They Built It Themselves
Last weekend, the Second Saturday Market opened its 2nd Season at 8th & Railroad in Downtown Sioux Falls. I was there. I've been there since the beginning. And every time I show up, I leave more convinced that what Owen Monahan and this community built is exactly what this city needed.
What’s “the second saturday market?”
The Second Saturday Market is a monthly evening market held at the 8th & Railroad Center in Downtown Sioux Falls, running from 6:30 to 10:00 PM on the second Saturday of the month.
On paper, that's the description. In practice, it's something harder to put into words.
It's vintage vendors and sneaker collectors set up next to first-time food entrepreneurs testing a new concept. It's artists selling work they made in their living rooms. It's musicians playing to a crowd that actually stops to listen. It's car and tuner culture sharing a building with hip-hop and handmade goods and people who just came to see what was happening.
There is nowhere else in Sioux Falls where all of that exists in the same room on the same night.
What Makes It Different
The Second Saturday Market didn't come from a grant. It didn't come from a city initiative or a downtown development committee.
It came from Owen Monahan and a community of artists and makers who looked around and said: we should have a place to do this. So they built one.
The vendor policy says it all: no strict commitments, no gatekeeping — just a genuine spirit of collaboration and community love. Anyone with something to sell, share, or create has a shot. The only requirements are passion and showing up.
That's it.
And what they've built is remarkable. The Second Saturday Market has done something few people, organizations, or institutions in this city have managed to do: it's genuinely engaged young people and the subcultures they belong to. Not as a target demographic. Not as a marketing strategy. Just by creating a space that actually reflects who they are.
This Is Our Pillars in Action
When I talk about a Vibrant Community, this is what I mean.
Not a city-commissioned mural. Not a ribbon cutting. A group of people who wanted something to exist, made it exist, and kept showing up until it grew into something that fills a building every month and has a waiting list for vendors.
When I talk about Equal Opportunity, the Second Saturday Market is that too. It's a young person selling vintage finds for the first time. It's someone trying a food concept before they can afford a brick-and-mortar. It's a maker who just needed a table and an audience.
Low barrier. High energy. Real community.
A city that believes in its people creates the conditions for things like this to thrive — and then gets out of the way.
We'll See You on May 9th
We believe in what the Second Saturday Market is building. So much so that we're going to be there as a vendor at the next event on May 9th.
Come find us at 8th & Railroad. We'd love to connect, hear what's on your mind, and show you what our campaign is all about — in the kind of space that already embodies everything we're fighting for.
Details are on our events page.
It's always been our city, and now is our moment.
Let's rise together. ☀️
— Vince Danh Candidate, Sioux Falls City Council At-Large | June 2nd, 2026 vinceforsiouxfalls.com
📍 8th & Railroad Center | Downtown Sioux Falls
🗓 Saturday, May 9, 2026 | 6:30 – 10:00 PM