Opinion

Here's another phrase you're going to hear a lot for the next 10 months: Initiated Measure 24. That's the issue that is going to be on your ballot in November that -- if approved -- would ban out-of-state contributions to citizen-initiated campaigns.

A decision by the Sioux Falls City Council to change the percentage of votes needed to win a seat on the council is a fundamental and disturbing conflict with the principals of democracy.

We’ve been talking on the Patrick Lalley Show about the downtown hotel and parking ramp proposal. I've been reflecting on the transformation of downtown.

The announcement on Wednesday of a public/private partnership to develop a downtown block is an exciting and positive step for Sioux Falls. There will be plenty of discussion surrounding the finances of the deal -- valued at $50 million -- including the parking ramp, hotel and retail space. Notably, the question is whether the city is taking on too much of the bill, about $20 million for the ramp. That money will come from a bond that will be retired using parking fees.

There's been something rolling around in my head for a bit. In interviews with several city councilors and mayoral candidates there’s a fairly common notion about transportation in our community that bothers me. It’s this idea that in order to make the bus system better in Sioux Falls we need to scale it back.

I attended the City Council meeting Tuesday. There was only one substantive item – the rewrite of some of the beer and wine regulations in the city.

I started to see the images on social media of Sturgis Brown High School kids standing on a car with “go back to the Rez” spray painted across the side.

Several city councilors want Mayor Mike Huether’s administration make a presentation and answer questions about the once-secret-now-public settlement over the Premier Center siding.

We found out last week that Mayor Mike Huether lied to us. That may seem a harsh assessment but I’m not sure how else to read the settlement the city was forced to release over the warped and bubbling silver siding at the Sanford Premier Center.

I've heard a lot lately about all the people who are jumping into the Sioux Falls mayor's race. We're off to a fast start. It's only September after all, and we have eight candidates so far with some chatter that there will be more.