(To Whom It May Concern)

By Gary Dickson, Editor

Now that Labor Day has been here and gone, it’s the unofficial end of summer. Yeah, I know there are 15 more days left until the Autumnal Equinox, but for all intents and purposes summer is kind of washed up after Labor Day. And the days are getting shorter. I read somewhere that we actually will lose something like 80 minutes of daylight during the month of September. Kinda depressing when you think about it.

I’ll tell you what’s worse.

It’s the fact that the community of North Sioux City hasn’t heard any apology from three city councilors who supported and encouraged first the election, and then appointment to the council of alleged child sexual abuser Matt Vanderpool.

Nor have we heard any public apology from any of the officers of the McCook Lake Association who so actively supported Vanderpool in his bid for election to an alderman spot on the council. In fact, there were two letters of recommendation written singing the praises of Vanderpool which were read out loud in the May 6 council meeting. One was written by McCook Lake Association president Dirk Lohry. The other was co-written by Lake Association corporate sponsors Mark and Terri Avery. The community of North Sioux has heard zip from these folks.

Perhaps they’re hoping with all the chaos from the flood and now the effort to have a referendum to change the form of government from an alderman type to a five-member commission form, that everyone will just forget about the embarrassing mess with the criminally-charged Vanderpool.

Yeah, right. Lets all ignore the fact that these supposed community leaders tried to install an alleged pedophile in a place of power in North Sioux City’s municipal government.

And to think one of these guys writing a glowing letter of recommendation is president of the board of directors of the Seaboard Triumph Expo Center in Sioux City. Of course, he’s also a big Kahoona in the South Dakota Republican Party and loyal Trump supporter, no doubt. He was scheduled to go to the GOP Convention this summer as a delegate to annoint The Donald, but I don’t know if he went or not.

I imagine that Trump Love is part of the connection that Lohry has with Vanderpool. You might recall that when the authorities went to arrest Vanderpool, it was noted that he had a Trump flag in his front yard with a broken staff.

My goodness, the quality of judging a person’s character of all of these individuals is underwhelming at the very most, non-existent at the least.

Sigh.

So, let’s sort of summarize what happened since the week before the April 9 city election and the 44 days following the election. To save you from counting out the days, that is until May 23, the day Vanderpool was arrested and charged with five counts of sexual-related offenses against a minor.

What I observed before election day was a concerted effort on the part of the McCook Lake Association headed by Lohry, its president to elect their chosen slate of candidates to the four open city aldermen positions. The association-backed candidates included Matt Vanderpool, Lynn Hoffman, Bob Davis and incumbant Greg Meyer. All but Vanderpool won their races. Vanderpool was defeated by incumbent Kodi Benson.

Vanderpool still showed his interest in city government by attending city council meetings. During this time was the April 15 council meeting where the election votes were canvassed and made official. Those attending the meeting got to experience the odd performance of alderman-elect Bob Davis registering a protest of the vote count in Ward 1 – the election that he won. It has turned out to be a predictor of Davis’ disruptive behavior as a city councilor to come over the following four-and-a-half months.

Besides getting three of their four candidates on the council, Lohry and the Association were able to get a major stumbling block to their efforts removed. City Administrator Eric Christensen submitted his resignation four days before the city election. Christensen frequently confronted councilor Greg Meyer on his efforts to undermine city projects that he didn’t like and openly confronted Lohry on the Association’s efforts to influence the election.

Meanwhile, there was an open alderman seat made vacant by the death of Doug Berg in February.

A couple of people were interested in the open seat, including North Sioux City Assistant Fire Chief Jim Christenson and Vanderpool. After much discussion about whether a special election should be held, it was determined that city bylaws required the council appoint a person to fill a vacant seat. Finally, on May 21, the council voted on who to appoint to the position.

According to the minutes from that meeting, a motion was made by Joan Christiansen, second by Benson, to appoint Jim Christenson to the Ward 3 Alderman position. Meyer argued the need for ward restructuring. Benson, Gary Bogenrief, Christiansen, and Lonnie Green voted aye. Meyer voted nay. Davis and Hoffman abstained. The motion carried 4-1 with Christenson getting the appointment.

It made no sense for Meyer to begin to argue the need for ward restructuring at that time other than to delay and possibly sabotage the motion approval process. But if you ever go to a council meeting, you will see that Meyer often muddles the issues with vague or confusing explanations in an effort to delay the voting process and avoid going on the record one way or the other. I saw him do it again at this last week’s meeting when it meant voting against a motion his sidekick Davis had proposed. So, we have a result of Meyer voting for Vanderpool and Davis and Hoffman abstaining, which was a wimpy way of voting for Vanderpool.

But before that meeting, on May 6, a number of people spoke in favor of Vanderpool being appointed to the position. There were two letters of support that were read from members of the Lake Association that stood out.

The first was from Dirk Lohry president of both the McCook Lake Association and the board of directors of Seaboard Triumph Expo Center in Sioux City. His letter about Vanderpool was particularly glowing:

To Whom It May Concern:

I am writing to express my enthusiastic support for Matt Vanderpool and his candidacy for a position as a Councilmember of the NSC Council. As a colleague I have had the pleasure of working closely with Matt and have witnessed firsthand his dedication, integrity, and commitment to our community. Matt’s professional background and his unwavering commitment to public service make him an ideal candidate for this role. 

His experience in running for City Council has endowed him with a deep understanding of the critical issues facing our city, from economic development, to infrastructure improvements. Matt’s analytical skills and his ability to synthesize complex information into actionable plans are just a few of the strengths that he would bring to the Council. In addition to his professional qualifications Matt has demonstrated exceptional leadership and initiative in various community projects. He has actively participated in many local volunteer committees showing a genuine passion for improving the quality of life in NSC. His ability to collaborate effectively with diverse groups ensures that he represents all voices in our community, making him a unifying figure who can help lead us toward a more prosperous future. 

Matt’s commitment extends beyond professional and civic responsibilities, his integrity, his empathy, and ethical standards are evident in all his interactions and are qualities that I deeply admire. These traits combined with his strategic thinking, and meticulous attention to detail, will make him a valuable asset to the NSC council. I am confident that Matt Vanderpool will serve our community with the same diligence, enthusiasm, and vision that he has shown in all his professional and volunteer endeavors. I strongly endorse his candidacy and encourage you to consider him for the position of Councilmember. He will undoubtedly contribute significantly to the council’s work and to the broader community. 

Thank you for considering my recommendation. Should you require any further information or wish to discuss Matt’s qualifications in more detail, please do not hesitate to contact me. 

Sincerely, 
Dirk Lohry

The other letter came from Mark and Terri Avery, corporate sponsors of the McCook Lake Association. Mark is an artist and sculptor and Terri is an independent philanthropy professional. Their letter isn’t quite as glowing but nonetheless is very supportive of Vanderpool’s candidacy.

To our community leaders on the NSC City Council:

Thank you for your service to our city, it is much appreciated, and you have our gratitude. 

We are writing a note to show our support for Matt Vanderpool. Our work with Matt has shown him to be a resourceful, ethical, creative, intelligent and community minded leader. We believe he will be a 
committed and dedicated council member representing NSC’s Ward 3. 

We hope you will give Matt careful consideration and appoint him as our newest Council member. 

Kind Regards,
Mark & Terri Avery

My belief is that apologies are necessary from these individuals. And they need to be done in a public manner, on the record.

Not only does it include the letter-writers above, but it also includes the three city counselors who benefited from the intervention by the McCook Lake Association: Bob Davis, Lynn Hoffman and especially Greg Meyers. All need to also apologize to the alleged victim and their parents for the shameful encouragement they have done for a person charged with child sexual offenses.

One more issue comes to mind, and that is the sudden change of attorneys Vanderpool has had this summer. He has effectively gone from indigent to having enough personal funds to afford a private criminal attorney from Sioux Falls, one whose sub-specialty is sexual offenses. While the defendent may have family members who have loaned him money, or he has cashed in retirement savings, it is also possible one of the well-heeled members of the McCook Lake Association or even a certain alderman may have floated the alleged sexual offender a loan or outright be paying for his attorney.

What I’m saying is, based on what I’ve observed from at least two members of the council – Meyer and his side-kick, Davis – they are capable of doing just about anything if it means they can advance their selfish interests. The same is true for Dirk Lohry, who appears to love pulling the strings of the North Sioux City Council however he can.

I’ve watched a major workforce housing development come to screeching halt because Meyer has put up roadblock after roadblock. If it comes to PBR pulling their project out of North Sioux, you can bet that Meyer will somehow make sure that Davis and Hoffman and other buddies will get in on some other new housing development action.

And now we come to the Flood of 2024. It has been an awful experience for the people of McCook Lake – especially those on the north end of it. There’s been frustration, pain and loss as victims of the flood try to recover emotionally and decide if they can rebuild. People have expressed their frustration with the council and believe it should move faster. This has led some to want changes in city government. Unfortunately, dissatisfaction has been stirred up by a couple of people on the council who see the misfortune of others as a way of advancing their own agendas.

Two NSC city councilors, Meyer and his sidekick, Davis have involved themselves with a petition drive to have a referendum to vote on a change of government in the city. The petition supporters want to change from an aldermen/council style where representatives are elected from different wards in the city to a five-member commission with all commissioners elected at-large. This would mean all voters would vote on each commissioner. The details about the proposed change are sketchy at this time.

But I’ll address that impulsive dead-end endeavor next time.

Meanwhile, I do find it suspicious that the two city councilors – Meyer and Davis – are involved in this effort. But then again, when I consider the arrogance and deviousness of these two, plus their self-serving natures, it’s not surprising.

People should be cautious about following the leadership or direction of these two and any of the leaders involved in the McCook Lake Association. I truly fear that they will lead the city into a financial morass that it will find nearly impossible to extricate itself from. Think about what businesses are going to want to invest in the city of North Sioux City if it shows the instability that Meyer and Davis will put it through with poorly thought out plans.

Those of you who think these two are so prescient need to be aware that Greg Meyer was the city engineer for what – 20 years or so? He didn’t have the foresight to want to change the flood mitigation plans back when he was working for the city. I also understand he did not do a very good job when he contracted for a project with Dakota Dunes. What’s that all about, Mr. Meyers?

As for Bob Davis, he was a former council member and mayor in the past. I don’t hear anything about him stepping in and changing the flood mitigation plan when he had a chance, either. And I’m told there is also some funny business about Davis and his partnership with an ex-wife in a real estate and construction business a few years back. Maybe ol’ Bob should tell us something about that, rather than his experiences driving a gravel truck.

Don’t forget, these are the folks who foisted an alleged sex offender on you and wanted him to be part of city government.

You really should think several times about trusting them or Dirk Lohry.

“Danger, Will Robinson!”

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