City Council approves budget with changes to pool, library, grant funds

Mayor Paul TenHaken’s proposed 2026 budget has passed with a unanimous City Council vote — and some changes after the administration brought forward cuts to manage expected decreases in revenue.

The original proposed budget totaled $775.9 million for the general operating fund, capital improvement program and enterprise funds, or those supported by user fees.

The 2025 budget was $773.2 million.

When he presented the budget this summer, TenHaken called it the most difficult one of his eight years in office, balancing the needs of continued growth, softening sales tax revenue and property tax revenue reduction.

The general operating fund, which is the part of the budget hit by the revenue drop, will be $253.2 million, compared with $248 million last year.

Sales tax continues to come in below projections, and “it’s going to be, I would say, another challenging 12 to 18 months unless there’s a major rebound that comes,” director of finance Shawn Pritchett said.

The City Council approved the budget with amendments, including changes that dialed back some proposed cuts.

Reinstated library hours

The City Council voted to restore $270,000 in funding to Siouxland Libraries. The administration had proposed reducing hours of operation by two hours a day and reducing part-time staff hours to save money.

“We have a lot of folks that are accessing the libraries in the evenings,” Councilor Miranda Basye said.

“As we talk about the primary city services and what literacy and access to education materials do for the future, (I) would just love to make sure that that is accessible to our community at the same degree that it always has been.”

Extending pool dates

The City Council approved an additional $75,000 to keep the city’s outdoor pools open through Aug. 16, 2026. The extra funding will be offset by the existing Parks & Recreation Department general fund budget but didn’t say where specifically within that budget it would be found.

The city had proposed closing the pools after the first weekend in August.

“I think a lot of people with great love for our city and for our families and for our children all got together and found a way, a collaborative solution that makes an investment in keeping public outdoor pools open through that Sunday, Aug. 16, 2026,” Councilor David Barranco said.

“Looking beyond that, we may have other decisions to make, but for next summer, those swimming days will be available.”

The plan still saves $160,000 to $170,000 compared with what was spent this year when pools were open later, he said.

Increase to community partners program

The city’s new Community Partners Program also got a boost from the City Council, which increased its budget from $1.3 to $1.6 million.

The Community Partners Program transitions community funding requests from traditional subsidy agreements approved through the city’s annual budgeting process to a structured request for proposal, or RFP, process.

Under the new system, organizations that have partnered previously with the city under subsidy agreements, as well as other interested organizations, are eligible to apply for funds in three priority areas:

• Supporting at-risk populations.
• Expanding culture, arts and community programming.
• Strengthening economic vitality and growth.

“I want to make a strong statement tonight that we should be in the business of funding community priorities,” Councilor Rich Merkouris said. “I think the additional $300,000 is consistent with what’s been done in years past, but this year, there’s going to be new accountability in place, and there’s goals in place that match up with the city’s priorities.”

Neighborhood grant funding

The City Council voted to add $60,000 for a total of $135,000 to its neighborhood grant funding that would be offset by the existing budget in the Planning & Development Services Department — likely reduced consulting contracts and associated legal fees.

“We’re estimating that by the end of budget year 2026 we’ll have seven new neighborhood associations,” Basye said. “Our neighborhood associations are our first front line to everyday people and everyday life that we have in the community, and we should continue to support and empower them.”

Cuts to Sioux Falls Stadium improvements

The largest change to the budget doesn’t impact 2026 but later years in the capital improvement program. There had been more than $11 million in the plan beginning in 2027 for improvements to Sioux Falls Stadium.

“A lot of things make some great improvements. I’m certainly not opposed to those improvements, but I just have struggled a little bit until we get some kind of a master plan for a convention center, for that entire entertainment campus up there,” Councilor Jennifer Sigette said. “I just can’t get behind spending $11 million or even having the $11 million in that plan at this point until we have a bigger master plan and a bigger vision as a community as to what we’re going to be doing with that area.”

For an overview of what’s included in the budget, click below.

TenHaken proposed budget calls for public safety investments, spending cuts driven by reduced revenue