Recent testimony at the State Capitol has identified a new “boogeyman” for some legislators: economic development. A small but vocal group of legislators suggest that programs such as the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) Future Fund and tools like Tax Increment Financing (TIF) create financial strain and amount to government picking winners and losers. The facts tell a different story. When communities, businesses, and the state partner to grow South Dakota’s economy, everyone benefits.
Lennox is a clear example. Two projects in particular demonstrate how economic development has strengthened our community, our schools, Lincoln County, and the state.
In 2007, Wilson Trailer, an agricultural trailer manufacturer based in Sioux City with additional plants in Moberly, Missouri, and Yankton, South Dakota, sought a new location near a strong labor pool. Lennox offered available land and workforce access. Working with LCEDA/MCEDA (now the Sioux Metro Growth Alliance), the City of Lennox, GOED, and the South Dakota Department of Transportation assembled a reasonable and strategic financing package:
• SD DOT Industrial Park Grant: $224,000
• SD GOED Future Fund: $63,000
• Lincoln County TIF District #4: $500,000
• Total: $787,000
Most of this funding supported infrastructure construction by the City. The Future Fund dollars were used as matching funds for workforce training. Over time, Wilson received an additional $145,000 in Future Fund grants for training and wetland mitigation.
That investment has paid off. Wilson Trailer now employs 173 people—more than 25% of Lennox’s private-sector workforce. The company has built $27 million in taxable facilities, generating nearly $3 million in property tax revenue for local schools, the city, and the county. This growth broadens the tax base and helps reduce the burden on existing taxpayers.
On the residential side, the City of Lennox and Lincoln County created TIF District #9 in 2019 for the Countryside Addition, an 80-acre development led by Nielson Construction. Using $6.4 million in TIF value, the developer constructed all required streets and utilities.
Since then, 138 homes have been built, with more underway. The city’s population has grown 7% in three years. Seventy-two jobs have been created, sales tax revenue has increased 77%, and more than a dozen new businesses have opened. Nearly $70 million in private investment has occurred in the past five years—once-in-a-generation growth made possible by public-private partnership.
These are only two examples, but similar stories are playing out across South Dakota. Without tools like the Future Fund and TIF—and without the dedicated local leaders and partners who use them—rural communities will not thrive. Our focus will shift from improving quality of life to simply trying to survive.
Now is the time to tell our legislators to stop undermining economic development. These tools are not the problem. They are the reason communities like Lennox are thriving.
NVP