Feb. 15, 2021

The last evidence of the 2019 tornadoes that ripped down 41st Street will be hauled away this week.

The former North American Title Loans building at 41st and Western Avenue is scheduled to be razed Wednesday, after being significantly damaged by the storm 18 months ago.

Last construction season brought a major road project that reconstructed and expanded the intersection, and much of the North American Title Loans site was used for equipment staging.

The building is owned by local businessman Rod Woelfel, who recently settled the insurance claim for the storm damage and is now cleared to tear down the building.

“Now that the road project is complete and the insurance claim is put to bed, we can finally move forward with new plans for the property,” Woelfel said.

A new 2,025-square-foot retail building is planned for the site.

“The new building will really clean that corner up,” said Ryan Tysdal of Van Buskirk Cos., who is the leasing agent for the new project.

“A free-standing building on a hard corner like this can be hard to come by for many retailers.”

Woelfel and Tysdal worked with the city’s planning and engineering departments to put together the new plans, they said.

“It’s a small, challenging site, and the city staff showed some flexibility to get the plans approved,” Tysdal said. “Their flexibility was key to getting this new project underway. They were great to work with.”

And before the old building was torn down, the owner allowed crews from Sioux Falls Fire Rescue to use it for training exercises.

“We contacted the new fire chief, Matt McAreavey, who had mentioned to me in the past that they can use buildings like this for training before the demo takes place,” Tysdal said. “We’re glad they were able to get some use out of it before it comes down.”

The new building will be built further north on the site, which will accommodate two full rows of parking, with 15 total spaces.

There’s already interest in leasing, according to Tysdal, who said existing retailers in the area have a track record of success.

“Scheels, Best Buy, At Home and Costco all perform exceedingly well within their respective companies. Having strong retail anchors on both sides of the site definitely drives the desirability of the property to prospective tenants,” he said.

The general contractor on the project is Van Buskirk Construction, and work is scheduled to begin in late spring.