Aberdeen Development Corporation has been a long-time borrower from Dakota Resources, which has helped them accomplish a variety of different projects in their community. Projects pictured include the Roosevelt Business Park (top), Machlow Plaza (bottom left), and Molded Fiber Glass building (bottom right). Pictures courtesy of Aberdeen Development Corporation.

But not every economic development project begins with new land. Sometimes, the opportunity is found in a place that already exists.

That was the case with the Malchow Plaza building, a visible downtown property that became an opportunity for reinvestment in Aberdeen’s core. Downtown buildings help shape the feel of a community. When they are active, they bring employees, visitors, customers, and energy into the heart of town. When they sit underused, that absence can be felt.

Dakota Resources loan fund support helped ADC participate in the redevelopment and reuse of the Malchow location. That access to capital helped move the project forward and allowed ADC to reinvest in a prominent downtown property rather than see it lose value or remain underdeveloped.

Today, the Malchow Plaza building hosts two businesses on the ground floor and is also home to the Aberdeen Development Corporation. Dakota Resources financing also played a role in ADC’s work with the Molded Fiber Glass building. The loan fund support helped ADC complete the building project and secure the property locally.

While the building is currently idle, ADC hopes to see it fully occupied again and positioned for future job-creating opportunities. In economic development, preserving an asset can be just as important as creating something new. It keeps a door open for the next business, the next employer, or the next chance to bring activity back into a space that’s already built for it.

Community development does not look cookie-cutter. Some investments create visible activity right away. Others prepare land for growth years down the road. Some preserve buildings or industrial assets so they are ready when the right opportunity comes along.

For ADC, Dakota Resources’ lending partnership has provided access to capital no matter which of those they were diving into. “The Dakota Resources lending partnership has helped ADC access flexible, patient capital when it matters most,” said Tim Hanigan, Executive Director of Aberdeen Development Corporation. “It has helped us preserve key community assets, support redevelopment, prepare industrial land for growth, and position Aberdeen for future jobs, business investment, and tax base expansion.”

That long view is central to the relationship between Dakota Resources and local development corporations across South Dakota.

Community and economic development projects often require multiple funding sources, strong local leadership, and the ability to strike while the iron’s hot. Through the Capital Investment Fund, Dakota Resources helps provide the kind of financing that allows local organizations to act on projects that can shape their communities for years to come.

In Aberdeen, that has meant support for downtown redevelopment, industrial assets, business space, and shovel-ready land for future growth. When local vision is matched with flexible capital compounded by 25 years, Aberdeen is better prepared for the opportunities ahead.