As Sioux City prepares for the upcoming City Council Election, Siouxland Public Media reached out to all nine candidates to learn more about their goals, qualifications, and vision for the future of the city.
Each candidate provided thoughtful responses, offering insight into their motivations, experience, and priorities as they seek to serve the residents of Sioux City.
Nick Davidson
I am currently on the rivercade board, and have served on it for 10years, I was commodore from 2019-2022 and I have a masters in business management. I wanted to run for city council because I want to be able to make a difference in the community, and to be a voice for the community. I want to do more with transitional housing. I would like to look into why property taxes are so high and why our assessments are so high too. And I want to help facilitate economic growth and development. My focus will be on the people of Sioux City and their concerns for the city.
Brett Watchorn
I'm running to represent others like myself in this city who have felt disenfranchised by the city government. I want to be a voice for everyone. I will work with anyone to do good and no one to do bad. Emphasis on anyone! I work in customer service so I try to have a calm rational demeanor when dealing with anyone. I feel this is my greatest advantage seeking this position. I know I'm not going to make everyone happy but I always listen and do my best to meet halfway.
Even further improving transparency and get more community engagement with government. I want people to know their voices can be heard and will be with me up there.
Craig Berenstein
I am retired after 40 years of professional work, including, but not limited to as an attorney, an adjunct professor at Morningside University, and in banking.
With both my educational background and professional experience, my community background and experience, including as a Mayor of Sioux City, and also a Councilmember in Sioux City, as well as my experience on numerous Boards and organization within the community, I am anxious and excited to share my vision and plans to make Sioux City and Siouxland a stronger and more vibrant and dynamic community to raise a family, work, play, and enjoy a wonderful quality of life.
My educational background, and professional and community experience, as well as my knowledge of, and unwavering commitment to, Sioux City and the Siouxland community. Also, I am open-minded and approachable, patient and measured, and deliberate with my actions and responses to be an effective leader in this community.
My top priorities are intertwined and broad based, and are summarized as the efficient and effective use of public funds (budget and taxation), credible economic development goals and initiatives, improved and transformative healthcare and healthy-city initiatives, beautification and quality of life objectives, and unwavering support of the Sioux City Police Department and Sioux City Fire Rescue.
John Den Beste
The reason I’m running for City Council is because I’m a life long resident of Sioux City and I grew up here. I decided to stay here, choosing to raise my family here. I want to see Sioux City grow, so that it can benefit everybody that calls Sioux City home.
I have a background in finance. I’m a financial advisor. So I am able to dig into budgets and understand money. I think it will be a great asset and I also come from a public service background as a reserve deputy for the Woodbury County Sheriff's Office. I have also participated in the Siouxland Chamber of Commerce government relations committee, which I have chaired the last two years. I am advocate for Sioux City on both the state and federal level, advocating for things that are important for Sioux City. You have to be very familiar with the issues affecting Sioux City and how we can try to lobby our local legislatures to help with those problems.
One of my priorities is to develop a pro-growth mindset for the City. I think we need to look at everything that we are doing in the lens of how do we grow Siouxland, grow the tax base, attract good jobs, and businesses. Part of that is being partners with developers and businesses and not being a roadblock to those people. How can city hall partner with those people to make sure that we can get shovels in the ground as soon as possible when somebody wants to develop or build homes? I think that’s super important and something that we see from other places around the area in terms of Sioux Falls or Omaha. Those places are much easier for developers to get things going; we’re a little bit slower in that aspect.
The other thing would be fiscal responsibility; we want to protect our taxpayers, ensuring all the dollars that they pay in property taxes are spent wisely, and pushing for transparency when it comes to budgeting and pushing for full transparency in some major projects, including the wastewater treatment plant. Making sure that is done properly and with the conversation being inclusive with everybody that’s going to be a part of that, including the businesses that send their wastewater there. Those are my top two priorities.
Siouxland Public Media attempted to contact the other candidates but has not yet received a response.