Happy Friday! Megan here.
First things first: This issue is brought to you by BINfluencer.
- BINfluencer is the nonprofit arm of Millennium Recycling, and a community resource for all of your recycling questions. To celebrate Earth Month, they're giving away a $250 gift card to the Washington Pavilion to one lucky winner who finds the secret code. Learn more and enter here.
Weather check: Warm-y and stormy
🎉 Three cheers for local news! Local News Day yesterday was so great. I got to see so many of my local news friends. Mayor Paul TenHaken signed a proclamation making it official, and it was so sweet reading the kind messages many of you shared with me about what Sioux Falls Simplified (and local news in general) means to you.
- Also, all of those kind words and shares helped! I saw 30 new members join this email list yesterday – and welcome, to everyone who's new! I hope this newsletter helps you feel smarter about Sioux Falls.
- There's also still time to buy in as a Local News CHAMPION and help ensure this little-news-outlet-that-could is here to stay.
This week, in preparation for the release of our comprehensive election coverage next week, I wanted to share a little teaser with you all. Plus, catch a ton of Super Simplified stories to take you into the weekend.
And now, news:
2026 CITY ELECTION
We asked each mayoral and council candidate their favorite restaurant because ... why not?
Simplified: Sioux Falls' city government is going to look a lot different in the coming months with a new mayor and as many as four new City Council members. Sioux Falls Simplified sat down with nearly all of the candidates to talk through a lot of very important policy issues – and one kinda silly one.
You know we wanna start with the silly one
Oh 100%. But first, there's a little bit of a method to the madness.
- Sioux Falls has a very, very strong restaurant culture. Keloland just last year reported that there's one restaurant for every 246 people who live in this city. And there are, like, 220,000 people in this city.
So, asking about a favorite restaurant felt like an appropriate local "vibe check," as the kids say. This led Sioux Falls Simplified to start every candidate interview with the following question:
"If you could eat at just one Sioux Falls restaurant for the rest of the year, which restaurant are you choosing?"
Here's how all of the candidates answered.
SIMPLIFIED PRESENTS
Give your inner child a night out with Museum After Dark
This is a paid piece from the Children's Museum of South Dakota.
Simplified: The Children's Museum of South Dakota is going child-free for one night only with a unique event to give the grown ups a chance to play and explore. Here's what you need to know about the Friday, April 17 Museum After Dark event.
Why it matters
- The event started as a way to give adults a chance to enjoy the museum – whether or not they have kids. For parents, it can be a way to play without the stress of chasing toddlers, and for any adult, it's an excuse to channel their inner child and explore their playful side.
- Museum After Dark will include access to the full children's museum, from the cloud climber to the grocery store to the agriculture exhibits. It'll also bring out special activities like a life-size game of "Hungry, Hungry Hippos" with balls and scooters.
- The adults-only event will also feature a partnership with Wooden Legs Brewing, who will be on-site slinging beers. The museum has also partnered with local hotels to offer discounts for folks who want to road trip up to Brookings and make a night of it.
"As we grow up, and when our childhood passes us, we think we can't go there again," said Kerrie Vilhauer, director of marketing and communications for the Children's Museum. "I think the important thing about growing up is you can always be a child. This is a special way to be able to do that."
Tell me more about the event
TL;DR
Super Simplified Stories
- Meet the businesses empowering founders.* Strong businesses are not built in isolation. Startup Sioux Falls' Preferred Partner Network brings together people who are committed to helping founders navigate challenges, make better decisions, and grow with confidence. This network allows us to connect founders to trusted expertise when it matters most. Explore the network and connect with Startup if you see a place to plug in and support the journey of local founders. And don't just take it from Startup – hear it from the partners themselves:
- “The mission of Startup Sioux Falls strongly aligns with what we are committed to at The First National Bank in Sioux Falls — building successful relationships, long-term thinking, and local impact — which is why we’re proud to support their work," said the First National Bank team
- "We’ve built MarketBeat in Sioux Falls, and we’ve seen how much a strong startup community shapes a city," said the MarketBeat team. "The people willing to take the risk and build something new are the ones driving our city forward. Supporting those founders is one way we are proud to give back to the place and people who’ve supported us along the way."
- Oh, and one more quick thing about Startup: if you're on LinkedIn, you may have seen this already, but Sioux Falls was recently voted as champion of the "Midwest Madness" bracket, meaning our community beat out places like Omaha, Fargo, Minneapolis and more as the best startup ecosystem in the midwest. See the bracket here.
More Super Simplified Stories
- City shares housing update. The city this week shared an update on housing programs, including a reminder that the city housing division invested $8.1 million in the community last year. There are also a few programs available that provide financial assistance directly to low- and moderate-income households for repairs and replacements. You can learn more here about each of those programs – including income qualifications and how to apply.
- Harrisburg Library gets $10,000 grant. The Harrisburg Community Library was one of hundreds of small and rural libraries nationwide to receive a grant to support library accessibility. Library Director Cheyenne Chontos said the library will work with the community to decide how to spend the money, but likely will look at options to make the return box more accessible and add a curbside pick-up option.
- Chess, we can. A citywide chess tournament last month saw record attendance with 162 players from 40 different schools. The tournament was hosted by Chess4Life in partnership with the city parks and recreation department. Kids from kindergarten through 12th grade competed.
- It's restaurant week! Downtown Sioux Falls' annual restaurant week in which local restaurants show off their chops. Seventeen participating downtown restaurants will feature specialty dishes not normally available on their menus
*Denotes a paid partnership
PRICE PREDICTOR
Can you guess the sale price of this Sioux Falls home?
This is a sponsored segment from Destinie Marshall with Discovery Real Estate Co.
This spacious 5 bed, 4 bath home has nearly 5,000 square feet, plus an unfinished third level – featuring new quartz countertops throughout, new appliances, updated flooring, fresh paint, and a beautifully remodeled primary suite with tiled dual-head shower. Enjoy a large lower-level entertainment space, oversized three-stall garage, new driveway, and refreshed landscaping with a private wooded backdrop in northeast Sioux Falls.
Want to see your listing shared here? Email megan@sfsimplified.com.
THIS AND THAT
What I'm falling for this week:
ICYMI
More Simplified Stories
Megan Raposa
Megan Raposa
Megan Raposa
Thank you
Thank you to Sioux Falls Simplified sponsors, including SafeSplash Swim School, Wayne & Mary's Nutrition Center, Startup Sioux Falls, Encompass Mental Health, the Sioux Falls YMCA, EmBe, the Sioux Falls Development Foundation, Barre3 Sioux Falls, the Sioux Falls Zoo and Aquarium, the Washington Pavilion, The Premiere Playhouse, The Good Night Theatre Collective and the Sioux Metro Growth Alliance. When you support them, you're also supporting Sioux Falls Simplified.
Oh, by the way
Your feedback is extremely helpful – hit the reply button and send any news tips, typos, complaints, compliments or cups of coffee my way. ❤️
Special thanks to BINfluencer!
Don't miss your chance to win a $250 gift card to the Washington Pavilion, and be sure to check out the BINfluencer app anytime you're thinking to yourself, "Can I recycle this?" Learn more here.
