July 7, 2025

The city of Sioux Falls is accepting sealed bids for a limited number of liquor licenses.

The city will distribute four on-sale and five off-sale liquor licenses to the highest bidders.

Sealed bids must be submitted in person to the city licensing specialist or a designee at City Hall, 224 W. Ninth St., during regular business hours. There is a $100 nonrefundable application fee for each application. All sealed bids will be time-stamped as they are received, which will serve as the basis for determining the order of tie bids.

An on-sale liquor license is needed to sell alcoholic beverages for consumption on the premises where they are sold, like bars and restaurants. The minimum bid for an on-sale liquor license is $240,646, which meets the state-determined minimum.

An off-sale license is needed to sell alcoholic beverages for consumption off the premises where they are sold, like convenience stores or liquor stores. The minimum bid for an off-sale liquor license is $500, which meets the state-determined minimum.

Sealed bids will be opened to the public at 10 a.m. Aug. 1 at City Hall.

Bidders will be notified in writing of their award, which is conditional upon the applicant’s eligibility, suitability of the premises for the license, use of the on-sale license within two years from issuance, use of the off-sale license within 90 days from issuance and compliance with all other state laws and city ordinances. The names and amounts of bids for those conditionally awarded  licenses will be published online within five business days of the date for the written notice of the conditional awards.

Full details, bid forms and instructions are available at siouxfalls.gov/liquorlicense.