Furniture Mission pivots from new building with meaningful plan B

What began as a planned new building for The Furniture Mission of South Dakota has shifted to a new approach — with a full-circle story to go along with it.

The nonprofit, which connects those in need with gently used furniture and housewares, had planned to build a 27,000-square-foot warehouse and office on the Empower Campus in east Sioux Falls.

The Furniture Mission accepts donations of home furnishings and provides them at no cost to those in need. Its current home is at 209 N. Nesmith Ave.

But shortly after a ceremonial groundbreaking a year ago, it became clear that bids were far off budget, executive director Janean Michalov said.

“We paused, and over the last year really just tried to navigate what does this look like to change the design, go through the process of construction with pulling out different things that weren’t needed, and it still just wasn’t working,” she said.

“To be honest, I kind of have said from the very beginning if God was opening doors, even though I felt unknown leading what was happening, I would walk through them. And this time, it just felt like the door shut, and it didn’t just shut, it locked.”

By July, they’d determined not to move forward with a new building because fortunately an alternative had become an option.

A building at 800 S. Van Eps Ave. that previously had been owned by wholesale clothing company Outdoor Gear turned out to be almost the exact size needed by The Furniture Mission, allowing the organization to purchase and renovate the building for an estimated $3.5 million, half the $7 million budget and far less than the $11.7 million the original bid to build new was.

It also met the organization’s goals to remain debt-free, provide storage frontage it didn’t have before and stay centrally located.

“Sometimes, you just have to be OK with pivoting on the dream,” Michalov said. “We’re excited to have it. The Furniture Mission renovates old furniture. Why would we not renovate an old building? It just makes total sense.”

Conversations with donors, including the community appeals team from the Greater Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce, which backed the project, revealed agreement.

“Rising construction costs are making every organization looking at a building project reevaluate their options. This pivot demonstrates effective stewardship of donor dollars,” said key donor Matt Paulson, CEO of MarketBeat and the chamber board liaison to the community appeals campaign.

“I am thrilled that Furniture Mission found a solution that allows them to carry out their mission in a most cost-effective way.”

The building needs about 5,000 square feet of renovations for offices, conference rooms and mentoring spaces. It still will allow for the nonprofit’s plans of including space dedicated to quilting, a woodshop, paint room and more to allow ample room for volunteers and for mentorship to teach those skills to the next generation.

“As it sits right now, it’s a very open-concept warehouse, so it’s really just bringing our racking and getting things shifted over from the two locations,” Michalov said.

The purchase “is a game-changer for The Furniture Mission, giving them the space they need to streamline operations and better serve the community, all while staying in a prime location close to where they currently operate,” said Bobbie Tibbetts of Bender Commercial Real Estate Services, who brokered the deal.

“This new building nearly doubles their usable square footage. It’s a smart investment in existing real estate that will support their growth and impact for years to come.”

The existing Furniture Mission headquarters downtown and a warehouse on 34th Street North will be going on the market for sale.

“The downtown East Bank location is a rare opportunity, offering prime space in a rapidly redeveloping area where available properties for sale are few and far between,” Tibbetts said.

“Redevelopment uses could include renovated office space, a downtown showroom, a community space or a transformed man cave or woman cave.”

The northeast property includes an acre of land, she said.

“The building offers an open warehouse equipped with a kitchen, locker rooms and bathrooms, making it perfect for immediate use or further customization,” Tibbetts said.

The plan is to open in the new space in late spring or early summer.

In the meantime, The Furniture Mission is experiencing its biggest year to date, with a record month in August when 188 families were served in 31 days.

“It really boils down to Sioux Falls is growing, it’s such a safe place to be, and people get here and realize the amazing resources available when they’re trying to get back on their feet,” Michalov said.

“We have had a lot of families leaving Children’s Inn and a lot of divorced couples coming through, people that are starting over.”

Thanks to donations, “we are bursting at the seams,” she continued, adding that last year 28,000 pieces of furniture were recycled to families in need, “and this year we’ll be closer to 32,000.”

The nonprofit officially closed on the building last week — but not without one more sign the move was meant to be.

In addition to the building on Van Eps, The Furniture Mission bought a single-family house at 1400 E. 16th St. adjacent to the building to allow for more parking.

The plan is to move the home for new owners in the spring, but not before the longtime owner gave Michalov a memorable gift at closing — an original abstract of the land dating back to 1871.

“William Van Eps sold his farmland to this couple in a long line of her family members, and when we approached her about purchasing her property to create a parking lot, she said she had to pray about it,” Michalov said.

She came back and asked who wants to buy it, Tibbetts said.

“The decision to sell was a tough one for the homeowners and was ultimately influenced by the impact The Furniture Mission had played in their own lives,” she said.

It turns out, the owner had received services from The Furniture Mission. Her uncle even volunteers at the organization’s wood shop.

“It was just really amazing and makes an interesting twist to the story,” Michalov said. “It was really full circle.”