May 25, 2023

This paid piece is sponsored by Sioux Metro Growth Alliance 

First, there were two houses built. Both sold. Then, four more started construction.

“And I think they’re all pre-sold. It’s going well,” said Steve Van Buskirk, director of land development for Van Buskirk Cos.

The Sioux Falls developer is bullish on Crooks, where its Heritage Pond development has experienced solid momentum. It ultimately will add 68 single-family and multifamily lots, along with open green spaces, walking trails and the main feature: Crooks’ first fishing pond.

“We just seem to be cruising right along,” Van Buskirk said.

That momentum is rippling throughout Sioux Falls metro-area communities as new residents are being drawn for a variety of reasons.

At Heritage Pond, recent sales include “someone coming off an acreage and getting into town, another wants to be near grandkids and moved from central South Dakota, and one was from in town,” Van Buskirk said.

“But it does seem like a lot of activity from outside of Crooks, which is why it’s growing. People are moving in from the outside, and they like it. It’s a small-town community, and it’s really fun to go up at night and see kids everywhere, playing basketball and riding bikes.”

It’s also five minutes from a Sioux Falls Walmart and 10 minutes from a slew of other development and employment options, he added.

“We have utilities in for another 15 to 20 lots, so when we get to a nice spot, we’ll have more streets up there,” he said. “It won’t take long to get more lots available. We’re taking a pause to see how summer goes, but I’m guessing we’ll be adding more this fall.”

Throughout the Sioux Falls metro area, the story of housing is a growing narrative.

“Nearly every community in the metro area either has residential development underway or is actively working toward that,” said Jesse Fonkert, president and CEO of Sioux Metro Growth Alliance. “We’ve seen an encouraging increase in public-private partnerships to make new housing opportunities a reality, and just as critically, we’re seeing strong demand from buyers as new homes and lots are made available.”

In Tea, there are at least five housing developments in various stages of construction. Serenity Park is offering everything from starter homes to senior living opportunities. The Boulder addition is in its final phase for midrange home lots. New single-family homes are filling in the Pinnacle Estates neighborhood on the east side, and there are a few midrange lots left on the west side in the Everett’s Place addition.

“Tea area is where we’ve built the most in the last few years,” said Brandon Hoyer, owner of BH Construction.

That began in the Heritage Lake development, “but we have no lots available in that neighborhood anymore,” he said. “It’s full.”

He now has several homes in process in the Ninemile Lake development, where more than two dozen lots are available centered around a manmade lake.

“We just opened these for sale last fall, and we’re already building seven homes out here, so it’s going real quick,” Hoyer said. “The appeal of this neighborhood is there’s nothing on the south side of Sioux Falls for lots available and nothing on the west side for people looking for custom homes with access close to Sioux Falls.”

Ninemile Lake will enjoy easy access to the future 85th Street interchange – plus it comes with the bonus of a 22-acre lake.

“So people get the feel of water and lake living. They’ll get their own beach, and there will be a neighborhood beach for people who aren’t on the water,” Hoyer said. “It’s good for kayaks and canoes and paddleboats.”

In Brandon, Van Buskirk Cos. is finishing work in the Bluffs subdivision and continuing to develop Stone Ridge Estates, including smaller lots for villa-style homes.

“In Brandon, we’ve opened up beautiful lots overlooking the Big Sioux River, and the interest is good,” Van Buskirk said. “We have acreage lots where you can see for miles, so that’s amazing, and people are buying lots. We had a bang-up year out there last year, so we’re basically almost developed out there.”

People are moving up from within Brandon as well as from out of town, he added.

“We’re getting more people that are looking on the east side of Sioux Falls and gravitating toward Brandon because of the quality of the lots,” Van Buskirk said. “And the connection is so easy with Veterans Parkway being there.”

Harrisburg counts nine residential developments in various stages of construction.

“Harrisburg is doing great as well,” Van Buskirk added. “It’s going to be a lot of autopilot growth down there because the south end of Sioux Falls continues to run out of sewer, so options are nonexistent. We’re seeing good activity there. We opened a bunch of lots last fall, and we’re waiting to see what the market brings.”

Elsewhere in the metro area, Centerville is developing 14 acres on the southwest side of town into Harvest Pointe, with 22 lots, mostly for single-family homes.

Grading started in April, and water and sewer infrastructure is being installed.

“Overall, we are running ahead of schedule,” said Jared Hybertson, community and economic development coordinator and the executive director of the Centerville Development Corp.

“Infrastructure is scheduled to be complete in mid-August, and we could see homes start to go up in the new development shortly after that.”

In the past two years, the community has averaged just one or two homes available at any given time. There’s currently one for sale in Centerville. Often, they sell by owner and don’t end up publicly listed, Hybertson said.

In addition to its new subdivision, the Development Corporation has four infill lots that can be marketed for homes or used for spec homebuilding.

“Demand is certainly much higher than our current housing stock can accommodate, and it’s very critical to add more housing in Centerville if we want to see our school and downtown survive. They’re doing pretty well now, but we know adding housing stock plays an important role in that continued success.”

Most recently, Salem Economic Development Corp. closed a deal to purchase 12 acres that used to include the Avantara Salem Nursing Home. It was destroyed in last year’s derecho and now is envisioned as a single-family housing development.

SEDC has an initial concept for the property, adding 35 new housing lots to the community when the development is complete.

“Salem is ready to welcome new residents, and we now have the land available for them to establish their roots in town,” Mayor Glenda Blindert said.

Located just 30 minutes from the fast-growing western edge of Sioux Falls and 30 minutes from Mitchell, Salem provides a unique opportunity to enjoy the culture of a small community with great school systems and easy access to larger communities.

With housing as a priority, the community raised over $250,000 to support SEDC in 2022.

“This development would not be possible without the financial support of our contributors over the past year. They stepped up for Salem,” said Jeremy Grady, SEDC board president.

Filling the house gap

The 2023 Sioux Metro Growth Alliance Growth Summit will focus on filling the housing gap. It will be held Sept. 20-21 in Brandon and is designed to give attendees an opportunity to dig deep into the underlying causes of regional housing needs, explore practical solutions and spark action steps regardless of what stage in readiness or size of the community.

Regional and local experts will share their insights and give community leaders the groundwork to move the needle forward on filling the housing gap in the Sioux Falls metro area.

Click here to learn more and register.