Two retail stores now open as Steel District nears completion

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) – If you’ve visited the Levitt or Falls Park recently, you’ve probably noticed all of the progress happening in the Steel District development.

It’s been a few years in the making, but the finish line for construction at the Steel District is inching closer and closer.

“We are technically turning over the hotel, which is the last piece, to Canopy and the management team on October 4th,” said Chris Thorkelson, President and CEO of Lloyd Companies. “They open, roughly, November 15 and construction guys need to be out of here.”

In the meantime, office spaces are filling up, residential tenants are moving in , Brioux Falls is serving coffee and now there’s some shopping opportunities open to the public.

“We got Alcove and Pasque Boutique right over here,” Thorkelson said. “They just recently opened up and we’re excited to have them and more retail on the way.”

Pasque Boutique has officially been open for a week now. Owner Alicia Engelking says this location is everything she always dreamed of for a storefront.

“I wanted it to be something that was very walkable, people could come,” Engelking said. “And I wanted it to be like a destination. I didn’t want it to just be, ‘we’re coming to shop.’ I wanted it to be a part of a whole experience. I felt like the Steel District kind of checked all those requirements.”

She’s excited for the rest of the Steel District to open up.

“I think that once everything is done, it’ll be just a wonderful place to come and spend time,” Engelking said.

Thorkelson says it’s all part of a beautiful future for downtown Sioux Falls.

“And now to see, you know, behind me we’ve got Cherapa in the background and then behind us here is the landing and part of the Parks Department and extension of the River Greenway,” he said. “Everything that’s going to the north with Jacobsen Plaza, we’ve got the Steel District here, we’ve got the Levitt right back over there. It’s simply remarkable to see what it is that people have done as far as their investment, overall, into downtown in all parts.”

Next month, three restaurants are set to open in the Steel District. And in Monday’s Your Money Matters we’ll take a look inside the restaurants and tell you what you can expect.

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