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Just found this forum and was reading some of the threads especially the one started by fatman66. I was just hired for a government job in Sioux Falls about a week ago and I've been doing a lot of online research and so this forum discovery is good for me.
I currently live in the Cleveland area where I grew up and have also lived in Illinois and Iowa. From everything I read I already have a very favorable impression of the Sioux Falls area.
I have a 15 hour drive there tomorrow to go apartment hunting since I start work in mid-October.
The only thing that has surprised me so far is that with all the ethnic Germans in the area (and I'm one as well) there are no German restaurants. I love German cooking - perhaps there is one in a nearby town that someone can clue me in on.
Someone commenting in the 'next' project on the Argus-Leader mentioned the town needed one so hopefully that will happen.
I will have 48 hours to find an apartment, stop in where I will work and just look around. I'll have my laptop with me for the next four days so I'll check in for suggestions if anyone has any. I have my eye on the Heritage Place apartments near the Empire Mall. Any info or suggestions would be helpful.
For the record, I would appreciate more cautious drivers than the ones I experience here!
This happened so fast and was so unexpected that It really hasn't sunk in yet. Maybe starting tomorrow it will. I can't wait to see this town.
Just found this forum and was reading some of the threads especially the one started by fatman66. I was just hired for a government job in Sioux Falls about a week ago and I've been doing a lot of online research and so this forum discovery is good for me.
I currently live in the Cleveland area where I grew up and have also lived in Illinois and Iowa. From everything I read I already have a very favorable impression of the Sioux Falls area.
I have a 15 hour drive there tomorrow to go apartment hunting since I start work in mid-October.
The only thing that has surprised me so far is that with all the ethnic Germans in the area (and I'm one as well) there are no German restaurants. I love German cooking - perhaps there is one in a nearby town that someone can clue me in on.
Someone commenting in the 'next' project on the Argus-Leader mentioned the town needed one so hopefully that will happen.
I will have 48 hours to find an apartment, stop in where I will work and just look around. I'll have my laptop with me for the next four days so I'll check in for suggestions if anyone has any. I have my eye on the Heritage Place apartments near the Empire Mall. Any info or suggestions would be helpful.
For the record, I would appreciate more cautious drivers than the ones I experience here!
This happened so fast and was so unexpected that It really hasn't sunk in yet. Maybe starting tomorrow it will. I can't wait to see this town.
I'll report my impressions here.
I like the Sioux Falls Next project... A lot of good ideas.
I'm not familiar with Heritage Place.... I googled it... It's in a good area, very close to a main commercial area.
As far as driving, you'll find cautious drivers, for the most part. Traffic isn't usually an issue, but there are a few minor bottlenecks.
What price range are you looking at? I suppose you probably won't be able to answer this post, since it's happening so fast.
I'm here at the Brimark tonight - made it in just under 15 hours. I wanted a two BR for under $700. Hopefully this will be wrapped up tomorrow - thanks for the info on the Heritage - and then I'll just wander around after checking out where I'm going to work. If you have 48 hours in Sioux Falls what would be the 'must sees?'
This is happening fast but I did a lot of Internet research before I got here.
I'm here at the Brimark tonight - made it in just under 15 hours. I wanted a two BR for under $700. Hopefully this will be wrapped up tomorrow - thanks for the info on the Heritage - and then I'll just wander around after checking out where I'm going to work. If you have 48 hours in Sioux Falls what would be the 'must sees?'
This is happening fast but I did a lot of Internet research before I got here.
Here is a great link... It's a publication that is distributed around Sioux Falls for apartments and townhouses. If you go to Search near the top of the page, and go down to Advanced Search, you can search for specifics.
For a "must see" in Sx. Falls~if this weather straightens out a bit today, my recommendation is to visit Falls Park. From the park, walk up to Phillips Ave. and check out the "Sculpture Walk" and enjoy the flowers. OR if you're not a walker, take the free shuttle from the Park and it'll take you right up there.
Spent all day yesterday finding an apartment. Signed off today on a place - Pembrooke Place which is on the south edge of the Empire Mall. 2BR 1 bath, wood burning fireplace, heat paid, pool and tennis courts for $600 a month. That would be unheard of in Cleveland. So I am very happy. It is just across the street from the giant Hy-Vee. That is one thing I did miss quite a bit from my Cedar Rapids days was the Hy-Vee. This one is great.
The Empire Mall, as malls go, is outstanding. I was really surprised (Sioux Falls is full of pleasant surprises) at not only the selection of stores but the occupancy rate. A really first class mall. And I'm not normally a mall person. And it is clean and well run.
So much here I've missed - the Famous Dave's (ate there yesterday), a Ground Round (haven't seen one of those in years in Ohio), and a Great Harvest bread place opening up next to the Spezio's (which I ate at tonight). Spezios takes an ordinary dish like spaghetti bolognese and sausage and turns it into an experience. Great place.
So I finished up the apartment hunt by noon and went downtown. I started with the trolly ride and saw Falls Park. Great service and a great park. Yeah, I went up the tower and took pictures. Took a LOT of pictures today.
Then I strolled up Phillips Ave and was really taken by the artwork. A really attractive display and I took many pictures. And a used bookstore! That was bittersweet in a way because I'm selling the bookstore I own in Ohio to come here and I will miss the interaction with customers. The store is great and I made sure I let them know. In fact, I couldn't stop myself from telling the downtown merchants how great their stores were.
I loved Patina! What a collection. And the Ten Thousand Villages and Holsen Hus stores. Wow. And what a great job at taking care of the facades and streetscapes.
I hope people here don't take their downtown for granted. I've never seen anything like it for a city this size.
One thing I must comment on is how friendly everyone is. People on the street just strike up conversations. And they like newcomers. I lost count of how many times people welcomed me to Sioux Falls.
I really felt welcome and that is rare nowadays.
The commitment to the arts in Sioux Falls is remarkable. They put cities twice their size to shame. The park system is remarkable as well. And the city is very clean.
As far as the drivers go, I really didn't notice much to comment on except for the fact that there seems to be far less type A drivers here than I'm used to.
The cops love setting up radar on I-29 and they catch a bunch of people. I can't for the life of me figure it out. The limit is 65 which is very generous for an urban area (and 75 outside the city - woo hoo!) and I'm betting they don't pull people over unless they're doing noticeably above the limit. I'm used to 60 in Cleveland's urban areas and 65 outside of them.
I do find the plethora of mom and pop casinos to be amusing in some respects. Did the people of this state know that their towns would look like this - with casinos on so many corners? And the pawn and check cashing places that go with it? Or did it evolve over time? I'm pretty libertarian when it comes to gambling issues but I wonder how people feel about the saturation?
Anyway, if I can think of other things, I'll post them. But I am very excited to be moving here.
kbear - really enjoyed reading your post. I too remember the Ground Round (from back in WI) and I have lost track of how long it has been since I've seen one. I also loved hearing how many people welcomed you and sadly, I feel you are correct, it is a rareity. Makes me wish that our visit was sooner rather than later. I am really intrigued by the small amount of rent for your new place plus amenities - that is fantastic. Anyway, great post you covered a lot and made me look even more forward to our visit .
The casinos you're admiring were shoved down our throats years ago when everyone voted on whether or not to let Deadwood determine for themselves whether they wanted gambling or not in order to raise money to "renovate" there buildings.
Somewhere, and I still stay SOMEWHERE in the fine print, our glorious state leaders managed to hide a little tidbit of information saying that if Deadwood's vote passed, the whole state would be buried in these hideous things. Meanwhile, Deadwood was transformed from a really cool historical place with unique stores and museums into the pile of casino crap that you can see today.
It's the biggest ripoff to our state in our history.
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