SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — There’s ongoing discussion on whether a $70,000 fence would help manage an area in central Sioux Falls. The lot just north of the Bishop Dudley Hospitality House has been a source of frustration for staff, neighbors and law enforcement.

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“Lots of easy access has turned it into a convenient gathering spot. Disorderly behavior is prevalent. In some cases, even violent,” Sioux Falls Police Chief Jon Thum said at Tuesday’s city council meeting. “During the spring and summer especially, we see a significant number of calls for our team and for EMS. In 2024, over 1,800 police calls and almost 2,700 combined calls between fire, PD and EMS.”

The city wants to lease the property from St. Joseph Catholic Housing, a division of the Catholic Diocese of Sioux Falls that currently owns the lot and supports the Bishop Dudley. At last night’s city council meeting, Chief Thum said addressing some of the behaviors which happen on the private property can be challenging, since it’s not currently owned by the city.

“The goal of this whole operation is really just to put up new boundaries around that lot and to also give the city the right to police it themselves, without getting a call from one of us,” Chancellor Thad Pals with the Catholic Diocese of Sioux Falls said.

If the five-year lease is approved, city officials would work to install a 6-foot-tall fence around the existing lot for storage. Twenty percent would be for Bishop Dudley staff, accessible by an electric gate.

However, some residents don’t like the $70,000 price tag attached to the project, and they voiced their concerns at Tuesday’s council meeting.

Officials said they recognize the fence wouldn’t solve every issue but say the lease would give the city authority to better manage the site and could improve safety for Bishop Dudley staff.

“I can tell you if you look at the calls for service at that intersection and that vicinity, we should be doing something,” Chief Thum said. “Something to change the trajectory of where we’re at.”

The Diocese said its support for the Bishop Dudley would not change if the lease is approved.

“Whatever their needs are, this lot, we may need to expand. So, it’s a nice thing to have. And so, this lease just allows us to continue to hold it, but yet give the city an option to store vehicles or whatever their needs might be,” Pals said.

The proposal will get its second reading at next Tuesday’s city council meeting.