Sioux Falls council approves downtown ambassador subsidy and housing case‑management contract amid public criticism of spending

The Sioux Falls City Council on Tuesday approved two contracts intended to support downtown outreach and housing case management, voting unanimously on both measures amid heated public comment questioning the city’s spending priorities.

The council approved a subsidy agreement with Downtown Sioux Falls Inc. to add and train two ambassadors for downtown outreach and services, and it approved a subrecipient agreement under the Bright Futures program with Interlakes Community Action Partnership to provide case management tied to tenant‑based rental assistance. Both motions passed 7-0.

The ambassador program, Downtown Sioux Falls Inc.’s long‑running downtown outreach effort, is paid in part by a Business Improvement District and supplemented by this city subsidy, Brandon Hansen, CEO of Downtown Sioux Falls Inc., told the council. "The ambassadors...are the hands and feet of downtown, the business community," Hansen said, describing their role in homeless outreach and coordination with social‑service providers, the city and police. He said ambassadors also perform trash service, holiday lights and other maintenance tasks and that recent investments have focused on technology, training and additional staff.

Logan Penfield of Planning and Development Services explained that the Bright Futures contract with Interlakes is funded with Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) dollars and provides case management for families receiving tenant‑based rental assistance. "This funding source is Community Development Block Grant funds," Penfield said. He said the combined case‑management and tenant assistance programs helped 133 families and about 500 individuals through these funding sources last year.

Public comment before the votes was strongly critical of using city funds for downtown. One resident argued that downtown is wealthy and should fund its own services rather than relying on taxpayer dollars, saying the subsidy of "a hundred something thousand dollars" did not reduce police calls for service. Another longtime downtown worker, Catherine Bridal, criticized how services and nonprofit providers operate downtown and urged the council to prioritize other needs. Tim Stanger, a different speaker from the public, said neighborhoods outside downtown receive less city investment and questioned why similar funds were not directed there.

Councilor Veil introduced the two pulled consent items for discussion. Councilor Sale moved approval of the Downtown Sioux Falls subsidy agreement; Councilor Spellerberg seconded. After discussion and public comment the council voted: Barranco — yes; Bassey — yes; Cole — yes; McCuris — yes; Sigourney/Sighetty — yes; Sale — yes; Spellerberg/Spellberg — yes. The Bright Futures subrecipient agreement was moved by Sale and seconded by Cole and carried by the same recorded 7‑0 tally.

The meeting also included several other routine approvals: a resolution vacating a 66‑foot statutory right‑of‑way related to development plans on the north side of Arrowhead Parkway (approved 7‑0 after a brief presentation by City Engineering), and a resolution confirming appointments to several citizen boards, including the Falls Community Health Center Governing Board and the Housing and Redevelopment Commission (approved 7‑0).

Speakers at the meeting repeatedly pressed the council to explain how the downtown subsidy would affect public‑safety call volumes and to prioritize neighborhood cleanup and services outside the downtown core. Council members who supported the subsidy emphasized the ambassadors’ outreach role and training investments; proponents urged that the subsidy helps "right‑size" services while BID funding adjusts to district growth.

The council took no action to change the amount of either contract during the meeting and approved the agreements as presented. Implementation steps and contract execution were not detailed on the record at the meeting.