Western Sioux Falls residents see victory after pushing back against new storage units

A local homebuilder has withdrawn a rezoning that would have allowed the construction of residential-compatible storage units that drew ire of nearby residents earlier this month.

The Sioux Falls City Councilors voted 7-0 to withdraw the item after senior planner Jason Bieber informed the council that applicant Doug Allen had requested it be withdrawn.

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The ordinance, which would have rezoned a 12-acre lot near W. 12th St. and S. Ellis Rd., passed a first reading on July 19 with no discussion.

But on Aug. 2, neighbors had packed Carnegie Town Hall to express their displeasure.

Nearby residents said the plan to build storage units were not compatible with their neighborhood, and that no one had informed them of the possibility the agricultural land could become storage buildings.

JoAnn Snell said she was "outright deceived" when she asked about what would be built in the land before purchasing a home nearby, saying she'd been told it would be other homes or villas.

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Snell said she had family living nearby who also hadn't heard of the plans.

 "I will not enjoy my time at this community either if this should go through," Snell said.

Many of the residents also said they had no idea the rezoning had even been proposed until just before the original date for the second reading.

Councilor Greg Neitzert said he could understand where the confusion may have come from, pointing out the 300-foot "influence zone" in which a builder needs to inform residents of a pending rezoning may have largely contained vacant lots.

He also suggested neighbors visit a nearby residential storage business, noting the buildings proposed by Allen would need to resemble garages and that industrial lighting and outdoor storage would not be allowed, as some residents had said they feared.

Allen also spoke at the meeting, saying he sent out the required letters and had a single attendee at three hearings about the rezoning.

"This is the first complaint," Allen said. "And they all seem to be on Mary Gene, and when Windmill Ridge itself is finished, you probably won't even see it from there. But we didn't try to deceive, and we didn't deceive anyone."

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Allen said he'd meet with the neighbors on their concerns, although Rick Eissinger, who'd spoke at the Aug. 2 meeting, said on Monday he hadn't heard from Allen.

Allen also did not respond to a request for comment.

“Any time you’re buying a house and there’s undeveloped land around it … you have to expect something’s going to go there," said Eissinger, who said while he didn't agree with the proposal, he has a history in real estate and knows sometimes plans can change.

"But, I understand all the emotion," he added.