Aug. 29, 2019

This paid piece is sponsored by the Minnehaha County Economic Development Association.

A quick trip north and east of Sioux Falls to Brandon reveals some little-known new additions and attractions.

The Paisley Pod 

Brandon’s newest boutique literally rolled into town.

The Paisley Pod began as a mobile boutique in 2015, making appearances at special events across the area.

“I always had the dream of having a storefront so I could see people and serve more people and be local,” owner Chrystal Rothenberger said.

She opened in June in a newer retail center at 112 E. Holly Blvd. that includes Scooter’s Coffee.

“I’ve been able to basically quadruple my inventory,” she said.

“A lot of pieces are versatile, so you can wear them to work and throw on a pair of jeans and still look super cute for night.”

The boutique serves women mainly from their 20s through their 60s. And while style preferences might change, the store’s mission is consistent: to help women show their inner confidence.

“When you come into the store, I want you to feel super welcome. I want it to be more than a clothing boutique to buy your clothes. I want you to come because of the way you feel when you come here and the way we make you feel.”

She also has bought in on Brandon – there was never a question where her mobile boutique would turn into a storefront.

“Brandon is my place,” Rothenberger said. “Brandon is where I am from, and our business and retail community has really blossomed. People here want to shop locally, and they want to shop small businesses, and we have a lot of places to go and eat, and you can spend your entire day here if you wanted to.”

The mobile boutique, named Betty, will still make occasional appearances at area events.

The boutique’s starting hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday.

212 The Boiling Point

A former bartender has become a business owner at 212 The Boiling Point at 328 S. Splitrock Blvd.

Kyle Thill worked at the business at one point and then was a bartender at Wileys in Sioux Falls before buying the Brandon business from Mark Fonder at the beginning of the year.

“I like the town of Brandon,” Thill said. “A lot of my regulars are still the same regulars (from when I worked there). I like the atmosphere and small-town feel. A lot of people come together and have fun.”

The bar and grill opened 12 years ago with a racing theme because of the former Huset’s Speedway nearby. The idea was to give fans and drivers a place to go before or after the races.

“And now we try to show as many races as we can, so it’s kind of nice,” Thill said. “It’s a good vibe.”

Since becoming owner, he redid the menu with a focus on broadening the options, adding more gluten-free choices. The staples includes burgers, pizza and a popular wonton appetizer.

There also are tons of daily specials and happy hour deals.

“We want to get you in and get you out,” he said. “So everything on the menu is quick, pretty much.”

As he expands the business, he’d like to begin offering more events but for now has a popular weekly fundraiser from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursdays called Catch the King to raise money for keeping kids in outdoor sports.

Hours are 11 a.m. to midnight Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday.

Aspen Park Raceway

And finally, the racing theme takes on a new twist at one of Brandon’s better-kept secrets. Aspen Park Raceway is a labor of love for Sioux Falls contractor Gil Haugan Jr. and his son, Gil Haugan III, who was in his early teens when they started racing remote control cars on a Sioux Falls parking lot.

After traveling around to race them on weekends, they decided “it would be nice to have something here at home to race on weekends and get the neighbor kids to come out,” Gil Haugan Jr. said.

“The sport, I would say, is kids at 13 to adults in their 60s.”

A Brandon native who still lives there, he worked with the city to create the raceway at Aspen Park, not far from the community pool. It’s now in its ninth season.

“They were willing to give us a nice chunk of ground to work with, and as long as I provided the water and power and fence and the dirt, they were willing to do a little mowing,” Haugan said.

The off-road track offers an average 40-second lap time with jumps and bumps, and an adjacent oval track allows sprint car racing.

An expert comes in annually from California to redo the track.

“It’s a whole new layout,” Haugan said. “We haul in a dozen loads of fresh clay, provide equipment, and he builds the tracks a whole new layout – jumps, bumps, whatever is hot for the season.”

It’s open anytime the park is and free for the public to use. Sundays during the summer are race days, drawing as many as 100 cars. And while many are regulars, anyone is welcome to race.

“If they show up with a car that doesn’t quite fit or whatever, it doesn’t matter,” Haugan said. “We’ll find a spot for them to race.”

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