May 16, 2018

Mills Fleet Farm is planning a new store at the Sanford Sports Complex.

At 185,000-square-feet, it will sit on the southeast corner of Interstate 29 and Benson Road and offer a broad assortment of merchandise, including fishing and hunting products, auto parts, farm and pet supplies, home improvement and home living goods, clothing and footwear, toys and food, plus services such as a gas station, car wash and auto repair.

“It’s the perfect retail anchor for the Sports Complex,” said Raquel Blount of Lloyd Cos., who helped put the deal together.

“It will provide a shopping opportunity for everyone attending events there and be a local and regional draw for shoppers. They’re such a wide-variety retailer that people can find basically anything they need. I think people will be surprised by the variety.”

Fleet Farm is excited to enter the Sioux Falls market, said Tom Carrico, vice president of real estate and construction for the retailer.

“This is a strong, vibrant community, and we look forward to being a local community partner for years to come,” he said.

Fleet Farm, which is based in Appleton, Wis., has 37 stores in Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota and Wisconsin. Since being acquired by private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts in 2016, the chain has been focused on growing its store presence.

“At a time when anchor store growth is extremely limited, this is a retailer that is finding huge success in our size market. And this is a great location, with ease of access to I-29 and I-90 and our ag-based trade area. The 400-acre Sports Complex has plenty of room for additional retail, and an anchor like Fleet Farm will help attract it,” Blount added.

Sanford leaders echoed the excitement over the new addition to the Sports Complex.

“Having the amenities that Fleet Farm provides will be a great convenience to thousands of annual visitors of the Sports Complex, travelers on I-29 as well as area residents. This is the type of anchor business we’ve been working collaboratively with Lloyd Cos. on, and we anticipate this will drive additional growth throughout the complex,” said Matt Ditmanson, director of business development for the Sanford Sports Complex.

Site work on the 25-acre property has started, construction will begin in June, and the store is scheduled to open in the spring of 2019.

“Lloyd Construction is the contractor, and Lloyd Cos. has entered into a preferred developer role with Fleet Farm,” said Jake Quasney, vice president of real estate investment.

Lloyd plans to broker leases, line up ownership, develop sites and oversee construction on stores in multiple states annually.

“The Sioux Falls Fleet Farm will feature more modern exterior finishes, which will include clean structural design elements, more glass and increased natural light. We’re excited to be part of that new push as they modernize what they’re doing,” Quasney said.