Ally Dakota Development

09/22/2026

🏆 Congratulations to BankWest - South Dakota — Ally Dakota Development's 2026 Lending Partner of the Year!

This year, Ally Dakota Development introduced a new award recognizing one financial institution statewide for its commitment to the SBA 504 loan program and partnership with our team.

And we're excited to recognize BankWest as our first Lending Partner of the Year!

This award goes beyond production. It recognizes a lending partner that consistently looks for opportunities to put the 504 program to work, brings Ally Dakota into projects early, works alongside our team throughout the process, and helps make SBA 504 financing an option for businesses in communities across South Dakota.

BankWest has been that kind of partner. Their team continues to bring us opportunities from across the state, and we appreciate the responsiveness, collaboration, and commitment they bring to every project we work on together.

Casey Derflinger with BankWest in Spearfish accepted the award at our West River Annual Celebration last week, presented by Ally Dakota Development Board President Matt Walters.

Congratulations to the entire BankWest team — and thank you for being such a strong partner in 504! 🩵

Your Ally in 504 🩵

09/22/2026

🩵 This is what SBA 504 is all about.

At our West River Annual Celebration last week, Run Wild owners and best friends Leilani Shattuck and Skye Potter shared the story behind their Summerset business — and what a story it is.

They opened Run Wild in August 2019. Just months later, they found themselves navigating COVID as brand-new business owners. They kept going, grew the business, and built Run Wild into a place where families from Summerset, Rapid City, and the surrounding area can come together year-round.

And then came another big milestone: buying the building they had been renting since they opened.

Through a financing partnership with Black Hills Community Bank and Ally Dakota Development, Run Wild used the SBA 504 loan program to purchase its Summerset location — taking them from tenants to owners and eliminating that monthly rent payment.

Having Leilani and Skye share their journey directly with our lending partners put a real-life story behind the work we do every day with the SBA 504 program.

Thank you, Leilani and Skye, for sharing your story with us — and congratulations on everything you've built at Run Wild! 🩵

Your Ally in 504 🩵

09/21/2026

🏆 Congratulations to our 2026 West River Lender of the Year — Peter Kottwitz!

Peter, with Sentinel Federal Credit Union in Rapid City, has been an outstanding lending partner to Ally Dakota Development and a strong supporter of the SBA 504 loan program.

Peter understands how to put the 504 program to work for his clients. He works alongside our team to figure out the financing structure and is always willing to do what it takes to get a deal across the finish line.

Ally Dakota Board President Matt Walters and Executive Director Fran White presented Peter with the award at our West River Annual Celebration in Rapid City last week — and the applause in the room says a lot about the kind of lender and partner he is. 👏

Congratulations, Peter! We're lucky to have you as an Ally in 504. 🩵

09/21/2026

🎉 Standing room only — literally!

We packed The Loft in Rapid City last Wednesday for Ally Dakota Development's West River Annual Celebration — so much so we ran out of chairs! 😆

The turnout was incredible, with lending partners from banks and credit unions across western South Dakota, many of our West River board members, Elevate Rapid City, and City of Rapid City officials all joining us.

We celebrated the partnerships behind SBA 504 lending, recognized some outstanding lending partners, and heard directly from the owners of Run Wild about their small business journey and what SBA 504 financing has meant for their business.

Fran White led us through the program, and South Dakota SBA District Director Bryson Patterson shared an update with the group.

And The Loft was such a great setting for it all — local craft beer, delicious Bundt cakes from a local small business, and a room full of people we enjoy working with. 🩵

Thank you to everyone who showed up and helped make this year's West River Annual Celebration such a great one. We appreciate the work you do with us throughout the year to help South Dakota businesses grow and thrive!

Your Ally in 504 🩵

09/11/2026

09/08/2026

🎉 This month, we're celebrating three work anniversaries at Ally Dakota Development!

Fran White — 24 years
Amy Waite — 22 years
Sydney Tarrell — 6 years

That's 5️⃣2️⃣ combined years of supporting South Dakota businesses, working alongside our lending partners, solving problems, and helping projects across the finish line.

We're very fortunate to have this crew. Happy work anniversary, Fran, Amy & Sydney!

09/04/2026

🎉 August was another great month of SBA 504 loan fundings!

From Rapid City to Black Hawk, Aberdeen to Sturgis, and Custer, we're celebrating five South Dakota businesses whose SBA 504 projects reached the finish line in August. 🩵

Behind every funding are hardworking entrepreneurs investing in their businesses and communities, along with lending partners who put in the work to help make these projects happen.

Congratulations to American Storage, Our Little Treasures Early Learning Academy, Emberline Press, Park Avenue Car Wash, and Premier Family Eyecare on this exciting milestone!

And to our lending partners — thank you for your continued partnership, collaboration, and commitment to helping South Dakota businesses grow. We love getting to be part of the team that brings these projects across the finish line!

Your Ally in 504 🩵

08/27/2026

👓 FUNDED AND IT FEELS SO GOOD 👓 — Congratulations to Premier Family Eyecare on its recent SBA 504 loan funding!

Dacotah Bank (Custer, SD) and Ally Dakota Development partnered to finance the purchase of land and construction of a new clinic for Premier Family Eyecare in Custer, South Dakota.

Dr. Nathan Wiederholt has been providing eye care in Custer since opening Premier Family Eyecare in 2009. After years of operating from leased space, the practice has moved into a newly constructed clinic designed to provide additional room for the practice to grow and serve even more patients in the Custer community.

As the only eye doctor in Custer, Dr. Wiederholt and his team provide comprehensive eye care, including the diagnosis and treatment of eye conditions, along with lenses, frames, and vision correction products.

Congratulations to Dr. Wiederholt and the Premier Family Eyecare team on their new home! Thank you to Phil Abernathy and Dacotah Bank for partnering with Ally Dakota Development to help bring this project across the finish line.

Your Ally in 504 🩵

08/25/2026

💦 FUNDED AND IT FEELS SO GOOD 💦 — Congratulations to Logan and Isabel Schentzel on the recent SBA 504 loan funding for Park Avenue Car Wash!

Legends West Bank (Spearfish, SD) and Ally Dakota Development partnered to finance the purchase of the existing car wash located on Park Avenue in Sturgis, South Dakota.

Park Avenue Car Wash has been serving the Sturgis community for decades and features four self-serve wash bays and an automatic wash bay. With this project funding, Logan and Isabel are stepping into business ownership and continuing the operations of this long-standing Sturgis business.

Congratulations, Logan and Isabel, on this exciting new venture! Thank you to Dusty Morehead and Legends West Bank for partnering with Ally Dakota Development to help make this ownership transition possible.

Your Ally in 504 🩵

08/24/2026

🎓 Investing in South Dakota's future!

This year, Ally Dakota Development is proud to award 10 $2,000 scholarships to South Dakota high school graduates pursuing business or finance degrees at an accredited post-secondary institution in South Dakota — that's $20,000 invested in the next generation of South Dakota business leaders!

We're excited to introduce one of our 2026 scholarship recipients, Maxwell Weeldreyer! 🎉

Maxwell is a graduate of Lennox Junior High and High School and is attending South Dakota State University this fall, where he will major in Finance / Business Economics.

Congratulations, Maxwell! We wish you the very best at SDSU and can't wait to see what your future holds! 🩵