By Sunny Hannum
Fort Pierre Development Corporation named Sioux Nation as 2025 Business Of The Year. Business owners, Cody Hostler and Chad Stoeser were presented the award by FPDC President Kale Urban at the FPDC Annual Meeting at the Chateau Conference room January 27th.
Stoeser and Hostler were recognized not only because of the major business expansion in 2025 with the addition of their new grain cleaning facility but also for their community involvement and support of Stanley County’s CTE Program. Hostler said, “We have jumped aboard with the Build Dakota Scholarship Program and will be sending one of our young employees from the summer to a vo tech school this fall as well as two graduates from Pierre. Our final goal is to have as many as 10 Build Dakota Scholars between the store and Drake Seed grain cleaning facility.”
About 40 people attended the FPDC Annual Meeting where they heard guest speaker Representative Mike Weisgram share the most signifcant legislative issues for this session i.e. TIFs, sales tax, property tax and data centers. Weisgram was adamant that economic development is important to every community and that if a community wants to progress, citizens need to get active and not wait for someone from the outside to come in and do it for them.
Weisgram was followed by a presentation by Dave Bonde, FPDC Director, and his assistant Sunny Hannum. Bonde covered the “2025 Year In Review” pointing out the major increases in permit values for both residential and commercial construction as well as increases in residential remodels over 2024.
Bonde said the primary FPDC project for 2025 and into 2026 is the 6th Avenue Housing Project. FPDC finalized the purchase of the property on the last day of 2025 and has ordered two, three bedroom Governors Houses to be delivered some time in the next 18 months. Weisgram as Chair of the Housing Sub Committee was instrumental in helping to facilitate this project. Weisgram said, “You can plan and plan and plan for years but then you just need to do it.”
Bonde also touted the activities of the FPDC Downtown Committee whose primary objective is downtown beautification, historic preservation and support of the City’s related efforts. This summer the Committee paid for the refinishing of the “Ghost Murals” on the Chateau Building and plan to do the same for the historic Rowe Hardware.
Both Bonde and Weisgram declared that “WE ARE BETTER TOGETHER!”
(Photo credit Jody Heemstra, DRG Media Director)