Sioux Falls Leaders Call for Public Input on New Convention Center

An open house on Thursday night aims to restart public talks on building a new convention center in Sioux Falls, Dakota News Now reported.

The current facility opened in 1996, and the city believes the community has outgrown the space. Past momentum stalled last year when plans for a downtown Riverline District site were put on hold. Now, Experience Sioux Falls and Forward Sioux Falls—a partnership between the Greater Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce and the Sioux Falls Development Foundation—are pushing the initiative back into the spotlight.

Experience Sioux Falls CEO Teri Schmidt pointed to the substantial economic footprint left by out-of-town guests. Visitor spending generated over $400 million in economic benefit for the city in 2025.

“It creates more sales tax. It creates more jobs. It creates more business for our community. If people from fifty miles outside of Sioux Falls can come in here and spend their hard-earned money because they’re attending something in our town, that makes us as a community more economically strong.”

Schmidt told Dakota News Now.

Sioux Falls Leaders Call for Public Input on New Convention Center

While the existing convention center will remain operational, Schmidt emphasized that the venue is not big enough. Between 2024 and 2025, the city lost 325 measurable events.

“As well as it has done, it’s not big enough anymore.”

Schmidt told Dakota News Now, adding that regional and national organizers frequently turn down Sioux Falls because the city lacks adequate space or dates.

Finding a fresh home for the facility remains a central hurdle. The Riverline District is considered highly unlikely, though a proposed Sanford district at the current Smithfield site remains a possibility for the future. Even so, organizers maintain that downtown is the best area.

Downtown Sioux Falls, Inc. CEO Brandon Hanson stressed that convention attendees heavily prioritize walkability.

Local organizations working to bring new convention center to Sioux Falls — Dakota News Now

“The most walkable place in our community is downtown.”

Hanson told Dakota News Now.

“The people who attend conventions, the people who are putting on conventions, are asking for, ‘Can we have a restaurant outside or attached or part of the facility where we’re coming to your community?’”

Thursday’s gathering serves as an idea-sharing session rather than the unveiling of blueprints or specific site selections. Schmidt noted,

“Infusing downtown with 1400 people on a Tuesday would be absolutely game-changing.”

However, Schmidt said that this is a time for ideas, not a concrete plan.

Organizers want the public to have input every step of the way, with Schmidt stating,

“The sky’s the limit right now.”

Schmidt added,

“We’re only talking about the need right now, and we need the community to come together with us to be able to determine the best everything for a new convention center.”

Hanson said,

“Doing that with the public means they’re going to have ownership of it.”