Juvenile correctional worker vying for council spot

A juvenile correctional worker wants a spot on Sioux Falls City Council.

This week, Robert Knutson filed his candidacy seeking the Northeast District seat being vacated by Kenny Anderson Jr., who is unable to run again because of term limits.

A 17-year resident of Sioux Falls, Knutson said the city isn’t keeping up with basic infrastructure needs such as road maintenance and as a councilor he’d like to help planners better prioritize.

“The pothole situation is getting way out of hand,” he said Wednesday. “We just gotta keep on top of that stuff. I would like to see the city be more on top of it.”

Not new to local politics, Knutson sought an at-large seat on the council two years ago but said he was unable to collect the needed signatures because of a medical issue that kept him from canvassing neighborhoods. He also was unsuccessful in getting on the ballot for Minnehaha County Commission in 2014 after some of the signatures he filed with the county auditor were invalidated.

With fewer signatures required for the district race and a better bill of health this time around, he filed the necessary petition signatures to join Tammy Enalls-Fenner and Pat Starr on the Northeast District ballot.

Knutson, who declined to share his age, splits time working as a part-time correctional officer at the Juvenile Detention Center and as a security officer for a private security firm.