SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO.com) -- After two hours of PowerPoint presentations, explanations from Mayor Mike Huether and four of his key advisers, and questions from most of the City Council, is there more clarity to the once secret Denny Deal over the warped Premier Center siding?
It depends upon who is talking.
"The taxpayers ultimately won," Huether said. "For some, no mater what is said they won't want to hear."
Huether did express one regret: He says he wishes he had had a session explaining the settlement agreement about a week earlier. However, as he said on his appearance on The Greg Belfrage Show last week, he said several times that they city needed to "move forward" from both the problem at the time and the current controversy over the settlement agreement.
Councilor Michelle Erpenbach, who did not speak or ask questions until the end, put her perceptions this way.
"We have questions still," she said. "We're trying to understand all the terms. I didn't ask enough questions prior (to the event center project going forward. We didn't as a council."
Councilors Pat Starr and Christine Erickson would like to hold another session, probably at the Oct. 19th Council meeting.
The local news media also got caught in the cross hairs of the discussion concerning the controversy over the once secret settlement agreement that the South Dakota Supreme Court ruled was a public document.
"This has been a witch hunt by certain media in this town," Coucilor Rex Rolfing said, without naming any outlets. He further chastized the court's decision, noting, "Other projects will cost more because we can't now have confidential settlement agreements."
Meanwhile, toward the end of the media, Erickson encouraged the local media.
"Media, if your questions are not answered, resubmit them to the administration," she said.
The most confusion concered whether money in a contingency fund for the construction of the building was "found" money or something the city would have gotten back eventrually if all went well with the construction of the Premier Center. The mayor contends it is "found" money for the city and legitimately part of the "million dollars in value" that the city recieved. Some counselors feel it was city money it was eventually going to get back once the time to detect any latent defects--2024--passes.
Huether, City Attorney David Pfeifle, Assistant City Attorney Karen Leonard, City Finance Director Tracy Turbak, and City Public Works Director Mark Cotter took turns presenting 26 PowerPoint slides. They then stood for questions from the Council.