Sioux Falls, SD Right to Farm: Agricultural Zoning Protection (2026)
Key Facts
- District
- AG Agriculture (in-city zoning)
- Primary form
- Agriculture/open space (Open3)
- Purpose
- Hold farmland until urban rezoning
- Code chapter
- Ch. 160: Zoning
- Enforcement
- City ordinance violation, per-day offense
Summary
Sioux Falls zones an AG Agriculture district for land still farmed inside city limits, meant to hold current agricultural operations until the land transitions to a more urban district or into conservation use.
It shall be the intent of this district to provide for a limited agricultural industry within the city limits. Agricultural districts within city limits are typically agricultural lands transitioning to future urban uses. This transition should therefore maintain current agricultural operations until such time as it can be rezoned to a more appropriate urban zoning district. Land that is important to preserve in its natural state should remain within an agriculture district or be rezoned to a CN Conservation district to help protect environmental assets such as rivers and floodplains, critical open space, urban forests, soils, wetlands, and steep slope areas.
(b) Forms allowed in this district are as follows:
(1) Primary Form: agriculture open space (Open3).
(2) Form: basic utilities (UT1).
(3) Form: tower utilities (UT2).
(4) Form: warehousing and manufacturing —mining and waste (WM3). (Ord. 9-13, passed 3-19-2013; Ord. 37-19, passed 4-2-2019)
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-135: Current through local ordinance 54-26, passed 7-14-2026).
Full Breakdown
Zoning ordinance § 160.041 creates the AG Agriculture district in the Sioux Falls Code. Its stated intent is a limited agricultural industry within city limits: land here is typically agricultural land transitioning to future urban uses, and the district is meant to maintain current farming operations until the parcel is rezoned to a more appropriate urban district. Land worth preserving in its natural state instead shifts toward a CN Conservation district to protect rivers, floodplains, open space, urban forests, soils, wetlands, and steep slopes. Development within AG is capped by allowed building forms, primarily agriculture/open space (Open3), plus basic and tower utilities and limited warehousing, manufacturing, mining, and waste uses, rather than by a standalone right-to-farm statute.
Violations & Fines
Building, altering, or using land in the AG district contrary to the zoning code is a city ordinance violation; each day it continues after notice is a separate offense, and the city can pursue injunction, mandamus, or abatement action.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Sioux Falls have a standalone right-to-farm law?
What can be built in Sioux Falls' AG zoning district?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Sioux Falls
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