Sioux Falls Listens
Sioux Falls Listens is Mayor Christine Erickson’s community engagement series, created to hear directly from residents during her first 100 days in office.
Led by the Mayor’s 10‑member transition team, the series brings people together to share experiences, identify community priorities, and highlight opportunities for the future of Sioux Falls.
The initiative combines the work of four Transition Learning Teams with listening sessions, neighborhood conversations, and conversations hosted across the community. The purpose is simple:
- Listen to the experiences and ideas of residents, employees, and community partners.
- Learn about opportunities and challenges facing Sioux Falls.
- Lead together by using these insights to build thoughtful recommendations for the future.
How to Get Involved
Attend a Sioux Falls Listen Session
Sioux Falls residents are invited to take part in community listening sessions facilitated by the Mayor’s transition team. These sessions are designed for community members to share what they value about Sioux Falls, reflect on challenges, and offer ideas that can strengthen our city.
The listening sessions will be facilitated by Mayor Erickson’s transition team, and all residents are welcome and encouraged to attend.
Upcoming Sessions:
Wednesday, October 21
Time: 5:30 - 7:30 p.m.
Location: Levitt at the Falls (504 N. Phillips Ave.) - new indoor space
Thursday, November 5
Time: 5:30 - 7:30 p.m.
Location: Levitt at the Falls (504 N. Phillips Ave.) - new indoor space
Thursday, November 12
Time: 5:30 - 7:30 p.m.
Location: Levitt at the Falls (504 N. Phillips Ave.) - new indoor space
While all feedback and community topics are welcome, the listening sessions will have target focus areas to help guide conversations.
Those focus areas include:
- Arts and resident experience on October 21
- Business community on November 5
- Economic development on November 12
Wednesday, November 18 – Sioux Falls Listens Town Hall
Time: 5:30 - 8 p.m.
Location: Cherapa Place (300 N. Cherapa Place) – third-floor interconnect meeting space
The Sioux Falls Listens series will culminate in a community town hall on Wednesday, November 18, where insights gathered throughout the process will be prioritized for recommendation to the Mayor’s transition team.
Host Your Own Conversation
Community members, neighborhoods, workplaces, nonprofits, faith groups, and service clubs are encouraged to host their own Sioux Falls Listens conversations. A simple discussion guide is available to help groups gather a few people, use three shared questions, capture key ideas, and bring those insights to the town hall.
This approach allows many more residents to participate and ensures every voice helps shape Sioux Falls’ future.
Sioux Falls Listens Conversation Guide
How It Works:
Rather than asking everyone to come to City Hall, we are inviting conversations to happen throughout our community.
Be a Trusted Community Host. As a host, you will gather 8 to 12 people around a kitchen table, at a neighborhood meeting, in a coffee shop, church, workplace, or community organization for a guided conversation.
Getting Started:
To get started, provide each participant with several sticky notes and a marker. Encourage everyone to write one idea per note. Write clearly using large print so the ideas are easy for others to read. No need to capture participants’ names. There are no wrong answers, and every idea contributes to the conversation.
What to Capture:
Ask participants the following questions. Write one answer per note, but feel free to use several.
- What do you love most about Sioux Falls today? What should we protect, celebrate, and continue building upon?
- What opportunities or challenges deserve the Mayor’s attention over the next four years? What should never be overlooked? Where could we do better?
- What next-step actions might we take together to move these ideas forward? One idea. One action. Big impact.
Before Everyone Leaves:
- Collect all sticky notes.
- Keep the sticky notes separate by each of the three questions. We will showcase them at the town hall event. Be sure to invite everyone to this meeting to see how others answered these questions.
- Place them in an envelope.
- Label the envelope with:
- Host name and date
- Neighborhood or organization
- Number of participants
- Bring the envelope with you to the town hall.
These notes will become part of the “Voices of Sioux Falls Wall" at the Sioux Falls Listens Town Hall.
Download the full Sioux Falls Conversation Host Guide
About the Transition Team
Mayor Erickson’s transition team has been meeting with employees and community stakeholders to identify opportunities, challenges, and priorities across city operations. Over the past several weeks, transition team members have divided into learning teams to focus on:
- Government operations and effectiveness
- Public safety, infrastructure, emergency management, and essential services
- Growth, housing, and economic vitality
- Community quality of life and resident experience
Input gathered through Sioux Falls Listens and the learning teams will help shape recommendations for long‑term success in Sioux Falls. The recommendations will be presented later this year to Mayor Erickson to develop her administration’s priorities.