Courtesy South Dakota Dept. of Tourism
Sioux Falls, South Dakota’s largest city, will be the site of the 2013 Small Market Meetings Conference, Oct. 6-8.
“We’re looking forward to showcasing the variety of facilities. We’ll host it at the convention center, with more than 100,000 square feet of meeting space. It has an attached full-service hotel with 243 rooms,” said Krista Orsack, director of sales and marketing for the Sioux Falls CVB.
An expansion of that convention center should be completed in 2014.
The city hosts about 10 national conventions a year and frequent regional and state association, government and agriculture meetings.
Among its most historic sites is downtown’s 123-acre Falls Park, where early settlers built some of the city’s first structures.
“One of our last major conventions was Volunteers of America in 2011. They held their opening reception there,” said Orsack. “We arranged for fireworks at the falls. They pitched a beautiful white tent, under which they hosted all of their attendees.”
Having an event at the park put attendees in the midst of a downtown that Orsack described as “very vibrant and historic … quaint, clean and safe to walk around in.”
Historic Washington Pavilion of Arts and Sciences, also downtown, was the city’s first high school. “Many off-site conventions hold their opening receptions on the stage of the great hall,” said Orsack.
Sioux Falls was ranked No.1 in America for the best small places for business and careers by Forbes magazine. On top of that, Nos. 2 and 3 on the list were Fargo and Bismarck.
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