Sioux Falls Airport Adds New Artwork Ahead Of New Concourse

The next time you fly the friendly skies in or out of Sioux Falls Regional Airport, you may notice something a little different before you even make it to your gate.

A brand-new piece of artwork now resides in the airport’s main entrance, adding a splash of color and creativity to a building that is about to become even busier.

The Sioux Falls area has exploded over the past two decades. More people are moving here, more businesses are setting up shop, and more travelers are coming through the airport for vacations, business trips, family visits, and everything in between.

So, the airport felt the need to grow along with the city.

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According to Dakota News Now, construction is well underway on a new concourse that will add five additional gates, more seating, and additional restaurant options for travelers.

But before the new concourse opens, airport officials wanted to add something that would make the airport feel a little more welcoming while also building excitement for what's yet to come.

The airport decided to invite artists to submit concepts for a new art installation.

Several different art concepts were submitted, but in the end, the one chosen was submitted by Tulsa-based artist Rachel Hayes.

Her creation, titled "Magic Hours," is a hand-sewn piece inspired by the colors and changing light she has experienced while photographing the South Dakota landscape.

Think prairie grasses, the eerie green skies that sometimes show up before a South Dakota storm, and those spectacular cotton-candy sunsets we get when everything comes together just right.

Hayes told Dakota News Now, “I really tried to take all of the light into consideration and just my relationship with South Dakota and put it all in there.”

Travelers will be able to see "Magic Hours" in the airport's atrium.

Hayes describes the piece as being about "chasing the light," although she says it's ultimately open to interpretation. That's probably fitting for an airport, where everyone walking past it is headed somewhere different.

Some people will be arriving in Sioux Falls for the first time. Others will be heading home after a trip. And plenty will probably be doing what travelers do best, hurrying to find their gate while wondering if they have enough time to grab a coffee along the way.

Meanwhile, the airport's biggest change is taking shape just outside.

The new concourse is already beginning to look like a real building, and officials hope to have the structure enclosed before the snow starts flying and winter arrives. That will allow construction crews to continue working throughout the long South Dakota winter months.

If construction stays on schedule and there are no delays- I mean, it is an airport we're talking about, right- the new concourse is expected to open sometime during the summer of 2027.

The 10 Most Redneck Towns in South Dakota

Are you a 'Redneck?' I guess to some people, all of us in South Dakota are rednecks.

If we use the Jeff Foxworthy Scale of Redneckeness, I have, in fact, been too drunk to fish. So by definition, I am a redneck. And so are many people I know.

Not that being from the country is a bad thing, and it can be fun to poke fun at ourselves.

With that in mind, we found that the folks at RoadSnacks put together a list that claims 'These Are The 10 Most Redneck Cities In South Dakota.'

What is a Redneck?

The dictionary says that a redneck is someone "...who lives in a small town or in the country, especially in the southern U.S., who typically has a working-class job, and who is seen by others as being uneducated and having opinions and attitudes that are offensive."

Well, a few things. First, South Dakota isn't THAT kind of 'south.' We're to the south of North Dakota, but to the north of 'The South.'

Plus that definition sounds awful mean and serious. I thought we were having fun here.

RoadSnacks leaned into the funny, Jeff Foxworthy-based version of a redneck. Then they rounded up select data on places in SD to determine their rankings. RoadSnacks Redneck Criteria: