Dirt work underway at Brandon 90 Plaza site

By: 
Jill Meier, Journal editor

Jill Meier/BV Journal 

Hay was harvested from the 50-acre parcel of property, which is now being stripped and then mined for sand in preparation for the forthcoming Brandon 90 Plaza development. Two hotels, fast food restaurants, a bank, grocery store and more have tentatively committed to the development. Building may begin as soon as next spring. 

Darrell Viereck wants people to know that visible progress is being made on the planned Brandon 90 Plaza development. 

And with earth-moving machinery now in full action on the 50-acre parcel of land at the I-90 and Splitrock Boulevard intersection, Viereck said the land should be site-ready for construction by this fall.

“It’s going to happen,” said Viereck, who is the developer for the project that’s estimated to spur $50 to $70 million in potential tax base for the city. “It will be done by fall and we are thrilled and excited with everything.”

Visible work on the property could be seen last week when the first––and only––cutting of oats and alfalfa this growing season was harvested into 114 bales of hay. Sioux Falls-based Lidel Construction is presently stripping the black dirt before sand will be mined from the land and relocated to build up the development’s westside acres.

“All of the infrastructure will be done and by fall it will be ready to site-build on. It’s engineered-filled, so whoever comes in to build is not going to have worry about soil tests, EPA phase one, any of that. All of that stuff will be done,” said Viereck. “And that takes away six months of due diligence because it’s already in place.” 

It’s been four years since taking the project from concept to the development’s current status. “From day one, it just kept getting bigger and better,” Viereck said.

Two hotels tagged to an events center and restaurant are planned for the development’s east side. The hotels will both overlook a sand-bottom lake, about 17 acres in size that will be complimented by a one-mile walking/bike trail around its perimeter.

“Everything facing the lake is going to be pretty impressive,” Viereck said. 

The Brandon 90 Plaza is also expected to bring a second grocery store to the city. Both HyVee and Fareway have expressed an interest. HyVee, Viereck said, has also indicated they would want to have a convenience store.

Two fast-food restaurants, a bank, a strip mall that has interest from a dentist and fitness center and an upscale multi-screen movie theatre are probable.

“The (movie theater) is still interested but they haven’t recovered (from pandemic) yet. It’s something that we hope we get,” Viereck said. “There’s no doubt in my mind that we’ll have a strip mall just because of the smaller users. There’s a lot of outside money in South Dakota right now and people want to invest in Sioux Falls (area) real estate.”

With the bridge and on/off ramps replacement at the Brandon exit on tap for 2023, Viereck has been working closely with South Dakota’s Department of Transportation on right-of-way needs.

“I don’t want anything to hold up this project. We are going to deal with the DOT up front on all of the land they need for the on ramp so they don’t have to come back in and deal with individual owners down the road. That will all be done prior,” Viereck said, adding that about an acre of the property will be given up to the I-90 bridge reconstruction project. “It’s already been put off twice and now that they have it locked in, so we don’t want to screw that up.”

The DOT is also requiring a retaining wall to be constructed along with the west side of the property that backs up to Splitrock Boulevard/Highway 11. 

Viereck also assured that landscaping between the development and the residential neighborhood directly to the south will be addressed.

“The investors I’ve been dealing with are about quality,” he said. “They’re not penny pinchers and not trying to squeeze a dime out of everything. They want it done right.”

Viereck also offered praise to city administration, who he said, “have been so helpful.”

“It took effort on everyone’s part to get to where we’re at,” he said.

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