Two public buildings in South Dakota have earned the dubious distinction of being included on a national list of the country's 100 ugliest public buildings, according to a comprehensive survey conducted by the New Jersey Real Estate Network. The survey, which polled more than 3,000 people across the United States, highlighted structures that residents interact with daily but find aesthetically displeasing.

While South Dakota is widely recognized for its stunning natural landscapes rather than impressive urban architecture, the Pennington County Administration Building in Rapid City and the Denny Sanford Premier Center in Sioux Falls both made appearances on this unflattering national ranking. The survey results demonstrate that architectural design continues to matter significantly to residents, even for purely functional government buildings.

The Pennington County Administration Building in Rapid City claimed the 57th position on the national list. This building has served residents of South Dakota's second-most populous county for approximately a decade, housing various county departments that relocated from the courthouse in 2014. The structure provides essential government services to local residents, but its architectural appeal has apparently fallen short of public expectations. In a notable development, many county departments are scheduled to move to a new administration building elsewhere in Rapid City during late October and early November.

Ranked 93rd on the list, the Denny Sanford Premier Center in Sioux Falls represents a more complex case of architectural disappointment. The 12,000-seat entertainment venue opened in 2014 as the largest publicly funded project in Sioux Falls history, carrying a substantial price tag of $117 million. However, the building's problems extended beyond aesthetic concerns to include structural issues that emerged shortly before its grand opening.

Just months before the Premier Center's debut, exterior panels began experiencing significant bulging, creating an unsightly ripple effect across the building's curved exterior surface. This structural problem not only affected the building's appearance but also raised concerns about construction quality and oversight. The city of Sioux Falls subsequently announced a $1 million settlement agreement with the contractors responsible for the construction, who agreed to replace the affected panels as part of the resolution.

The transparency surrounding the Premier Center's repair process became a matter of public interest and legal action. In 2017, following a lawsuit filed by the Argus Leader newspaper, the South Dakota Supreme Court issued an order requiring the city to release the contract it had negotiated for the panel repairs, highlighting the public's right to access information about taxpayer-funded projects.

According to the New Jersey Real Estate Network's analysis, more than half of the top 30 ugliest buildings on their list are courthouses and judicial centers, though libraries, auditoriums, and city halls also made notable appearances. The organization emphasized that these structures represent everyday buildings that citizens must interact with for essential services such as paying bills, contesting fines, or renewing licenses, rather than tourist attractions or architectural showcases.

The survey results underscore an important principle about public architecture: while these buildings serve as functional workhorses rather than aesthetic showpieces, their design quality still significantly impacts the daily experiences of the residents who use them. As the New Jersey Real Estate Network noted in their findings, these structures may not be intended as tourist destinations or architectural marvels, but effective design remains crucial for the communities they serve.

The national list was topped by Michigan's City of Flint Municipal Center, followed by California's Fresno County Superior Court and New York's Buffalo City Court. Other buildings in the top ten included judicial and municipal facilities from Mississippi, Pennsylvania, Ohio, New Jersey, Arkansas, Alabama, and Texas, demonstrating that architectural disappointment in public buildings spans across the entire United States.