Tell me about Sioux Falls.. (Rapid City: best city, houses, neighborhoods)

[Qtipper]

Well, to be MUCH less economy minded, I will tell you that Sioux Falls also has very good schools. Having just LEFT the great city I realize it even more now. Also, Sioux Falls is what I like to call a "small town in a big city." Again, having left, I realize how very FAMILY friendly Sioux Falls is. It's clean, friendly, VERY reasonable cost of living and basically free from a lot of true big city challenges. I just love the fact that on any given day one can wander into Walmart and run into someone they know. Now...if you wish to remain anonymous and under the radar. Sioux Falls is probably not the place for you. But, that is another post altogether.

Why is it growing? Well, why NOT! It's a great place to live.

[DannyBanany]

I'm in Minneapolis today, but I stayed at a friend's house in Sioux Falls last night. I could not get over how much it has grown! It's unbelievable!

[Chris19]

Originally Posted by DannyBanany

I'm in Minneapolis today, but I stayed at a friend's house in Sioux Falls last night. I could not get over how much it has grown! It's unbelievable!

What parts of the city have you cruised around in? You should see eastern Sioux Falls in another 2 to 3 years. There are supposed to be thousands of houses built in that part of the city in th upcoming years and a small stretch of the future beltway will be finished.

The city has been working on extending utilities and working to get the area ready to grow. The land along with Northwest Sioux Falls are better suited for homes than the southern side of Sioux Falls due to cost of extending utilities and the lay of the land is better for drainage. The southern part of Sioux Falls has some flat areas. The two mentioned areas are gently rolling hills and are nicer areas to build a house.

Tea, Lennox, and Harriburg, to my knowledge, have housing developments in the works. Tea has one development with 150 plus homes with some park facilities and commercial property. It has another 80 acres to be developed and nearby another development which housing is popping up. On the north end of town, there are houses being built and more to come. A man-made lake was made. Harrisburg has 3 developements that are filling up and another one with 300-400 houses on its way. Lennox is growing with a few houses a year but may get a 200 plus house development and it has attracted a manufacturer with 75-100 good paying jobs.

I find the progress exciting, but my only complaint is the traffic (but it is better than many areas of the US, especially the East Coast). The schools are great here and there are very few, if any, substandard schools. I think that the smaller schools around Sioux Falls are better due to individual attention and the lessened chance of getting lost in the shuffle, but Sioux Falls offers a great variety in its high schools for ciriculum. The health care system is top-notch for a city of its size and for South Dakota. There is a good park system in Sioux Falls proper. Brandon, Tea, Harrisburg, and others are working to improve their parks to be places of recreation and relaxation for its residents.

[DannyBanany]

I stayed at my friend's apartment off of South Cliff. I could not get over how many businesses, apartments, and restaurants there were on the southeast part of town. It was also the first time I drove on 229. Sioux Falls sure has grown since I was little. I used to go there for soccer and there was nothing out that way.

I'm sorry that I did not get to spend more time in Sioux Falls. The people I traveled with decided to venture up to Minneapolis at the last minute. I guess it's kind of a good thing. I would probably not know what to do n Sioux Falls for 4 days!!!

[Go Ne]

by the sounds of it, omaha and sioux falls are going through similiar growth. now all sioux falls needs is a good skyscraper. First National Tower is causing wonders for omaha.

[DannyBanany]

That is true about skyrises. They bring attention to a city and make it much more prominent. I love driving into Omaha, Twin Cities, and Denver. Sioux Falls does not have much of a skyline for a town its size. A skyrise or two would help. Sioux Falls' skyline is very low with an exception to the Cathedral.

[ehenningsen]

Omaha is growing at an above-average clip, it may reach 15% while the average for the us is 10-11% for the 2000-2010 decade and the city may grow by more than 115,000 in the decade.

But the astonishing growth in Sioux Falls caught my eye, because of the fact that each year a growing city grows a little more every year by the numbers.

In other words the second half of the 2000 decade inflates the growth rate more in most cities and Sioux Falls looks to be surpassing a 30% growth rate possibly for this decade which is unmatchable for any northern city.

Des Moines may reach 20%, but the 30% doesn't just happen to happen, there have to be a lot of good things going on to allow that type of extreme growth, and I plan on taking a trip up there to check it all out!

[Jammie]

Ehenningson, funny thing is that I hope to go to Omaha the middle of next month. You're having an awesome concert down there with Frankie Valli and the 4 Seasons.

[Chris19]

Originally Posted by DannyBanany

I stayed at my friend's apartment off of South Cliff. I could not get over how many businesses, apartments, and restaurants there were on the southeast part of town. It was also the first time I drove on 229. Sioux Falls sure has grown since I was little. I used to go there for soccer and there was nothing out that way.

I'm sorry that I did not get to spend more time in Sioux Falls. The people I traveled with decided to venture up to Minneapolis at the last minute. I guess it's kind of a good thing. I would probably not know what to do n Sioux Falls for 4 days!!!

There is supposed to be even more development near where you stayed. There is supposed to a great amount of development east of Cliff Ave., between 57th and 85th streets and eastward. Some of it will take place in the next few years and the eastern part (towards the Iowa border/Big Sioux River in Lincoln County) 15-20 years down the road possibly. The new beltway in Sioux Falls will cut through this area.

Recently, sewer and water has been extended to this area and there are supposed to be thousands of homes to be built in the next 15-20 years in the area. There are two outdoor malls in the works: Galleria at Rivers Bend and Dawley Farm Village. Dawley Farm is the one that will have a head start with Target and Best Buy being strong candidates to go in there. These two will be similar in concept to Rushmore Crossing in Rapid but will have residential and parks mixed in. The beltway or SD100 will be constructed from Madison St. to 1/2 mile south of 26th St. Some work has been done on that last fall, but work will resume this spring on that stretch.

Danny, Sioux Falls is getting another Sonic and is going in on East 10th Street east of I-229.

[Chris19]

Originally Posted by DannyBanany

That is true about skyrises. They bring attention to a city and make it much more prominent. I love driving into Omaha, Twin Cities, and Denver. Sioux Falls does not have much of a skyline for a town its size. A skyrise or two would help. Sioux Falls' skyline is very low with an exception to the Cathedral.

I agree with you with the skyline. Sioux Falls is supposed to get a 20 plus story tower near where I-29 and I-229 meet and is going to be a part of the research park proposed by Sanford. There is momentum for an 85th St. exit to be placed a mile south of where the two interstates meet (which will get reconfigured 5-10 years down the road). This exit will serve southern parts of Sioux Falls along with Tea (which is growing towards Sioux Falls).

There is a 7 to 8 story buildings with an archway connecting them (going over the road) that will contain lofts and a couple more may be coming to downtown Sioux Falls. There is a push to revitalize the downtown and jazz it up from downtown to the Falls along Phillips.