, My Dear Father

My father was of strong Norwegian stock. His parents, brothers and other relatives all lived well into their 90’s.  He spoke Norwegian and loved to stump us with funny sayings. He led us in the Norwegian table prayer at family gatherings.

Dad said it was his goal to live to 100. He never looked his age and was delighted when people were astounded at how old he actually was. We are grateful that he was healthy and maintained his cognitive abilities until the stroke in February of this year. His children and grandchildren were with him when he reached 94 years, a short 14 days ago.

Dad grew up in Moorhead, Minnesota, the middle son of immigrant parents from Norway. He was singled out of his class in the 8^th grade along with 9 other students to take Latin classes for the remaining years in high school, because he was identified as a gifted student. 

He quoted Latin to us growing up and loved to put Latin words on the scrabble board to stump Reid and Pam.

He played basketball in high school and was called Hols by his classmates and Dead Eye Dick in the local sports page. His love of sports has continued throughout his life. We lovingly called him - a sports fanatic. His grandsons and granddaughter all played sports in high school and he was especially proud of Sam who went on to play college football. He reveled in all their accomplishments.  

He liked to be told when the grandkids got their report cards and sometimes would reward them monetarily, to their delight. He carried that forward with his great grandchildren John and Hannah.

Dad was the only one in his family to go to college. He earned his BA degree in English and History from Concordia College in 1940. He was so proud of his time at Concordia and wore his Concordia class ring his entire life.

Dad was involved in theater in high school and at Concordia College. He said if it wasn't for the war and his getting drafted, maybe he would have pursued acting as a career. He has talked about his experience in college with great fondness and memories. 

Dad was such a grammarian. He constantly told us to enunciate our words. Stand tall, look people in the eye and enunciate. His great grandson John has his acting ability and his speaking ability and we speak often how Dad’s legacy lives on in his great grandson John.

 
Dad got his first job as a teacher and coach in Gwinner, ND.  However, he got drafted in 1941 and any thoughts to acting quickly went by the wayside. 

He received his basic training at Camp Roberts in California and after basic training got a job as a payroll clerk on the base. He took great pleasure in the fact that he convinced the people in California he could type, when he couldn't, in order to get a clerk's job.  He talked about getting that job with a sense of glee because he believed he outsmarted those people at the base.

He was offered the opportunity to go to OCS school at Fort Benning, Georgia and graduated in 1943 as a 2^nd Lieutenant.  He was sent oversees in 1943 and landed in Brisbane joining the 41^st Division at Rock Hampton, Australia.  He talked often about Australia and it seemed his time there was a little bit of heaven in the midst of great discomfort for many years.  He got malaria, he got a Dear John letter, he played poker and he sent money home to his mother.

He served in campaigns in New Guinea, East Indies, the Philippines, fighting in Mindenow and Basalon and was one of the first of the occupation forces to land in Japan. He often talked about walking all the way to Japan.  Dad came home from Tokyo and was discharged from the Army in 1946 with the rank of Captain.

In his later years when he finally started to talk about his experiences in WWII, he talked about his service medals and ribbons and what should be done with them. We decided to put them in a memory box for him and he pulled them out from where ever he had them stored.

He wrote Pam a note saying: You put yourself in your situation. You can get yourself out of it. Learn to live with it. He said, I got myself into that situation, meaning OCS school and subsequent deployment to the South Pacific by giving up a cushy clerical job and going to Fort Benning and getting a commission as an officer in the infantry.

He was a good soldier, a man who reached the rank of Captain and earned the Bronze medal.  We are proud of his service and the fact that he fought and endured so much for his country. His grandson Matthew continued the tradition of service to country by serving in the United States Marines for 6 years. Dad was very proud of Matthew’s service to his country.

When Dad got out of the service, he came home and went to the Employment Services office to apply for unemployment at $20 a week.  They ended up hiring him.  He didn't stay at the Employment office very long because he wanted to teach. He got a job in Winnebago in 1947. However, he quit and went to work for the New Ulm Employment Service.

Mom was staying with her parents in Fargo while he looked for a place to live and she called to tell him she was pregnant with twins. He often told Pam and me that mother cried when she told him they were having twins.

Meanwhile, Winnebago called him and offered him the principal’s job on the condition he get his master’s degree.  He agreed and he started the master’s program at the University of Minnesota the summer of 1948. 

He intended to go to school each summer but lost two summers when he got called back into the Army during the Korean Conflict, in July 1950.  He was recalled to the Army as a Captain. He was assigned to Fort Custer at Battle Creek, Michigan.  We lived on the base at Fort Custer for about a year when Dad received orders for Germany. Mother was pregnant with John and dad applied for a discharge when John was born on the army base.  The Army allowed eligibility for a discharge if you had 3 children. 

We all returned to Winnebago where Dad served as principal until 1955 when he got the Senior High principal job in Luverne. His Winnebago days were filled with lasting relationships. Winnebago was where he met and sustained a lifelong friendship with Bob and Donna Rose.

Their politics were like night and day even back in the Winnebago days and have lasted a lifetime. Those political differences never impacted their friendship. Bob and Donna and their daughter Elizabeth and we are grateful for their loving friendship.

He was often invited back to Winnebago for class reunions and former students from that era continued to come up to him in Mankato to talk to him. He often lamented that he could not remember their names and how could they possible remember him.

Dad got offers for principal jobs over the years but Pam and I begged him not to move us from Luverne and he did not take those jobs.  I think back on his willingness to sacrifice his career moves for his two daughters and am forever grateful for his generosity and compassion for the wishes of his daughters. 

In 1970, he became the Jr. High Principal in North Mankato.  Dad remained at North Mankato Junior High and Mankato West until his retirement in 1983.  1983 was a very sad year for all of us, because his wife and our mother died of cancer at 58 years of age.  Dad decided he didn’t want to work anymore after mother died and retired in May, 1983.

After he retired, he went on to announce High School girls’ basketball in Mankato. He also announced track meets, swim meets and 9^th grade football games for Mankato public schools. 

Dad loved the game of golf and continued to play golf regularly until his 90^th year. His grandchildren have very fond memories of him teaching them how to golf. He would say, swing with ease and you’re sure to please.  Another metaphor from Dad on how to live your life.

Dare we forget his love of the Minnesota Twins, the Gophers and the Vikings? He was most content sitting in his chair watching sports. Any sports, it didn’t matter. When he found out there was actually a golf channel on cable we worried he was never going to leave the house again.

Dad’s years as an educator have meant everything to him.  He believed in kids, even the tough ones.  He is remembered by the many students he was involved with during his career.  To some, he was the principal who cared enough about them to teach them in summer school so they could get a signed diploma when a teacher gave them a failing grade that prevented them from graduating. To others, he was the principal who showed caring and compassion when a girl found herself pregnant and unable to come to school.  He helped them continue their education so they didn’t become drop outs.  He could be stern but he was fair.  He loved to fill-in in the classroom when a teacher called in sick. I remember many mornings calling him to the phone to deal with an absent teacher. 

In September, 2003 The North Mankato Junior High Staff held a reunion and threw a surprise 85^th birthday party for Dad at a restaurant in Mankato. He was very honored by their action and it truly exemplified the impact he had on people’s lives as an educator.

Reputation meant everything to Dad. We were always told to act like the world was watching our every step. He was a proud man where honor, duty, family commitment meant everything and measured him as a man. He loved his profession and felt strongly about helping those students who struggled to graduate.

Throughout Dad’s life former students would stop and greet him.  He always wondered why he was chosen to live through WW II when so many others died.  We believed and always told him it was because of the mark he left on our lives and so many students’ lives through the years of his teaching and caring about kids.

He taught Sunday school and adult church classes for many years both in Luverne and in Mankato. He was a scholar of the Bible and a Stephen minister.  His faith was important to him his entire life.

Dad was an avid book reader.  He taught his children the love of a good book and his children and grandchildren are avid readers today.  He was always quoting someone or something to us.  Quotes that had a life meaning.  

His letters and notes to us were always filled with words of wisdom and there were many times that those words sustained us in times of trial.

His favorite bible reference to us was: 

Suffering produces endurance, Endurance produces character, Character produces hope and Hope doesn’t disappoint you.  Facing adversity always meant support from him and this saying always brought us comfort and peace. 

He was inspirational when he felt we needed a lift and we were so grateful for his loving guidance. We found this writing in one of his notes to us:

 “In our age of health and wealth gospels, it is salutary to note that the concept of Christ’s kingdom is linked directly to tribulation and perseverance. Members of Christ’s kingdom will not be strangers to suffering and tribulation. Their response is perseverance. Perseverance, continuing in a direction when circumstances are not favorable is both possible and wise only because Christ is the Alpha and the Omega. The long view he wrote helps us to separate the important from the trivial.”

He wrote my sister Pam a lot, inserting his words of wisdom and inspiration. In one note he talked about Brother John and how well he was doing. He quoted 1^st Corinthians, Chapter 13, verse 7: Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. He said it was a good verse to live by.

It is hard to lose one’s parents, no matter how old they are, no matter how long or short their life on this earth may be. Dad lived a strong Norwegian life and made us who are today and we are all forever grateful and blessed.

These past 7 months have been honor and a privilege, and a blessing for us his children and grandchildren to take care of Dad since his first stroke in February.

I would bring my grandson Finn to the nursing home after I picked him up from kindergarten. His school was across the street from the nursing home and he would come out and say are we going to see Grandpa today? Dad’s eyes would light up when Finn came into his room saying, hi grandpa. Dad would hold his arms up to give Finn a hug. Finn loved his grandpa John and would say to me, Grandpa is really old. You’re old too Grandma but not as old as Grandpa John.

We talked about memories with dad those days in the nursing home. We quietly sat beside him afternoons and evenings as he slept, and ate with him in the dining room at Prince of Peace, reassuring him that he was not alone,  that he was loved dearly and how important he has been to us all our whole lives.

The day of his death he was lovingly surrounded by his children and his grandchildren. Dad has finally gone home to hear the words of the Lord, Welcome worthy and loyal servant.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Petition Drive for Snow Gates - So Be It.

I posted a blog about snowgates back on November 27, 2011. I went back and read it to see if my opinion back then still made sense to me or whether I should re-consider my position on the snowgate issue. Nope, my opinion has not changed. It seems to be me, snowgates are still a want, not a necessity.

You can argue all you want about the fact that we are spending millions on the event center, hockey rinks, tennis courts, outdoor pools and on and on, so it somehow justifies spending only hundreds of thousands of dollars on snowgates. That kind of thinking grows a deficit. Until the mayor and the city council address the budget and the CIP in terms of wants versus needs, we will continue to grow the city's debt exposure which will surely be on the shoulders of our children and grandchildren to repay, just like the federal deficit.

Are Snowgates Worth It? For the convenience of the homeowner, probably yes. But is it really a prudent use of taxpayer dollars when it is a want and not a necessity? It isn't just the snowgate issue. Everything that comes before the city council should be discussed in terms of a want versus a necessity. I guess the public will get a chance to decide this issue if the petition drive is successful, which I think it will be.

Read my blog of November 27, 2011 titled: Snowgates - Are They Worth It? There are over 20 comments on it. I would venture to guess those opinions have not changed one iota since 2011. People either want them or they don't think it's necessary. I predict a yes verdict from the public on this issue. People hate those piles at the end of their driveway and if they can get someone else to shovel it then yippee! What they don't understand is that someone else is the city using their money to do it. If that's how the majority wants to spend their money, then so be it.

County Detox Center Problems Troubling

Most people probably don't give a hoot about the Minnehaha County Detox Center because they or a family member has never had an occasion to use such a facility. However, the management of a county facility such as this should be of interest to taxpayers because it is taxpayers dollars that seem to have been mismanaged as it relates to the operation and oversight of the facility. The county paid a lot of money to this contractor to manage the operations of this facility and this facility has serious problems for what seems to be a long time.

The detox center is located on the second floor of the public safety building.  It's not like the facility was at some remote location. The Sheriff's department has employees in this building. Metro Communications is located in this building. The Jail is attached to this building. There is a lot going on in the Public Safety Building. And yet, no one seemed to know that there were serious problems with that center's operations until employee whistle blowers went to the media to get the county's attention as a last resort. That is never good and proves to be very embarrassing for government and elected officials.

There are a lot of third party contractors managing operations and functions in local government. However, that does not mean government officials can turn a blind eye to what is happening with these operations. In the case of the Minnehaha County Detoxification Center, it would appear that no one was minding the store.  Out of sight, out of mind because someone else was hired to manage it.  Due diligence and oversight is still necessary. Now the State of South Dakota has put the facility on probation and is not allowing any patient admissions because of serious safety concerns until a corrective plan of action is reviewed and approved. County officials said they already sent in their correction action. Fast action is good especially when you get caught with your pants down.

You have to feel a little sorry for the county in spite of what is going on with the Detox Center. The county is at the mercy of the state when it comes to a lot of issues relating to the indigent population. They don't always have control over expenses dictated by the state. However, it still obligates them to management and oversight of these programs and services.

In today's ARGUS LEADER, Minnehaha County Commission Chair Dick Kelly said that "the commission plans to keep a close eye on the detox center, and the state will, as well."   Is it really the county commissioners' job to keep a close eye on the detox center? Why isn't this oversight the responsibility of a county department? Maybe then it would not have gotten so out of control.

And it took a former employee going to the media to get their attention. Troubling.

My Sign is Bigger Than Your Sign and It's Not Fair

The city is taking a look at the sign ordinance and will be recommending changes to the City Council. Right now, officials are holding public meetings to get the public takes on what the changes might entail.

We first heard about signs when someone filed a complaint about those "offensive" Catholic school yard signs. Neighbors reporting neighbors always seems to ignite a fire and this one seems to have fueled a bonfire. Not only will the city address yard signs of all kinds, but they will be revising language that affects businesses and their windows.

Ordinances need review periodically and the sign ordinance is no different. What gets scary is when the review swings left or right of the middle common sense approach. Local business owner Kevin Nyberg is right on the money and city official Jeff Schmitt seems out of touch on an issue affecting local businesses.

Window signs are currently exempt from the ordinance and businesses can fill up their entire windows if they want to in order to market their business. The city is proposing changing all that to make it "fair" for all business owners.

Schmitt has called window signage a fairness issue that makes things equal for businesses with and without windows, but Nyberg said entrepreneurs are competitive by nature and “fair just doesn’t fit our mode.”“I just don’t understand what you’re saying about it’s not fair,” Nyberg said. “If it’s not fair, go find another location and get windows. It’s marketing. It’s sales tax revenue. It’s being in business.”

Since when should the city be concerned about establishing fairness when it comes to individual businesses' ability to market their brand on their own windows? Businesses are competing for business. It is utterly ridiculous to think there should be a uniform ordinance that establishes all business marketing efforts the same in size for window signs and banners and how much space window signs can fill. Sometimes, people cannot see the forest for the trees.

If this ordinance review is like the ordinance review that took place regarding the parking of recreational vehicles on residential streets, then hang on to your hats. I have never seen so many RV campers, big house trailers masquerading as RV campers, trailers and boats on city streets until that ordinance was changed. There is one residential street close to my home where an RV camper, the size of a small house trailer, is parked in front of a residential home for weeks on end. The extender is out into the street and the thing is plugged into the house. The RV is so big it blocks the majority of the 3 car driveway and extends all the way to beginning of the neighbor's property. But I digress, back to signage.

Government is here to help make everything "fair" for the business owners and they have been working on it for two years. But in those two years of reviewing the ordinance language, they haven't talked to those corporate business owners whose marketing banners and signs are dictated by corporate offices.  Plenty of time to muck up free enterprise and local businesses' ability to compete in the marketplace and doing it in the privacy of one's own office without talking to the people they are affecting with the changes. Now that's the kind of help business does not need.

Where is the pro-business mayor on this issue?