Sioux Falls' new Children's Inn taking shape at former South Dakota School for the Deaf

The future campus of the Children’s Inn is rising from the earth, and the facility is on pace to be open before the end of the year.

The 96-bed, 38-room campus will double the capacity of the current Children’s Inn, which serves as a shelter for domestic violence victims. The current facility, which is for sale, hasn’t been able to keep up with demand, according to Amy Carter, the program director for Children’s Inn.

“We’re really pleased,” Carter said. “The reason behind this is, we’ve been above capacity for the past six years.”

The new facility is being built on the former campus of the South Dakota School for the Deaf. It will feature more modern living quarters, a larger dining space, a larger play space and better administrative offices.

In 2019, First Premier Bank founder T. Denny Sanford pledged $55 million to the Children’s Home Society of South Dakota. About $11 million of that has been used to build the new Children’s Inn.

Construction started last year. Carter credited Koch Hazard Architects and Lloyd Cos. for keeping the project moving even amid supply chain shortages for some construction products.

“Things have moved along really, really well,” she said. “We haven’t run into any supply issues because they thought that through.”

Clint Greer, Lloyd's project manager, said they were fortunate to lock in the majority of the materials needed for the project in 2021.

"Our most recent challenges have been braving the winter months," Greer said in an email. "The crews have done a tremendous job considering the elements they put up with each day. For this we are thankful. With winter behind us, we are committed to opening this wonderful project on time for Amy, her team and this community."

Larger facility, larger endowment needed

A larger facility will require more operating revenue. Sanford stepped up with another $5 million in the spring of 2020 to help with an endowment to operate the facility.

The Children’s Home Society is currently in a three-year fundraising campaign called Gift for Good that started in June. The goal is to raise $12 million for the Children’s Inn endowment. So far, $8 million has been raised.

“It’s going really well,” Carter said. “We’re very pleased with how our fundraising campaign has been going.”

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Sioux Falls' new domestic violence shelter on pace to open this year