sioux falls,bad things ? (Madison, Monroe: houses, construction, military)

[jm31828]

I used to live up there in Sioux Falls and still have family up there. I must say it is not quite as rosy as everyone here makes it out to be. It depends what you are looking for. First of all, it does not have 200,000 people- I don't know where someone got that stat. Sioux Falls metro area is up to close to 150,000. Not a city by any means, just a big town, and because of that it is a quiet peaceful place, but lacks much of the amenities, activities, attractions, and energy that a city would have. My complaint is that it's too small, and too generic- Sioux Falls could be any decent suburban area in most other areas of the country. You are quite remote there, too- it's the largest "city" in South Dakota, the nearest bigger cities are Omaha (3 hours or so to the south, but even that is only a metro of 800,000) and Minneapolis about 4 hours to the east. That's a long ways if you're trying to go somewhere on any regular basis to find real events, to get away from small town life on any regular basis, or even to catch a reasonably priced flight (since it is not cheap to fly into and out of Sioux Falls due to the small size and lack of flight options). My family members who used to live there are glad they got out, and the ones remaining there would like to leave.
Not to say it's a terrible place by any means, a lot of areas of the town are nice, not too many run down areas, and for the most part the people are very friendly (though that is not a Sioux Falls specific trait, that is a trait of people from all over the Midwest).

[MJ1986]

It's good to hear different opinions... It just depends on personal preference. Some people like living in huge cities, and others prefer small towns.

By the way, the 2007 population estimate for Sioux Falls was 151,505. The actual 2000 census figure was 123,975. The SF metropolitan statistical area or MSA's 2007 estimate was 227,171.

[Chris19]

Originally Posted by jm31828

I used to live up there in Sioux Falls and still have family up there. I must say it is not quite as rosy as everyone here makes it out to be. It depends what you are looking for. First of all, it does not have 200,000 people- I don't know where someone got that stat. Sioux Falls metro area is up to close to 150,000. Not a city by any means, just a big town, and because of that it is a quiet peaceful place, but lacks much of the amenities, activities, attractions, and energy that a city would have. My complaint is that it's too small, and too generic- Sioux Falls could be any decent suburban area in most other areas of the country. You are quite remote there, too- it's the largest "city" in South Dakota, the nearest bigger cities are Omaha (3 hours or so to the south, but even that is only a metro of 800,000) and Minneapolis about 4 hours to the east. That's a long ways if you're trying to go somewhere on any regular basis to find real events, to get away from small town life on any regular basis, or even to catch a reasonably priced flight (since it is not cheap to fly into and out of Sioux Falls due to the small size and lack of flight options). My family members who used to live there are glad they got out, and the ones remaining there would like to leave.
Not to say it's a terrible place by any means, a lot of areas of the town are nice, not too many run down areas, and for the most part the people are very friendly (though that is not a Sioux Falls specific trait, that is a trait of people from all over the Midwest).

I agree with the plane tickets. I would like to see another couple airlines come in and provide additional routes, but is not likely with various airlines contracting and having financial troubles.

Going a couple hours to a larger city is long to some, but for others it is not a big deal. It is better than living in central South Dakota where Omaha and Minneapolis are six hours away instead of three for Omaha and four for Minneapolis.

Entertainement acts can be improved with a new events center. There are some who want the proposed center to go downtown and others who want it by the arena and those like me who woudl rather have it close to the interstates (in the fairgrounds or near I-29/I-90 area. I would like to see it built, period.

Sioux Falls is better with the energy and vibe regarding activities than what is was 15-20 years ago for sure. The city can improve and is working on that with the downtown revitalization projects, public and private.

The new retail developments on the east side will not be as generic looking as the Empire Mall area and will have better landscaping and the retail buildings will have better aesthetics.

Sioux Falls, as with anywhere, has its shortcomings, but is getting better and is defining itself better as it matures into a larger community.

[SonicsFan93]

Originally Posted by jm31828

I used to live up there in Sioux Falls and still have family up there. I must say it is not quite as rosy as everyone here makes it out to be. It depends what you are looking for. First of all, it does not have 200,000 people- I don't know where someone got that stat. Sioux Falls metro area is up to close to 150,000. Not a city by any means, just a big town, and because of that it is a quiet peaceful place, but lacks much of the amenities, activities, attractions, and energy that a city would have. My complaint is that it's too small, and too generic- Sioux Falls could be any decent suburban area in most other areas of the country. You are quite remote there, too- it's the largest "city" in South Dakota, the nearest bigger cities are Omaha (3 hours or so to the south, but even that is only a metro of 800,000) and Minneapolis about 4 hours to the east. That's a long ways if you're trying to go somewhere on any regular basis to find real events, to get away from small town life on any regular basis, or even to catch a reasonably priced flight (since it is not cheap to fly into and out of Sioux Falls due to the small size and lack of flight options). My family members who used to live there are glad they got out, and the ones remaining there would like to leave.
Not to say it's a terrible place by any means, a lot of areas of the town are nice, not too many run down areas, and for the most part the people are very friendly (though that is not a Sioux Falls specific trait, that is a trait of people from all over the Midwest).

Nothing to do?!?!?! Are you sure?Moderator cut: Word changed

Sioux Falls has 4 Minor League Professional Sports Teams (Canaries Baseball, Storm Football, Skyforce Basketball, Stampede Hockey), and there is always one of them in season, with various major leaguers like Roy Tarpley and Pat Mahomes

There are various festivals throughout the year like JazzFest and RibFest (Loverboy appeared this year).

Concerts are somewhat lacking, but there always seems to be someone at the Arena (Remember Elton John), or the Ramkota Exhibit Hall (They've had Rob Zombie, and Puddle of Mudd), The Birdcage (Three Dog Night in September) or Nutty's North. Then you have Nitwits Comedy Club (Who's had Bobcat Goldthwait, and Tommy Chong makes a yearly appearance).

You've also got the various conventions that come through town like the Boat Show, the Sport Show, the SME Convention (Mary Lou Retton was there this year), and the Farm Show. And Paralympian Cheri Blauwet was at the B'nai B'rith Banquet this year.

Overall, there's ALWAYS something to do in Sioux Falls. Always! And I kind of like the fact that Sioux Falls is the biggest city within 400 miles.

[Chris19]

Very good post, SonicsFan93. Sioux Falls has plenty to do and I think that there will be more options in the future with additional retail options, continued development in the downtown area, and with the city growing in general.

For a city its size, Sioux Falls has good offerings for minor league/semi-pro sports and is near some D-1 schools (SDSU Jacks are D-1 and USD Coyotes are in transition to D-1). SDSU is playing a few big name schools and USD will in the near future.

Also a good thing too is that Sioux Falls has a good park system and the park system is growing along with the city. The bike trails are fun for hiking and biking.

The Washington Pavillion is good for shows and has IMAX-type theater.

There is something for eveyone here. Sioux Falls is not horribly isolated and is near Omaha and the Twin Cities for additional entertainment, but sometimes the occasional road trip is fun and is good away to get out of town for a short time. The Black Hills are five to six hours away, but is a good weekend outing. There are a number of state parks and rec areas, especially near lakes and the Missouri River that are great places to camp, fish, and enjoy the great outdoors. The best part of it all is many of them are within an hour or two from Sioux Falls.

[SonicsFan93]

But wait, there's more!

I forgot about the Sioux Empire Fair, which brings in some big talent every year, with Staind, Chicago, and Sugarland appearing this year

Then you have the University of Sioux Falls and it's sports teams. Football is a competitive team every year, with 2 National Championships. In 1992, Sioux Falls Arena hosted an NBA Preseason Game, Sonics vs. Nuggets. I'm not sure if they've hosted another since.

Every year you have the YMCA Golf Classic, and this year Rich Beem was there. Every year you also have the Legends Sports Clinics, this year had Jojo White, Tim Raines, and Roger Craig. The Canaries hold their Hot Stove Banquet every year, and Jack Morris was there this year, and Rollie Fingers was there in 2007.

During election years, South Dakota can play a role. In 1992, Paul Tsongas spoke at the cattlearena at the Sioux Falls stockyard and Joe Kerrey gave his S.D. victory speech from a Sioux Falls Hotel Ballroom. This Year, Obama spoke at the Arena and Clinton spoke at the airport.

[Camden Northsider]

Sioux Falls used to always be like one big truck stop but is now moving towards mass suburban retail chain/ mcmansion developments. Either way, although there's a few exceptions, there's not a lot of character to the town.

I grew up in Sioux Falls and all of my family's roots are in South Dakota; however, everyone in my immediate family have since relocated out of state (most of us are now in MN) for better opportunities (and in our case, for professional positions requiring a college education that don't involve working for a credit card company). Although an urban center for a tri-state area, Sioux Falls can still feel very small and isolating which I think can at times promote a small-mindedness (and disgruntled-ness) in the people that live there.

There are some pretty big gaps between the rich and the poor, people are pretty conservative, and the housing may be cheap but so are the wages....

[MJ1986]

Small-mindedness and disgruntled-ness of the people of Sioux Falls? Ouch...
Sioux Falls may seem like a truck stop if you travel I-90, but you have to take time to get off the highway and explore the city.
Sioux Falls is growing, but it's a healthy, well-planned growth.
There is character to SF...Falls Park, Sculpture Walk, the McKennan park historic district, plenty of parks and trees, and a well developed bike trail.

The housing prices are lower, and the wages are lower, but the cost of living in general is low.
Credit card companies aren't the only employers in the city. The healthcare systems have huge employee bases, not to mention more jobs on the way...especially with the Sanford Research Park.

Sioux Falls has a small town feel, which is probably why people are moving here. Not everyone wants to live in a metropolis.

[Camden Northsider]

Originally Posted by MJ1986

Small-mindedness and disgruntled-ness of the people of Sioux Falls? Ouch...
Sioux Falls may seem like a truck stop if you travel I-90, but you have to take time to get off the highway and explore the city.
Sioux Falls is growing, but it's a healthy, well-planned growth.
There is character to SF...Falls Park, Sculpture Walk, the McKennan park historic district, plenty of parks and trees, and a well developed bike trail.

The housing prices are lower, and the wages are lower, but the cost of living in general is low.
Credit card companies aren't the only employers in the city. The healthcare systems have huge employee bases, not to mention more jobs on the way...especially with the Sanford Research Park.

Sioux Falls has a small town feel, which is probably why people are moving here. Not everyone wants to live in a metropolis.

Yeah, my post was a little harsh to my old hometown - to be fair there are some really great people in SF and throughout South Dakota, I went to school and grew up with same great people, had great teachers (although many of those have left the state), and a lot of my family is still in the area.

And there is some character - McKennan Park & Sioux Valley areas, Downtown, the Historic District, etc. - maybe things seem a little wierd or off-kilter to me because Sioux Falls has had such a population explosion that the older areas get dwarfed in comparison to all of the newer areas.

As for the planning of Sioux Falls - I'm still going to have to disagree with you on this. When I was there, there was too much congestion for a city of its size, although in retrospect, it definitely was not a big deal. And it always irked me that 26th Street never went through to connect the West side to Kiwanis Ave (and that the only reason this never happened was due to Minnehaha and Westward Ho country club areas being in the way - at one time there were talks of building a tunnel underneath it or large bridge overhead). And all of the developments are pretty shoddily built cookie cutter homes or big mcmansions.

And I still stand by my statements about some of the small mindedness and fanatical conservatism that goes on in SD - all of the press SD has gotten around the fanaticism has made it look pretty crazy to the rest of the country (with the possible exception of the evangelicals and neocons). And there is a big gap between the rich and the poor there that no one really seems to care much enough to do anything about (how about a nonprofit or agency whose focus is to assist people in getting out of poverty?)

And to the person who commented that South Dakotans are lazy, I think that's pretty far from reality - Midwesterners generally get stereotyped as being the hardest working bunch of people in the US, and of my experience in other parts of the Midwest - South Dakotans often are stereotyped as some of the hardest working Midwesterners around.

[MJ1986]

You still keep up with your teachers? Must have been a tight-knit school.

The older areas aren't getting dwarfed. The city has a revitalization/redevelopment plan for the area just west of downtown, now called "Pettigrew Heights".

And yeah, the planning stance regarding transportation was horrible! One of those country clubs would not accept Mayor Munson's idea. I think Munson just gave up in the end. The city and SDDOT did a horrible job when it came to the SW part of town...

What kind of fanaticism? I'm curious as to what you are referring to exactly. If you are talking about the abortion thing, then yes... Thank you Legislature.

I agree the homeless need more services in SF... the Francis house for one is holding a fundraiser, I think to build a newer complex. The whole Salvation Army thing in SF a while back was a mess. I guess it all comes down to funding and people saying "not in my backyard"... Its unfortunate.
I wouldn't really say there's a "gap" between rich and poor though...That's a broad generalization.