Park planning process reaches half-way point

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The master planning process for the USD Research Park in Sioux Falls is at the halfway point and will be complete in the Fall of this year.

The master planning team of Architecture Incorporated and Perkins & Will briefed the South Dakota Board of Regents on their findings and initial directions at the Board’s June meeting.

“We received great feedback and support from the Regents during this briefing,” says Rich Naser, USD Research Park president. “The planning team has done a fantastic job taking our vision for the park, incorporating feedback from the numerous stakeholder groups, and then starting to translate that into a plan for the physical development of the park.”

The planning process kicked-off in April with a series of stakeholder listening sessions. Following those sessions, the planning team undertook a site analysis and evaluation of site characteristics and the sites ability to support thee types of research park developments – suburban, traditional campus and urban village.

“We found that there continues to be a lot of excitement for this project among the university community and the potential private sector partners,” says Naser. “The planning team is moving forward with a park master plan that will foster creative collisions and create a highly-attractive environment for growing innovative research and companies in our region.”

The planning team is now preparing its initial design and development recommendations. A series of project summits will be held in August to share these recommendations and gather additional feedback prior to finalizing the master plan”

“This has been an exciting process,” says Naser. “It seems with every meeting we uncover new opportunities for collaboration.”

USD Research Park partners include: the University of South Dakota, the South Dakota Board of Regents, City of Sioux Falls, Forward Sioux Falls, the Sioux Falls Area Chamber of Commerce and the Sioux Falls Development Foundation. For more information about the USD Research Park, visit www.usdresearchpark.com.