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The campus of the Sioux Falls Zoo & Aquarium will look very different in a few years.

First, there’s the Butterfly House, which will move to the Kiwanis Avenue site. And then, of course, there’s the Aquarium. Add on to that the normal upgrades and upkeep of the zoo, and guests will have even more animals to admire, enjoy and learn about.

It’s all part of the Sioux Falls Zoo & Aquarium campaign that will add $50 million in renovations, with the aquarium opening in late 2028.

The “We Can’t Wait” campaign kicked off last year.

Funding for the expansion comes from a generous lead gift from Denny Sanford as well as donations through a Community Appeal campaign with the Greater Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce.

“This unifies the butterfly house and the zoo, putting operations on one campus,” said Becky Dewitz, CEO. “We are reimagining a new butterfly experience and adding a world-class aquarium experience.”

Dewitz said the decision to move the butterfly house came after a feasibility study funded through grant support from the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation. Relocating, sharing services and adding attractions helps make the zoo more of a destination.

“We found that making it one destination and having the aquarium adjacent to the parking lot for ease of use, we could grow our attendance to 400,000 visitors. At the time, we were seeing just over half of that,” Dewitz said. More recent modeling predicts up to a half million visitors per year.

The study also showed that the zoo is a regional destination. The expansion will extend a typical visit from a few hours to four or five, making it a more worthwhile trip that also encourages people to stay overnight and visit another Sioux Falls attraction the next day.

The aquarium will add a 250,000-gallon shark tank with sharks, reef animals and rays. “People can really feel like they’re in the ocean in South Dakota,” Dewitz said. There also will be an underwater tunnel, jellyfish and coral. “We will show how intricate the coral system is.”

Some exhibits – such as the penguins – will move to the aquarium space and have a more natural habitat.

The zoo is raising money to match Sanford’s gift. Dewitz said the philanthropic support of the expansion shows the true generosity of the community and the excitement for the expansion.

“People see this as a quality of life improvement, where they bring their families and friends, and this will be a tourism destination to bring people to our state,” Dewitz said.

The butterfly house visits peak in the winter months – when a little humidity and the feeling of being outside makes it a draw. Those months are often down times for the zoo, so having a campus with attractions that complement one another seasonally also helps.

“Having that year-round experience with the zoo or aquarium, and letting our patrons decide if they want to go outside or stay indoors is a great opportunity,” Dewitz said. It also helps stabilize cash flow when visitor numbers remain consistent over the year.

Education opportunities

The expansion also allows for additional space for classes. Right now, the zoo sees about 70,000 people for formal and informal educational programs – such as zoo camps - and another 10,000 through field trips.

“We need more opportunities for curated classes to meet the needs of the children in our community,” Dewitz said. She envisions a variety of programming to meet the different learning styles of children. “We have a chance to immerse students and promote curiosity with that hands-on, tactile learning that is unique to the kind of institution we are. We can do it differently.”

The design is intentional and includes elements of play throughout.

For example, the new penguin space will have a glass divider in a sand box – think children on one side, and penguins on the other. Dewitz calls it a “nose to beak” experience that helps promote mimicry and understanding that grows empathy.

The reimagined butterfly house will build on what is already a local favorite.

“We are creating a magical garden experience with these tropical butterflies,” Dewitz said.

Other updates include renovating the habitat for the American Red Wolf exhibit. The new one will have more space and be more modern. The wolves are a critically endangered species.

Future plans

All of this is just step one of a 15-year plan, Dewitz said. In the future, additional exhibits will be replaced and there will be a new primate facility.

“It’s really looking at the entire campus and business plan, to make sure we manage the growth and maximize our revenue to be stable,” Dewitz said. “We are very fortunate for the support of this community. That is critical to our success.”

The zoo and butterfly house both have endowments through the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation.

“Endowments allow us to have long-term financial stability,” Dewitz said, noting the benefits of diversifying their funding sources. “Those are reliable funds that we can count on.”

Mary Kolsrud, chief philanthropy officer for the Community Foundation, said that kind of stability starts with a commitment to long-term planning. For organizations like the zoo and butterfly house, partnering with the Community Foundation has helped lay the groundwork for a sustainable future.

“They’re a powerful tool for nonprofits,” Kolsrud said. “With a steady stream of support in place, organizations can think ahead, growing thoughtfully, staying resilient, and staying true to their mission.”

Dewitz said the Community Foundation has also been instrumental in bringing donors to the table.

“The Community Foundation is a fantastic connector,” Dewitz said. “They know the goals and dreams and ideals of giving, and they understand their donors and how we can work together. These are giving people who truly care about their community. We want to match that generosity and vibrancy.”

She points to the Seed for Success Foundation as an example. They made a significant contribution to the project.

“That was a group we didn’t know who came specifically through the Community Foundation,” Dewitz said. “They really saw the value of our mission-related impact.” She noted those personal conversations and behind-the-scenes looks can be meaningful for donors.

“We can’t do this without donors,” Dewitz said. “None of this would be viable or achievable. We are so grateful and humbled by their generosity.”