Feb. 11, 2020

Christopherson, Anderson, Paulson & Fideler LLP will move this spring into a space in the new portion of East Bank Depot at 424 E. Eighth St. The law firm has sold its building at 509 S. Dakota Ave. to First Premier Bank, which is building a five-story headquarters on the block. The bank plans to raze the building and use it for parking and landscaping.

Taco Town Buffet has closed after less than six months in business. Afshin Sadri started the all-you-can-eat restaurant at 2700 W. 41st St. with his wife, Pegah Diznab, and her parents in late August 2019. According to a Facebook post, they plan to move the restaurant to Minneapolis.

All American Gymnastics Academy has nearly doubled in size with its new gym along Cliff Avenue south of 77th Street. Gene and Kathy Luke have owned and operated the business for 30 years. The new building has two 14,000-square-foot gyms. One is for All American’s competitive and Junior Olympic programs, and the other is used for recreational gymnastics, a preschool program, cheerleading, trampoline and tumbling. It also offers ninja, parkour and freerunning programs for youths and adults, and has added a program for special athletes. The former building at 3009 S. Phillips Ave. is becoming the new home for ABC Rentals Special Events.

The Splash Bark by SDK has opened at The Resort by SDK south of Sioux Falls on Highway 115. It’s a tropical-themed play area for dogs with synchronized water features specially designed for dogs’ play styles and a “puddle” play space with a 3-inch-deep pool. The space includes a tiki bar that serves beer and wine for dog owners and mocktails with health benefits for canines. Owners can purchase day passes, memberships or add the water park to day care or boarding at The Resort. The space also is available to rent for parties.

Home decor superstore At Home has opened in the former Shopko space at 1601 W. 41st St. The national retailer offers more than 50,000 home-related products. It’s open daily.

Vern Eide Motorcars is buying the former Shopko property at Arrowhead and Sycamore, and plans to move its Mitsubishi dealership there from 5200 S. Louise Ave. It also will relocate its body shop from 3809 E. 10th St. and its reconditioning center from 1500 S. Minnesota Ave. The site also will hold up to 250 used vehicles for sale.

First Premier Bank is expanding to Madison. Construction on the branch is scheduled to start this spring and be completed in the fall. The bank plans to install a temporary facility on the site to serve customers until the building is ready.

A Chinese restaurant specializing in dim sum – a first for Sioux Falls – is coming to the east side of the city. Yummy House hopes to open in mid-February in the former Kowloon Chinese Restaurant space near 26th and Sycamore, said Joyce Chan, whose mother, Lisa Louie, will own the restaurant.

Sioux Falls land developers Jim Soukup and Al Spencer have purchased nearly all of the former Gage Brothers Concrete Products location at 12th Street and Interstate 29. Demolition work has started to prepare the 26-acre site for redevelopment. “We foresee it as an excellent opportunity for a large-scale corporate office, a company that wants a strong presence in the market, a large box retailer, certainly a hotel and restaurants,” said Raquel Blount of Lloyd Cos., who marketed the property and will market the redevelopment. Gage moved into its new 200,000-square-foot headquarters in late 2018 in northeast Sioux Falls.

Creative collaborators Wes Eisenhauer and Isaac Show have combined to form Kickturn Studio, a new marketing firm. Kickturn’s services include photography, videography, audio work and brand partnerships, including social media takeovers and Instagram content. It’s located at 1101 N. Dakota Ave.

The seven Hy-Vee grocery stores in Sioux Falls have ended 24/7 operations. New hours are 5 a.m. to midnight each day. The change is happening across the Iowa-based company’s eight-state footprint.

Thunder Road has finalized the attractions that will be inside the new indoor entertainment center it’s building at 201 N. Kiwanis Ave. Featured attractions include an immersive theater experience, a cutting-edge bowling system, bumper cars and a two-story laser tag game. The outdoor portion of Thunder Road, which includes attractions such as miniature golf and go-karts, will open as normal in early spring. The hope is to open the indoor space in July.

A family-owned bakery that specializes in decorated cookies but also makes cupcakes, cakes, bars and other treats is taking over the Smallcakes location downtown. Twisted Sisters Sweetz will remodel the space at 317 S. Phillips Ave. to give it a “1950s vibe” and hopes to be open in mid-March, said Nikki Wallenberg, who owns the bakery with her sister, Dana Johnson, and her mother, Valorie Johnson.

The West Mall 7 movie theater in the Western Mall has reopened after closing for repairs and remodeling after a Jan. 5 rooftop fire damaged the lobby.

Brightmark, a waste and energy development company based in San Francisco, has signed a manure supply agreement with three Sioux Falls-area dairy farms to capture methane produced by nearly 12,000 dairy cows and heifers, and convert it into renewable natural gas. The Athena project will include the construction of anaerobic digesters on three Minnehaha County farms: Boadwine Farms, Pioneer Dairy and Moody Dairy. The gas that is produced will be injected into the local interstate pipeline system for use statewide.

A new food trailer that’s planning to hit the road this season will feature fried cheese sandwiches. Jeremy Holien and his wife, Jenn, are starting Redders. They hope to be ready for business by the time warmer weather arrives in April or May.

The longtime Harlan’s Bike and Tour has a new name to go with its new owner. The business at 1740 S. Cliff Ave. is now Sioux Falls Bicycle Company. Longtime employee Kevin Stainbrook purchased it last year from Harlan Krueger, who retired in 2018.

A Canton restaurant has tripled in size with an expansion that features an additional dining area with a bar and a private event room. Sioux Valley Grille, which stepbrothers Peter Cobb and Ken O’Brien opened two years ago across from the Lincoln County Courthouse, grew into the former Optimists Club space. It’s open for lunch and dinner Wednesday through Friday, dinner Saturday and brunch Sunday. The bar is open until midnight Friday and Saturday.

The owner of Beds & Beds is retiring early and closing his second location in The Empire Mall at the end of March. Carl Klaudt, who is turning 50, plans to turn over operations to employees after training in April. He opened his main store at 1017 W. 41st St. five years ago.

The Keg, well-known for its fried chicken, has set an opening date for its east-side restaurant. The new location in the former Noodles & Company spot at 5216 E. Arrowhead Parkway will open Tuesday, Feb. 18, said Vonnie Larsen, who owns the restaurant with her husband, Neil. The West 12th Street site will remain open.

The Kitchen, a co-working and networking center for women, has opened at 4301 S. Racket Drive, not far from 49th and Louise. Owner Jen Kolb is inviting potential members to check out the co-working space for free this week. Social, part-time and premier memberships are available. Child care services are available for an additional fee.

Stern Oil Co., which is based in Freeman, has rebranded as Stern Co. to reflect its shift in focus from simply distributing oil and fuel to also providing operation expertise that helps minimize cost and maximize efficiency for its clients. Services such as oil analysis and plant studies will help customers prevent downtime and costly repairs, the company said in a news release. The family-owned company was founded in 1976.

Dakota Millwork closed late last year. The business at 1501 N. Industrial Ave. sold windows, doors, millwork, door hardware, skylights and other building products. It was founded in 1982 in Tea, and Dale and Brad Jans bought the company in 2000. They moved Dakota Millwork to Sioux Falls in 2015. Brad Jans, who ran the business, said he wanted to pursue new interests. Other reasons for the decision to close include the struggle to find good employees, additional competition in the market and increasing costs from vendors, he said.