BrandonInfo.com

What do you think of the Brandon logo, that word “Brandon” with a sun representing the “o”? Do you think it accurately reflects what Brandon is?

Against a light background, sometimes the sun can disappear so it just looks like “Brandon” with a gap in it.

Do you like seeing the logo on city vehicles, the water tower, and other places? Does it give you pride in being a Brandon resident? Do you think it is a positive icon? Do you think it is a good way to provide name recognition to out-of-towners?

The Bush adminstration is proposing to bail out the banking system to the tune of $700 billion. That’s a 7 with 11 zeros behind it. If someone had put aside $100,000 every single day since Jesus was born, he’d have roughly 20 percent saved up by now.

The people who proposed the bailout have said that it wasn’t an actual proposed number. They just wanted something that sounded “really big.”

What do you think of this whole bailout idea? If you think it’s a bad idea, what alternatives would you suggest?

A woman I work with suggested that the federal government give each U.S. citizen the cash directly. $2,000 for each man, woman and child in the country equals $700 billion, based on a populaton of 320 million.

With the crisp chill of autumn upon us, an evening of sitting around a campfire might sound inviting. Open fires aren’t allowed in Brandon, but fire pits are. Those gourd shaped, chimney shaped structures contain the fire - but not the smoke.

While you’re enjoying the crackling of the flames and maybe a roasted marshmallow or two, your neighbors might be wiping soot off their walls.

What are people’s obligations with fire pits? The city allows them, but do people use them responsibly? What experiences have you had with fire pits, if any? Do you use one? Do you have a neighbor who does?

At a special council meeting Sept. 6, Craig Jacobus came to Brandon from Nebraska to give the city council an in-person quality report on MED-Star ambulance service. Jacobus reviews reports of all MED-Star’s calls and reports to the city monthly and quarterly on them.
The council asked Jacobus to report in person because two members of the public, Jana Schroeder and Linda Weber, had asked questions at an Aug. 4 meeting, and council members thought Jacobus could answer those questions better than they could. The council did follow up on a question concerning documentation, however. At that time, MED-Star was not current with documentation on employees, licenses and the like, which is a violation of the ambulance service’s contract with the city. The council did not discuss terminating the contract but instead requested the documentation and asked MED-Star owner, Jay Masur, to come to an Aug. 18 council meeting. Masur provided the paperwork but declined to appear at the meeting.

Neither Schroeder nor Weber were at the Sept. 6 meeting. Neither were Mayor Larry Beesley nor Alderman Harry Buck. Masur and several members of his staff were at the Sept. 6 meeting but did not speak.

No one from the Brandon Valley Challenger attended the Sept. 6 meeting. Neither Challenger editor Jill Meier nor I knew about the meeting ahead of time. Notice of the meeting was posted on the city Web site, but neither of us saw it in time. I viewed the recording of the meeting and reported on it on www.brandoninfo.com Sept. 19. My story also is scheduled to appear in the Challenger on Sept. 24.

Jacobus gave MED-Star high marks before the council on how it’s caring for patients in emergency situations. “MED-Star more than fulfills the obligation that anybody within the state would ever ask anybody to do,” Jacobus said.

What do you think of all this? The public certainly can ask the city questions and has a right to look at public documents. Most people don’t attend council meetings, though. Do you? Do you check on city business by looking at the city Web site, www.brandonsd.com? I check that site regularly, but apparently not often enough.

When the school district is planning a special meeting, they fax an agenda to the Brandon Valley Challenger office, but the city does not. Should it? Then again, should the city mail, fax or e-mail regular residents whenever a special meeting is planned?

If you don’t go to council meetings or look at the city Web site, do you get your city news from the Challenger or www.brandoninfo.com?

Or do you even follow city news at all?

Homecoming is this weekend. If you are one of Brandon Valley High School’s alumni, do you come back to watch your team?

The Lynx will be playing Worthington, Minn., at 7 p.m. What are your predictions for the game?

For fun on Friday, high school students will compete in their own Olympics, with games such as text messaging, musical chairs and pillow fights. All this week, the students have come to school dressed according to themes. Today’s theme is Wild West Day.

Earlier this season, the Lynx played O’Gorman in the Pigskin Classic. That was a huge event. Do you think it overshadows Homecoming? If so, should it? Maybe the Pigskin Classic is more of a big deal for the community and Homecoming is more of a big deal for the students.

Officer Jamie Steffel is the school resource officer. Do you think Brandon Valley Schools need to have a police officer there every day?

It’s possible that when students see an officer in their school every day, they behave better. It even is possible they behave better outside of school.

Do you think that would be because student feel a sense of foreboding, seeing an officer in the schools, like maybe Big Brother is watching them? Or do you think it would be more because the students would respect the officer and want to be good as to not disappoint him?

The first annual Brandon Valley Hardwood Challenge will tip off Nov. 21 and 22 in Brandon. Parents of the students involved say the event will help raise money for after prom and after graduation parties for the students who are currently in the eighth grade.

Is this good advance planning, or is this taking fundraising one step too far?

Does this mean families with middle school kids plan to stay in Brandon for another half dozen years or so, or does it mean that some people will do all the fundraising and then move away, leaving others to enjoy the benefits of their hard work?

They city council decided not to move the skateboard park and ice skating rink after all. Do you agree with that decision, or no? Skating is on school land, which the city leases.
School officials say they won’t renew the lease when it expires in 2011. They want skating to move so they can reroute traffic in the high school parking lot. But because skating isn’t moving right away, the school already has modified the parking lot plan. Does that mean moving skating is no longer necessary?

A lot could happen between now and 2011. Different people with different opinions might be on the school board by then.

By not moving skating in 2009, the city can spend roughly $50,000 on something else. The council has asked the city administrator to come up with a recommendation for next Monday’s council meeting. A few ideas the council mentioned at last Monday’s budget hearing were a front end loader, a drainage study, a sewer study or more money for soccer.

With fall approaching, school is in full swing, and churches are getting back into the Sunday school routine.

Do your children attend Sunday school? Why or why not? Many churches offer adult classes. Do you attend them?

If you live in Brandon but go to a Sioux Falls church, how come? Does Brandon not offer your denomination?

If you moved to Brandon from somewhere else, what influenced your decision about which church to join?

I have been a member of Brandon Lutheran Church since my family moved to Brandon in 1964. Like the city itself, Brandon Lutheran has grown tremendously since then. Yesterday, about 560 people attended the Rally Day service. And Brandon Lutheran is just one of more than a dozen churches in Brandon and nearby.

The city council plans to add $10 to any water bill that is so late it gets a disconnect notice.

Water bills go out on the first of the month, and people have until the 15th to pay them. But dozens of people don’t make the deadline each month. On the first Monday of the next month, the city has to spend up to $100 to pay a guy to drive around town hand delivering disconnect notices. These are the folks who will have to pay the extra $10.

Do you think this is a fair charge? Do you think it will be enough incentive so that tardy customers will pay their bill earlier?

The council will hold a second reading on the charge at their Sept. 15 meeting. If they pass the second reading, the ordinance will be printed in the paper and will go into effect 20 days later.

Did you attend any of the Pigskin Classic activities Saturday? Which one(s), and how did you like them? To see some pictures of the day’s events, check out the photo gallery at www.brandoninfo.com.
Brandon Valley scored a great win over O’Gorman 24-21 Saturday night, putting the Lynx at No. 3 in Class 11AA. Go lynx!

Do you think the Pigskin Classic is a great event, too much work, or somewhere in between? Do you like being able to reserve your seats early in the day, or do you think that prevents some people from seeing the game?

How do you think the Lynx will do throughout the football season?