May 23, 2021

Blame the workload, the pandemic – and hopefully not age –but it’s been awhile since I’ve been downtown at 10 p.m. on a Saturday.

That changed last weekend. I went to a unique performance from The Good Night Theatre Collective set outdoors at the Washington Pavilion’s Paladino Hohm Sculpture Garden – which incidentally is a talented group and a great venue.

And on my way out of downtown, I had plenty of time to reflect on how encouraging it was to see the success of a grassroots arts group because I was stopped in bumper-to-bumper traffic on Phillips Avenue, with sidewalks full of people.

Watching them underscored for me how there’s an energy in the center of the city that I think was waiting to be unleashed in ways large and small.

It was building before the pandemic, with a growing number of successful businesses consistently drawing travelers and locals alike for a night out, day of shopping or live music.

But there’s a bigger shift coming.

In the past couple of weeks, we’ve announced concrete plans for more than $350 million in new investment coming to downtown between The Steel District and the expansion of Cherapa Place.

These two projects will profoundly change our definition of downtown. When you think of “downtown” today, if we’re being honest, you probably still think of the same three blocks of Phillips Avenue where I was stopped in traffic.

In three years or less, you’re going to think more broadly. You’re going to think of the north end of downtown, where you listen to concerts in the summer, ice skate in the winter and bring your out-of-town guests. You’re going to think of the east end, where you might go to work, shop, dine or spend time in new places along the river. And I bet you’ll think of the south end, too, where you discover new local and eclectic small businesses.

It’s all building toward that.

But it’s only because people had faith.

I’ll never forget a conversation I had with Jeff Scherschligt in the spring of 2020 as the market was falling and downtown streets had emptied.

He’d decided to move ahead with plans for his Railyard Flats project anyway, bringing 40 new lofts and the state’s first laminated mass-timber building to downtown.

“We’re long-term thinkers. I’m not frightened to go forward,” he told me at the time.

“It’s our responsibility as far as I’m concerned. Those who have the wherewithal need to step forward. They need to continue with projects like Railyard Flats. They need to step forward and go to our local businesses and go out and continue to support these people because we all have to get through this together.”

Fast-forward a year, and the lofts at Railyard Flats are nearly half leased despite still requiring a hard hat to tour and a July move-in date.

Scherschligt’s faith in this community’s future paid off.

That has been the case for a lot of others along the way, and I thought of them the past couple of weeks as these announcements were made. I thought of Dave Munson, my former boss, whose administration got Phillips to the Falls done, sold the land that became Uptown at the Falls, got the first phase of the River Greenway built to coincide with Cherapa Place and replaced cruising on the “loop” with outdoor dining and sculptures.

I thought of the late Don Dunham Jr., and Jeff and Sheila Hazard, who invested in downtown when few people saw potential for what it could become. Their early projects laid the groundwork for what has happened in the years that followed. I thought of Marv Looby, who created the first real modern retail environment on the East Bank, and Carole Pagones, who gave downtown a much-needed advocate and cheerleader.

And of course, I thought of Craig and Pat Lloyd and the first name they would mention if I were having this conversation with them: Steve Metli, for taking on the tough projects, believing in a vision and persevering despite all the unexpected things that happen when you take on redevelopment downtown.

“These are local leaders that are willing to put forward and risk their own money to bring this transformational skyline change to Sioux Falls,” said Erica Beck, the city’s chief of staff, when I asked her to talk about the significance of the development ahead.

“It will transform what we know downtown to be today into what it will be 20 to 30 to 40 years from now, and it will set the stage for where we can head as a community.”

I could write for a while about why I think it’s critical to support these developments, to make the public investments where they can help leverage the private ones.

But I don’t think I need to. I think, maybe for the first time ever, there is near universal support, public and private, for what’s happening downtown.

So that’s not my call to action. This is.

That list of names I just mentioned needs to keep growing, and this is the time to add to it.

If you are a business that expects you’ll need bigger or better office space in the next three to five years, it’s probably time to look now if you want to be downtown in new construction because there’s no guarantee another project will surface in that time horizon.

If you need any motivation, just look to Greg Garry, executive vice president and chief operating officer of The Bancorp. He announced the fintech company is bringing its 175 employees from south Sioux Falls to the Cherapa Place development, with room to grow.

A new downtown location in a mixed-use development gives his company a launchpad to be an “employer of first look” he told the City Council last week. It also gives his clients – the largest debit card players in the industry – the right impression of Sioux Falls when they visit.

“It’s really a vision of what happens in Austin, what happens in Atlanta, what happens on a smaller scale in Brooklyn when they’re building these things out,” he said. “This gives us an opportunity to look like our clients and for them to say, ‘wow.’ ”

And there’s a message beyond corporate office users too. If you’re a retailer, restaurateur or service or entertainment business owner, you’ve probably found already there are very few spaces available downtown. These new projects will offer that, but not in huge amounts, so I would reach out in case it’s a fit.

And if you’re a downtown resident, employee, supporter or visitor, there’s a role for you as the downtown momentum builds too.

“People describe downtown as the living room. It’s the living room of our community,” Beck said.

“And we want everyone to feel comfortable here, whether they live or work here or recreate here.”

There are going to be opportunities for every citizen to contribute ideas as this next phase of downtown takes shape. The city, for instance, is asking for suggestions to make part of Phillips Avenue a livelier streetscape. Think about what you’ve found especially memorable in other places and consider how to put a Sioux Falls spin on it.

And, if you’re an artist, musician, designer or other creative, there are many ways to put your own stamp on downtown, and I hope you find them. The things that can’t be found anywhere else are what you create and what truly help this community stand apart.

I feel incredibly grateful we can even be having these conversations, at this moment in time, given the upheaval of the past year. I think we’ll look back and realize we got to be part of a historic, legacy-making time for downtown. Now, it’s up to us as a community to make the most of it.

https://pigeon605.com/got-ideas-to-enhance-downtown-experience-city-wants-to-hear-them/