Simplified: If Sioux Fallsians want a downtown convention center, it's going to have to be a community-led decision, not a city-led one, Mayor Paul TenHaken told the Riverline Steering Committee Thursday afternoon. Here's what that means for the process moving forward.

Why it matters

  • The city now owns the roughly eight-acre parcel of land known as the Riverline District, so the clock is ticking on getting a project started. The purchase agreement approved late last year includes a requirement that development on a project that provides "significant economic impacts" break ground by 2030 Otherwise, the sellers can buy back the property for the original sales price of $8 million.
  • But TenHaken only has a little over a year left in his tenure as mayor, and he said Thursday if the Riverline is something that only the city is leading, "it will die."
  • That's why he's asking community groups like the Greater Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce, Forward Sioux Falls, Experience Sioux Falls, the Sioux Falls Development Foundation and Downtown Sioux Falls, Inc. to find a way to take over leadership of moving the vision for a new downtown convention center forward.
"I made a commitment to myself and to the community when I took office that I will not hand the next administration a half-baked anything that's gonna put them in turd alley ... I had an initiative that was left to me as a challenge, and I don't want to do that to another mayor," TenHaken said.

How did we get here?

The Riverline District as a whole has been part of the public discussion since early 2023, and it's been pitched as a convention center site for a little over a year.

  • Meanwhile, part of the pitch for a new convention center includes repurposing the existing convention center and Sioux Falls Arena as indoor recreation space.

More background:

Why a convention center? A closer look at the work behind the Riverline District
A consultant report obtained by Sioux Falls Simplified shows more details on how the city went from discussing a sports stadium to a convention center at the Riverline District.
Sioux Falls SimplifiedMegan Raposa
Why downtown convention center talks will push city to decide Arena’s future
As the city eyes the possibility of a downtown convention center and repurposing of the existing convention center into indoor recreation space, there’s a question that remains: What happens to the Arena?
Sioux Falls SimplifiedMegan Raposa

The city formed a task force to oversee the purchase of the land as well as the timeline for bringing a decision about a convention center to a public vote, something that's now looking to be further into the future than previously discussed.

"I don't see a scenario where there's an election on anything that happens (in Riverline) during the PTH administration," TenHaken said, referring to his limited tenure in office.

Where do things stand today?

The options to fund a new convention center are becoming increasingly limited.

  • State lawmakers rejected a bill that would allow cities to raise sales tax by up to one cent to finance development projects – essentially saying no to one of the ways Sioux Falls could've paid for the new convention center.
  • Meanwhile, property tax relief plans moving through the state legislature would potentially mean up to a $10 million/year cut to the City of Sioux Falls' revenue, TenHaken said.
  • And, to top it off, the city's sales tax growth has been slower than projected, meaning the city ended the year in the red.

So, with all of those obstacles in place, TenHaken is looking to a third-party organization to take over shepherding the Riverline District vision forward.

"It can’t be led by a government," TenHaken said. "It can’t be led by 10 volunteers who get together once a month. It's got to be led by these entities that do this for a living."

The committee also discussed similar projects in other cities, including a convention center in Grand Rapids, Michigan that came together with the help of a nonprofit economic development organization called Grand Action 2.0.

What happens next?

Next, Sioux Falls is looking to find its own local version of Grand Action 2.0.

Sioux Falls Development Foundation President Bob Mundt – also a Riverline Steering Committee member – said he's willing to ask his board and the Forward Sioux Falls crew if they can help make this happen.

"The communities that are successful are the ones that have a public entity that bridges elections," Mundt said. "We really don't have that here."

As for the steering committee, the group agreed to pause regular meetings until they get the final report from consultants on potential financing methods and design options for the proposed convention center.

  • Then, it'll likely be a matter of finding a way to pass the baton to whatever group emerges to take the lead on moving this project forward.