Sioux Falls metro area officially expands — into Minnesota - K101

July 15, 2024

The officially defined Sioux Falls metro area hasn’t just grown in population — it has expanded into Minnesota.

Following the 2020 Census, the U.S. Office of Management and Budget identified the Sioux Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area, or MSA, as a five-county area instead of a four-county one.

In addition to Minnehaha, Lincoln, McCook and Turner counties, the MSA now includes Rock County, Minnesota, bringing the Sioux Falls metro across state lines and adding just under 10,000 people to its population, for an estimated total next year of 315,000.

The federal government released the updated MSA information earlier this spring, said Jeff Schmitt, planning projects coordinator for the city of Sioux Falls.

“They look at what communities have a social and economic tie to the larger community,” he said.

To be considered a Metropolitan Statistical Areas, an MSA must have at least one urban area of 50,000 or more population, plus adjacent territory that has “a high degree of social and economic integration with the core as measured by commuting ties,” according to the Census Bureau.

Eighty-six percent of the country lives in an MSA.

But it’s new territory for Rock County, where Kyle Oldre has served as city administrator for more than 30 years.

“We’ve always considered Sioux Falls our regional center, our regional hub, and you knew as Sioux Falls continued to grow the ring would come out farther, and we happened to catch the ring now,” he said. “It’s good for us. It’s been collectively our primary business center for a long time, and this validates it through the Census Bureau.”

The distinction doesn’t surprise him, he said, as anecdotally there was “no question” the ties to Sioux Falls were strengthening as “a lot of our folks” drive to Sioux Falls daily.

“We’ve got people in Hills (Minnesota), and it’s actually quicker for them to get to Sioux Falls than it is to Luverne, so that’s how close it’s come. You get through south Brandon, and you’re in Sioux Falls. The distance between Valley Springs (South Dakota) and Beaver Creek (Minnesota) is a stone’s throw away, and they’ve exploded.”

So what does the newly defined MSA actually mean? Mostly, new data. For instance, labor market information such as unemployment is reported by MSA, “so then you always have to realize you’re also talking about Rock County,” Schmitt said. “You have to realize there are nuances.”

The state of South Dakota will begin incorporating Rock County into labor data in January.

Other government programs also can be administered by MSA.

Beyond that, the distinction reflects much of what’s already occurring among the area communities.

“It’s been on our radar since the news came out,” said Tyler Tordsen, president and CEO of Sioux Metro Growth Alliance.

“For years, it’s been the four-county area; however, it makes sense that our neighbors just over the border in Rock County and the Luverne area would take advantage of our growing metro in Sioux Falls — the airport, the businesses, the shopping, the experiences — so we certainly want to be good neighbors and find opportunities where it makes sense and work for the good of the region.”

It’s something Oldre welcomes, he said.

“If there’s a way we can get invited to the table to see if there’s something we can offer or assist with, we’re game,” he said. “We’re too small in Rock County not to work with partners, so given the opportunity we’d welcome it.”

While no one has determined what that collaboration could look like, “I do think there’s something to be said for strength in numbers,” Tordsen said. “Getting people in the same area to share best practices, good and bad.”

In Luverne, for example, the city population exceeded 5,000 for the first time in a few decades, Oldre said. “The city has worked hard in bringing in business and industry and had good success with Premium Minnesota Pork coming in with 450 employees, Lineage Logistics came in with 70 employees, so we’re seeing a shift,” he said.

“In many rural counties in Minnesota, the populations are shrinking, but I think because of the power of Sioux Falls we stay constant. We haven’t seen those big declines, we stay pretty flat, and we hope through time as Sioux Falls and the region continues to grow we’ll see more growth.”

While Rock County will figure into the city’s metro area growth, “it’s not like what’s happening in Lincoln County,” Schmitt said, comparing it more to the stable or slow growth of Turner County.

Still, the expanded MSA allows the metro area to reach half a million people in the next 25 years, according to the city’s projections.

Those figure into areas such as transportation planning, Schmitt said.

“We’re looking at commuting patterns for Rock and Moody (in South Dakota) and Lyon (in Iowa) now and in the next 50 years,” he said.

Regionally, there already has been collaboration around infrastructure, including the Lewis & Clark Regional Water System, which shows the benefit of working together, Oldre said.

“The state line is an imaginary thing when you think about it. There’s no chalk or fence to climb over, and yet we tend to act so differently when we’re really, really similar,” he said. “They always say, ‘Where are you from?’ I’ll say Luverne, and the easy answer is we’re 20 miles east of Sioux Falls. Then everyone knows where you’re at.”

News Source: SiouxFalls.Business with Jodi Schwan