June 14, 2026
I'm sure there are more than three.
But there's something to the whole “rule of three,†so let's stick with it.
Three stories we ran in our digital publications this week that carry storylines which didn't necessarily emerge naturally in the frontline version of my reporting.
They're worth lifting up anyway.
First was an announcement from Sanford Health about a new $40 million building that will be built on the campus Sanford USD Medical Center, focused on dermatology and plastic surgery.
It's the latest in a series of high-dollar investments Sanford is making on this central Sioux Falls campus, both in response to patient volumes and in anticipation of our region's continued growth — along with the future relocation USD School of Medicine's M.D. program.
The words to hone in on here are “central Sioux Falls.â€
As a community, we've become accustomed to Sanford Health, Avera Health and the Veterans Administration continuing to enhance their campuses in the core of our city.
I don't think we'll ever fully understand what this has meant for neighborhood stabilization — from the residential base to nearby commercial and to downtown, which sits just a short drive from both.
If you removed any of those campuses and rebuilt them in an outlaying area or adjacent to an interstate, part of Sioux Falls would be hollowed out. The thousands of workers and visitors who by extension patronize the core of our city would be gone.
It's less than ideal from a development standpoint for the organizations to continue to do this. It involves property acquisition, vertical building and unique parking considerations. They continue to do it anyway, and our community is stronger for it.
Going forward, both Sanford and Avera can serve as incredible anchors were the city to bring forward a broader vision for redevelopment along Minnesota and Cliff avenues. That opportunity should not go untapped. Nor should another one we covered this past week — the chance to acquire the LifeScape campus in central Sioux Falls. I am hopeful someone emerges with the creativity and wherewithal to leverage it.
The second story worth some extra context took me weeks to pull together, because I knew it would be a stronger piece if we could put a face to it.
But finding someone who had experienced homelessness and was willing to talk about the move into more permanent housing isn't easy.
Thanks to Sioux Falls Housing, I spoke with Robin Bieber for this story about a way our community slowly is moving people out of homelessness.
Her story stuck with me — and started with job loss. Bieber worked at factory in Howard, S.D., making the same viral Pokemon cards that have Sioux Falls fans continually lined up outside local stores.
But when the company shifted manufacturing out of South Dakota, she struggled to find something new and ended up unable to afford housing and staying at the Bishop Dudley Hospitality House.
Because Sioux Falls Housing has taken a new approach with some of its federally funded housing vouchers, Bieber now has an apartment just outside downtown along with the support from caseworkers to help her hopefully remain there.
The new offer of vouchers started because Larissa Deedrich, executive director of Sioux Falls Housing, had utilized the approach in other communities and suggested it to her board.
They're starting with a few dozen vouchers and intentionally offering them to people they feel will have success in permanent in housing — in addition to case management.
It's not a complete solution for a lot of reasons, including because there are 2,000 people actively waiting to access the vouchers as a way to help them remain in housing. But it provides a sort of initial proof of concept and perhaps template were the community to decide to supplement federal funding with additional dollars from some other source.
The third story worth another mention is at the Sioux Falls Zoo & Aquarium, where CEO Becky Dewitz reported this week that the organization is within about $3 million of fundraising in order to begin construction on the new aquarium on the campus of the Great Plains Zoo. Once that is raised, the total will reach $50 million and Denny Sanford will provide an additional $10 million.
The overall goal is $73 million, which will also support the new Joe H. Floyd Education Center.
The fact that the zoo will be paying cash for these generational improvements — raised privately — is remarkable for a community of our size. There literally are no public dollars going into this, even though a case could have been made for them. At the same time, our business community continues to give generously to so many social services needs, to meet or exceed our annual Sioux Empire United Way goal and to surpass our five-year Forward Sioux Falls economic and workforce development.
When the zoo requests funding in the next city capital improvement program to support an enhanced habitat for its giraffes, including more opportunities for the public to pay to feed them, it deserves strong consideration. This organization has shown the positive operating trajectory, immense community support and level of capable leadership to warrant public investment to come alongside all the private dollars.
Three stories, three underlying storylines and a reminder that sometimes the first story is just the start of a story.
