Thrive tells Yankton City Commission it is current on taxes, defends use of TIFs and housing work

A representative of Yankton Thrive told the Yankton City Commission on Aug. 26, 2025, that the nonprofit is up to date on taxes for most of the properties it owns, has completed infrastructure tied to a Housing Infrastructure Financing (HIF) grant and supports the city’s use of tax increment financing (TIF) and sales tax rebates as economic tools.

Thrive’s representative said the organization owns 104 parcels and that, by state law, some development companies may hold tax-exempt property up to specified values. “We are a 100% up to date on the taxes on all of our properties,” the representative said, adding that 97 of the 104 parcels have all taxes paid in full, six are tax-exempt because they lie outside a tax increment district (TID), and one data center’s taxes are paid by the tenant.

The statement came during a presentation in which the speaker responded to criticisms raised during an earlier City Commission budget meeting on Aug. 18 and a recent local news item. The representative also told commissioners that a $460,000 allocation from the city represents about 24% of Thrive’s operating budget and primarily supports tourism operations and part of economic development efforts.

Why it matters: TIFs, municipal support and nonprofit activity intersect with city revenues, housing availability and local development policy. Commissioners asked how TIFs affect the city’s regular property tax receipts and who pays for street and maintenance costs tied to new development.

Parcels, tax status and statutes Thrive’s speaker cited two state statutes by number when explaining tax exemptions and inspection rights: “state law 10-4-8.1 and 10-4-15” (regarding property exemptions for development entities) and “state law 47-24-2” (inspection of corporate records). The speaker said Thrive is following those statutes and its bylaws and that members — defined by the organization’s membership records — can inspect certain documents with appropriate notice.

On ownership specifics, the representative said Garden Estates includes 89 parcels and that seven additional parcels are available for development, totaling 104 parcels owned by Thrive. The representative said the HIF-funded infrastructure related to the River City Flats housing project has been installed and accepted under the grant terms.

HIF grant and River City Flats Thrive said it received Housing Infrastructure Financing (HIF) grant dollars from South Dakota Housing to finance infrastructure for a housing project. Per the representative, the HIF grant required the construction of 126 rental units tied to a $1,260,000 award; the representative said the grant funds were used only for infrastructure and that those infrastructure elements have been installed and accepted.

The representative said the River City Flats project has been paused by that project’s own board in part because several other apartment complexes recently opened and because the community was adjusting after the closure of American Foods, which the speaker said affected several hundred local workers.

Compensation, bidding and minutes Addressing compensation questions, the speaker said Thrive files a public Form 990 and that the reported 2024 salary for the speaker was $131,675. The representative said Thrive does not provide $80,000 in benefits and that their benefits match other employees, except they do not participate in Thrive’s health-care plan.

On procurement and bids, Thrive said it uses members for services where appropriate and is not legally required to run public competitive bids as a nonprofit; when multiple members provide a service, the organization sometimes solicits bids from them.

On access to minutes and records, the representative said the bylaws permit members to inspect an approved application for tax-exempt status with the IRS and three years of tax returns, and cited state law 47-24-2. The representative said Thrive’s membership tracking designates a primary person for each member organization; that primary person — not all employees of a member organization — is the individual entitled to request those records. The speaker said the board signs nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) and that a requesting member would be asked to sign an NDA.

TIFs and city revenue: exchange with commissioners Commissioner Conklin questioned how property taxes generated in a TID are allocated and whether the city bears maintenance costs when incremental taxes are committed to pay infrastructure debt. The commissioner said, in part, “For 20 years, they said they can pay it off earlier. Really doesn't happen that often. 20 years. But now who gets to pay for all the new roads, the maintenance, the clearing, and all that? The city does.”

Thrive’s representative explained that a base value is set when a TID is created and that taxes on that base continue to go to the taxing entities (for example, school, city, county). The representative said the increment above that base is used to pay debt associated with infrastructure built for the public good and that, in areas that were previously agricultural land with low assessed value, the new incremental property tax helps repay infrastructure costs over the TID period.

Next steps and context The Thrive representative said the organization supports use of TIF and sales-tax-rebate tools and offered to return to the commission for a more detailed explanation. The speaker also encouraged greater community engagement with Thrive projects and said the nonprofit raises capital through members, investors and grants to fund much of its work.

No formal vote or commission action on Thrive’s matters was recorded in the transcript excerpt. Commissioners continued to ask questions about tax flows from TIDs and about the scope and timing of housing projects.