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By Jodi Schwan

Black Hills Federal Credit Union has acquired two former Dollar Loan Center properties as part of a significant Sioux Falls expansion.

The credit union purchased the three buildings that comprised the Historic Loop Center at 901 W. 10th St. and 900 and 908 W. 11th St.

“This property gives lots of opportunities for expansion in the future,” said Carol Brown, vice president of marketing and business development.

Black Hills Federal Credit Union plans to use the two-story Dollar Loan Center building as its primary hub of operations in Sioux Falls.

The purchase also includes the three-story building that was Clark County Collection Services and other tenants. The first- and second-floor office space is available for lease through Raquel Blount of Lloyd Cos., as is the former Brennan Rock & Roll Academy.

“I’m excited about it. I think it is such a positive for that area. And with Kum & Go about to open it will continue to revitalize that area,” Blount said.

While the Rocky & Roll Academy building looks like it could become a traditional strip mall, “I was so surprised when I walked in,” she said. “There’s a mezzanine area, an entertainment area and it’s really cool. It would be perfect for an architecture firm or an ad agency, if you’re a creative company or unique business. The inside is far different than you would expect.”

The credit union also recently bought the former Dollar Loan Center location at 1901 W. 41st St. The plan is to remodel it and open it as a credit union branch in October or November.

Once Dollar Loan has moved out of the West 10th Street building, Black Hills plans to “remodel it, rebrand it and open it next spring,” said Jerry Schmidt, senior vice president and chief operating officer.

Hiring already has started for the 41st Street location and will continue for the location west of downtown.

Black Hills opened its first Sioux Falls branch earlier this year at 57th Street and Marion Road.

“We looked at a lot of expansion possibility. We’re pretty well saturated in our market here (Rapid City), although we’re always adding new members,” Brown said.

“We have many locations, but we wanted to diversity further into a market not so heavily based on agriculture or Ellsworth Air Force Base or even tourism, and Sioux Falls was obviously the ideal market for us. We did some case studies and market analysis before we ever chose to go to Sioux Falls, and we felt pretty good about it.”

Her initial impression of the market has been positive, she said.

“I really am impressed with Sioux Falls – the people and how they all work together, and everyone has been friendly and welcoming. It’s just a very, very nice city. I’m very proud Black Hills Federal Credit Union is in that market. We know we have consumers who like to work with credit unions and like to be member-owners, and we think we have a great product and we’re glad to be there.”

The credit union is committed to community involvement, she added.

“We’re extraordinarily active in the community. We have local decision-making, and we’re friendly and easy to work with. We’re not stuffy. We’re low-key. We’re very committed to our members and to service. We have a passion for service, and I think the bottom line is we really care about people, and that includes all the people in our community. I think people will find we’re different to work with.”