Feb. 19, 2024

A lot of tenant turnover is happening at the Jones421 Building.

Located at 421 N. Phillips Ave. in downtown Sioux Falls, the building’s first-floor marketplace long has served as an incubator of sorts for small businesses, and several now are at the point of moving elsewhere.

It started late last year with Interiors Etc., which closed its retail storefront to focus on residential and commercial interior design.

The space didn’t sit empty for long, though.

It’s going to be the new home of 1st Gen HQ, an artist-driven clothing concept owned by James Landon.

“We make everything in house. We cut and sew a lot, make our own screen prints and do hand-stitching and embroidery,” he said.

He opened the business at 1108 W. 12th St. three years ago but said he has been eyeing Jones421 ever since.

“It was just about what made sense and what was the right location,” he said. “I think right now the main reason is because of what’s happening a little more north with the residential building, the hotel going in the new part, the restaurants that are going to be in that building. I don’t see why this wouldn’t be an extremely high-traffic area in the future.”

He’s also subleasing space to other like-minded business owners: The Green Penny, owned by Aftyn Janzen, which sells vintage goods, and Dylan Leonard and Chasity Morris, who are clothing designers and filmmakers.

“I try to surround myself with creatives,” Landon said. “It’s really exciting.”

The space also plans to host a monthly event for artists to sell their work and to expand Landon’s art camps for kids. The hope is to open March 1.

Not far away, another Jones building space will be going under construction.

Intoxibakes is planning to move out of the building when its lease expires at the end of March, co-owner Holly Jorgenson said.

The bakery, which makes alcohol-infused and regular baked goods, has been in Jones421 for five years and moved into a larger space in the building in 2021.

Intoxibakes has signed a letter of intent for a space in The Steel District’s mixed-use building across Phillips Avenue but is waiting for construction bids before signing a lease, said Jorgenson, who owns the business and Candy Cloud Factory with her daughter Josie Layton and daughter-in-law Shannon Johnson.

The plan would be to find a temporary home while The Steel District space is built out, but that could end up being Candy Cloud, she said.

Jorgenson said the family is looking forward to having the visibility of a storefront with windows for Intoxibakes.

“It will face the hotel,” she said of The Steel District location. “I think it will be great over there. The foot traffic should be great.”

The shop would have limited seating and an expanded menu with coffee, a few more desserts and possibly bread, Jorgenson said.

When Intoxibakes gave notice it was leaving Jones421, “I had to people looking within three days,” co-owner and property manager Sheila Hazard said.

She ended up leasing to a salon that’s going to take the entire space — which once was two spots.

The Deku Tree, which was located off the northernmost entrance to the building, also has made a change but remains in the building.

It’s now sharing space off the southern entrance, across from The Source Coffee Roastery + Taproom with 605 Florista. There’s also a deal pending for the former Deku Tree space, Hazard said.

Meanwhile, cleanup and repairs continue for Swamp Daddy’s Cajun Kitchen, which was heavily damaged when glycol leaked into the space from HVAC work being done above it in the building, which includes condominiums.

In an social media update posted last week, owner Del’Inkka Beaudion gave a look at the damage. Much of the restaurant and its adjacent bar and seating area are covered in plastic, and while one mural was lost, the hope is another can preserved.

“As far as we know, most of the demolition is almost done if not already done, so we are getting updates from the company’s crew here often, and we’re going to have to replace quite a few things,” she said.

That includes everything from wallboard to dishes and countertops.

“Unfortunately, we don’t have a set timeline right now,” she said. “We appreciate everyone reaching out, giving us words of encouragement whether that’s Facebook messages, text messages, phone calls. We’ve had so many people reach out and want to support and even come to help. … That means a lot to us. It’s greatly appreciated.”

A donation page to help the family business has raised more than $11,000.