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Council approves temporary downtown parking lease and Downtown BID assessment
Summary
Council approved a five‑year $1‑per‑year lease for a temporary Sherappa parking lot and unanimously approved a Downtown Business Improvement District assessment totaling $508,632 to fund ambassador and beautification services, while raising questions about long‑term parking expectations and program staffing.
The Sioux Falls City Council approved two downtown items on Sept. 2: (1) a five‑year lease for a temporary parking lot between the Sherappa development and the railroad, and (2) a cumulative Downtown Business Improvement District (BID) assessment to fund the downtown Ambassador program.
Dustin Powers of Planning and Development explained the Sherappa lease: Sherappa II QOZB LLC would construct and maintain the lot, which would be leased at $1 per year to the developer for five years; the lessee covers improvements and maintenance, weekday leased parking hours would run approximately between 6 a.m. and 5 p.m., and outside those hours the lot would be public parking. The agreement contains termination provisions permitting the city to exit with 12 months’ notice in years 1–3 and six months’ notice in years 4–5 to preserve redevelopment flexibility.
Councilors pressed staff on the financial tradeoffs and community expectations if temporary parking is later removed for redevelopment. Staff estimated buildout costs north of $200,000 and said the private partner was making the investment so the city would not front that cost.
Separately, Dustin Powers and Brandon Hansen (CEO of Downtown Sioux Falls Incorporated) presented the BID assessment — a cumulative levy of $508,632.35 across 235 properties — to support downtown maintenance, an ambassador team and beautification services. Hansen described the ambassador program’s duties: trash removal, graffiti abatement, seasonal landscaping, power washing sidewalks, outreach to the unhoused population to connect people to services, and visitor wayfinding. He told council the BID funds represented roughly 40% of the ambassador program’s budget and that staffing would reduce from seven ambassadors to six due to a loss of federal supplement funding.
The council approved both items unanimously. Several public commenters criticized perceived downtown prioritization and objected to gifts of surplus equipment to downtown organizations, saying other neighborhoods receive fewer resources.
Next steps: City staff will execute the lease and monitor parking availability; Downtown Sioux Falls Incorporated will implement the ambassador budget under the new assessment and report to council as needed.
