City to detail master vision for Falls Park

A glimpse into the future of Falls Park will be released this week.

After years of working through an updated master plan, the most recent draft will be shared at a public open house from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday at Startup Sioux Falls, 100 E. Sixth St.

There will be a presentation at 5:30 p.m., along with displays and visuals of the proposed road map for the next 30 to 50 years at the park and the adjacent neighborhoods.

Topics addressed include traffic circulation and safety in the park, expanding recreational opportunities and all-season programming, the water quality of the river, preserving the history and natural beauty of the park, and enhancing the heart of the park.

“The master plan in this particular case is a pretty big project,” said Mike Patten, parks planning and project manager for the Parks & Recreation Department.

“It’s not just the physical layout of the park and the future of ideas of what could happen in it; it also involves a detailed process as far as what type of programming could happen and what’s the best model for managing the park going forward.”

The Falls Park Master Plan process began in 2021. It followed the completion of many goals in previous Falls Park master plans. The Parks & Recreation Department held a design competition to develop comprehensive ideas to address the future of the area. Confluence, a landscape architecture, planning and urban design firm, was awarded the design contract.

Goals included:

• Create a year-round destination.
• Preserve and enhance the heart of the park.
• Improve circulation and safety.
• Expand recreational opportunities.
• Embrace full-season programming.
• Seek out partnership opportunities.
• Improve water quality and incorporate environmentally friendly designs.
• Preserve historical elements and develop only in appropriate areas.

“We tried pretty hard to incorporate all these things into the master plan,” said Jon Jacobson, senior principal at Confluence.

“We’re doing some things to change the center of the park, remove some vehicles from the interior  … and make it an even grander experience.”

Thousands of comments were received online in addition to outreach at events and public input sessions.

“The plan is amazing,” Patten said. “It’s got really big, transformational ideas littered throughout the entire thing.”

The open house Thursday will include a presentation detailing a number of concepts and proposals within the plan, and there will be a chance to provide feedback.

Areas addressed will include the Falls Park Visitor Information Center, Overlook Cafe, Falls Park Farmers Market, Stockyards Ag Experience, Queen Bee Mill, the adjacent quarry and surrounding neighborhoods.

The quarry on the east side of Weber Avenue is envisioned to include modern recreation such as an urban fishery and adventure course, Jacobson said.

“We’ve developed a strategy so that no matter your age or the type of things that you want to do, there’s always something you can do in the park,” he said. “That takes it to a next-level park, or a signature park, with full-season programming.”

Some of that already is underway with the addition of Jacobson Plaza, he added. Next year will bring an ice ribbon, splash pad, large accessible playground and dog park to Falls Park West.

The city also recently unveiled a logo for the area including and around the park that’s designed to incorporate the newer elements by broadening the name of the area to The Falls.

“We want to make sure that residents can easily find and discover all the awesome things our downtown parks have to offer,” said Allie Hartzler, the city’s communications and culture officer.

“This logo embodies the heart of our city — our waterfalls — which attracts more than 1 million visitors annually.”

Signs will be added starting at Levitt to the Falls at Falls Park West to encourage people to explore the broader area, and a new website next year will highlight programming and way-finding.

The city’s Parks and Recreation Board along with the City Council will consider approving the master plan early next year. Fulfilling the plan itself could take up to three decades, Jacobson said.

“We’re very excited about the transformation, this ultimate vision,” he said. “To me, it’s a perfect story about our community and how it’s developed over time. This is just the next step.”