Milbank Honored as Community of the Year
Back row: Steve Westra Steve Nomeland Dave Hepper Kevin Kouba Pat Raffety Governor Noem. Front Row: John Forman Dave Hicks Bobbie Bohlen Krista Atyeo-Gortmaker Brian Sandvig
A big "thank you" goes to the people that are pictured and not pictured in our community. We do well by doing Good – and that goes for everyone doing the hard work behind the scenes as well. Thank you to everyone who is rising the tide for all the ships in the community. We appreciate your dedication.
From the Governor’s Office of Economic Development | April 25, 2023
SIOUX FALLS, SD – The Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) celebrated economic growth and success during its annual conference on Tuesday. During the event, Governor Kristi Noem announced three major award winners: Milbank as Community of the Year along with Jesse Fonkert and Steve Watson as the recipients of the Excellence in Economic Development Award.
“Together, we are making South Dakota the best state in America to live, work, and raise a family,” said Governor Noem. “We have the strongest economy in America and the lowest unemployment rate of all time. Make no mistake – Freedom generated these blessings. And the folks at the Governor’s Office of Economic Development certainly helped!”
The Community of the Year award honors a community that has made strides in economic development, community enhancement, job creation, and quality of life. Milbank is striving to create an environment of economic development success. The community has experienced multi-million-dollar growth from Valley Queen Cheese and Koch Center Senior Living. To accommodate future development, the community is in the planning stages of expanding their industrial park. Housing development is also a priority with three housing developments in the works with opportunities for both single and multi-family housing.
““The work that GCDC does in the Grant County communities is valuable to the growth, expansion and vitality of our local economy. The Director’s who have come before me with George Smith and Bobbie Bohlen have placed us in a great position to move forward from a diversified business foundation. As we move forward, I am blessed with a leadership that recognizes opportunity, is poised to take action and pivot as necessary but also brings a ton of wealth in knowledge and skills to this work.””
The Excellence in Economic Development award recognizes individuals who have excelled in economic development over their careers.
Jesse Fonkert, President and CEO of Sioux Metro Growth Alliance (SMGA), the largest regional economic development organization in the state, was honored as the first recipient. Fonkert led efforts to rebrand the former Lincoln and Minnehaha County Economic Development organizations into SMGA, with the intention of expanding the organization’s footprint. He firmly believes that a regional approach to economic development enables all communities to achieve success.
Steve Watson, development strategist with ISG, was also honored. Watson has been serving South Dakotans for the past 18 years with his work in economic development. Watson provides growth and mentorship to communities and has worked to build strong partnerships with communities and state officials. Watson is leading the Infrastructure First Project for the state, developing a statewide infrastructure plan, identifying 18 high impact economic development sites, along with completing a capital improvement plan for eight communities.
Why is Milbank the Community of the Year?
Below, you can see accomplishments and points of growth that were used by the GOED to determine the community of the year.
Milbank conducted a housing study that determined a need for 250 homes within the next 5 years.
Milbank is currently working on three housing developments with a combined total of 246 lots in addition to several apartment rentals. Grant County Development has created an incentive package for developers in partnership with the City of Milbank.
Valley Queen Cheese announced a $200M expansion with 140 new hires.
Koch Center Senior Living completed the development of a $14M, 42-unit memory care and Senior Housing development, on the site of the old Milbank elementary school; a new school was built.
With a combination of public and private dollars a $6.4M National Baseball Complex is being constructed to be completed in 2025. It will also include a soccer field.
New Rosewood rental apartments were built through an RFP process. These are full and more are scheduled to be built.
Home to Valley Queen Cheese Factory, Montage Marketing Services, Big Sioux Pork, Dakota Granite, United Hardware, and Sapupo soft cheese factory.
Value Added Ag is utilized by many of the dairies in the area. For example, methane is captured and piped to Northwestern Energy for alternative fuel. The dairies also help supply milk for Valley Queen.
Milbank supports economic development in the small communities around them including Revillo, Big Stone City, Stockholm, Twin Brooks, Strandburg, LaBolt, Marvin, and Albee.
Grant County Development is currently in the planning stages of expanding the Industrial Park in Milbank.
Grant County Development is creating an environment of economic development success throughout Milbank and the surrounding area by taking advantage of resources from the state and others to help current needs and plant the seeds for future growth.
“As the Executive Director of the Grant County Development Corporation over the past 2 1/2 years I have encountered a huge learning curve with new projects each day. The GCDC board has come along beside me to learn, explore and grow together and I am thankful for them. For me it is these learning experiences and mutual respect coupled with partnerships and communication from the board, the community and the resources that helps Milbank to the finish line for this top honor. I am blessed and grateful to all that enlighten my days- it makes coming to work fun and I can’t wait to see what we can accomplish in the future.”