Mobridge Developing Waterfront Land

MOBRIDGE, SD - Leaders in Mobridge are planning to capitalize on one of the city's best assets.

The city has more than two miles of waterfront property. It's been working to clean that property and develop it over the past decade. Now it's hoping to connect that property with the city's Main Street and see money flow into town.

LeRoy Vogel uses the walking path along Lake Oahe every day and says, in his opinion, the development so far is the nicest thing the city has done.

"I like it this way but if they improved it, I'd never want to knock improvement," Vogel said.

The city of Mobridge has added roads, sewers and more to the 2.3 miles of waterfront property.  And while there is a road near the lake that lines up with the town's Main Street, railroad tracks separate them. The goal is to have a crossing over the tracks some time next year.

From there, the city plans to sell land to see it developed for recreational and commercial uses along with other uses as well.

"It would be nice if in a couple years we've got some land for sale and we have some people that are interested and we just kind of go as we start," Mobridge city council president Dennis Wheeler said.

A group of students and their instructor from Utah are in town gathering information to help the city plan ways to develop the land. Among other things, it will consider what types of ordinances and regulations should be in place once the city is ready to move forward.

"We have a lot of area we have to take a look at and see what will be best," Wheeler said.

City leaders hope the plan will help the area grow and bring in more tax and tourism revenue as a result.

That goal to have Main Street connected to the lake by next year isn't set in stone yet. The city is still working with the state and railroad to make that happen.