SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now)—The Sioux Falls Zoo & Aquarium will break ground on a new butterfly garden on Tuesday, October 21.

The groundbreaking marks the start of phase one of combining the Great Plains Zoo and the Butterfly House & Aquarium into a single campus covering land, sea, and sky.

The groundbreaking will begin at 4:30 pm, so the zoo will be closing at 3:00 pm and the BHA will close at 3:30 pm on Tuesday.

Construction of the new butterfly garden will take place over the next year, with a grand opening projected for winter 2026-27.

The butterfly garden is funded by the We Can’t Wait campaign, which aims to raise $25 million to match a lead gift from Denny Sanford.

SFZA is also entering the Fill Our Tank phase of We Can’t Wait, aiming to reach its fundraising goal to

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