[sodak]

Sioux Falls definitely has an undersized downtown for it's population. That's largely attributible to the fact the city has doubled in size since 1980. Downtown is experiencing somewhat of a growth spurt itself though.

A 5 story federal office building was finished last year and two buildings are under construction (5 and 6 story) right now. This summer two 6 story condo buildings are breaking ground - this is the first part of the Uptown to the Falls complex. If the market bears it well - developers expect to break ground on the second and third phase in the next 2 to 3 years. Those phases are expected to include a ten story office building and a 12-15 story hotel/condo building, along with several 4-6 story buildings. All of that will line Falls Park which hold the city's namesake - the falls of the Big Sioux River. I have also heard rumors that someone is exploring the idea of a 15-20 story office/residential building. Who knows where that will go though.

I don't see Sioux Falls having a tremendously high skyline (25+ stories) for several decades. Two reason behind that are 1) land is so cheap on the city's periphery and the city isn't large enough to support large public transit projects, and 2) Nanobison is correct, downtown is very close to the airport and lies underneath some of the flight paths. I'm not sure what the exact height limits are - but I doubt anything over 20-25 stories could be built.

Sioux Falls' downtown may end up largely composed an ever growing collection of mid-rise hotels, offices and residential buildings. In a lot of ways, I really like that idea. It would be nice to have a signature skyline though.