Simplified: Sioux Falls' comprehensive plan for the next quarter-century lays out some big goals, from managing continued growth to addressing housing needs to bringing more public art to town. And for the first time, the city's long-range plan is also looking at getting more granular – that is, focusing on neighborhood-level strategic planning for the future. Here's what it means.

Why it matters

  • City leaders shared the first public look at the Shape Sioux Falls 2050 comprehensive plan Tuesday afternoon, and the 146-page document (far more concise than the last plan a decade prior) has a more nuanced look at future-planning than in previous iterations.
  • In addition to getting more granular, the plan also includes goals under six main focus areas as identified through a two-year process to seek community feedback and put the plan together. Those include housing, transportation, conservation, infrastructure, economic development and community services.
  • The plan – which will require City Council approval – emphasizes the need to break the city down into smaller parts and look at the needs for each segment of town individually rather than prescribing the same goals across the board. It also encourages the city to work directly with neighborhood associations to establish neighborhood-level "action plans" for future improvements.
"This is where it could be definitely property owner- or resident-driven with city staff guidance … really setting a strategy on, 'This is a wonderful opportunity in this neighborhood. We want to do this,'" said Chris Shires, principal at Confluence, the company contracted to help the city put the plan together.

Tell me more

The city spent about two years putting this Shape 2050 plan together, including 18 months of public engagement.

  • This plan is also, in a way, a full-circle moment for the city. The very first comprehensive plan in Sioux Falls was written in 1950, Planning Director Jeff Eckhoff said, which means at the end of this current plan, the city will have completed a century of high-level planning.
"The crux of it is we want people to be successful whether they own a home or whether they own a business," Eckhoff said, noting that this type of planning makes sure the infrastructure is in place for the city to run smoothly – from street planning to land-use, etc.

What's in the plan?

Quite a bit. It's comprehensive, after all.

It includes some history, community demographic data and essentially an overall look at how land in the city is used today and how it might be used in the future.

The final chapter also includes several specific action items based on the six focus areas. Here's a quick look at some of those action steps: (you can see the full list starting on page 140 in this document.)

Housing and Neighborhoods

  • Adopt and implement neighborhood action plans
  • Review zoning ordinances to make sure neighborhoods can support a variety of housing types
  • Monitor short-term rentals and potential impacts on housing supply

Community Services and Public Health

  • Expand street outreach teams and develop a "Homelessness Master Plan"
  • Support innovative solutions to address childcare needs within the community
  • Create incentives for private property owners to incorporate public art into development projects
  • Identify grants and public funding to support the arts

Transportation and Mobility

  • Consolidate Bicycle Plan and Pedestrian Plan into one thing
  • Coordinate land use and transportation planning to encourage redevelopment of underutilized areas

Conservation and Resiliency

  • Study and adopt a tree canopy maintenance plan
  • Promote naturally resilient landscapes and prioritize native plant species
  • Monitor climate readiness (i.e. how able is the city to get services back online after a major weather event)

Infrastructure and Public Space

  • Balance preservation with growth
  • Look at subdivision standards and evaluate ways to get open space into subdivision design

Economic Development

What happens next?

The Shape Sioux Falls 2050 plan now moves to the Planning Commission for approval Wednesday afternoon. If approved, it'll go to the City Council in February for final approval.