This is a paid piece from the Sioux Metro Growth Alliance.

Simplified: For Matthew Larson, working as Dell Rapids' new community development director isn't just about growing his community. It's also about creating the kind of place where his children will want to come home to and build their own lives someday. Larson sat down with Sioux Falls Simplified to talk about his new role and the opportunities for economic development in Dell Rapids.

Answers are edited for length and clarity.

Let’s start by getting to know you a little bit. Tell us about your background and what brought you to this new role.

My wife and I moved to Dell Rapids about 20 years ago, shortly after we graduated college. Dell Rapids was kind of in the middle for us – I was working in Madison, and she was working in Sioux Falls.

I spent 19 years working in computer science, and last fall took a position as executive director of the Dell Rapids Chamber of Commerce. I've also owned Big Sioux Media – a local sports network – for 14 years.

I was interested in helping businesses really thrive because local businesses give so much to the community.

Late this summer, the position opened up here at the city. I thought that was an opportunity for me to still continue to help businesses succeed here, but then also take it a step further and help the community and thrive through bringing in more businesses through economic development.

What does a community development director do, exactly?

I'm still learning – I've only been in this role for a couple of months.

I'll be helping the Dell Rapids Economic Development Corporation, helping keep them organized, keep their group running, do research for them.

• Their board is made up of business owners here in town and folks who have full-time jobs themselves, which means they can't always take the time to show prospective businesses around. That's where I can help.

Being under the umbrella of the city, as well, I've learned a lot of planning and zoning ordinances too.

• Anything that you can think of to help a smaller community run ... I'll help them.

What are the goals for economic development in Dells right now?

Right now we've got a good drive of trying to add some new businesses into our community. There's some looking at westward expansion ... we've got that stretch of highway that runs from the interstate here into town – is that an opportunity to grow in that direction?

We've got the industrial park in the south end of our community that has seen some development but I do know there's some open spaces there as well. That's also an area that is of interest.

With that, too, we don't want to lose sight of our downtown. There's some interest in making sure that we don't lose our historic downtown ... there's some energy as well to make sure that's a thriving place and a place people want to go to and visit.

Housing is kind of an issue here in town as well. That's going to be something we're looking at as well to how can we grow the housing market to where it's affordable.

How does your work intersect with the work the Sioux Metro Growth Alliance is doing on a regional scale?

They're a big help to communities like us – smaller communities around the Sioux Falls area.

They will hear of different prospective businesses, or different folks that want to start something up. They come with some criteria of what they're looking for, and then say, "Do you have something in your community that might be a good fit for this?"

• They've also been willing to help with any sort of questions that we have and any development questions we've had with the board.

They've been pretty instrumental with the new Schmitz Custom Meats processing plant that's being built right now in Dell Rapids.

Anything else you want folks to know about you?

Our two older boys have graduated from Dell Rapids High School, and we have a third son in fifth grade.

Dell Rapids has been a great community, and the community as a whole has been supportive of what we've done.

• It's been a home to us, even though we didn't grow up here.

We don't have plans of ever wanting to leave the community, so we're kind of in the mindset that we want to make this a community that our kids want to come back to – that they want to raise a family here.

That's really what my drive is for Dell Rapids – showcase that we've got everything here. You don't have to go to a bigger city to find the job that your'e looking for. We're working to keep our businesses growing and thriving and make this community better for the next generation.