City of Vermillion

About Us

Vermillion was founded in 1859 and incorporated in 1873.The City of Vermillion operates a Council-Manager form of government. The governing body is made up of 9 members, 8 City Council members are elected from four wards, the Mayor is elected at-large and presides over City Council meetings. The governing body hires a nonpartisan manager to run the organization. The City Council meets the first and third Mondays of each month at 6pm.In 2020 Vermillion citizens voted to adopt a Home Rule Charter, which provides for the public welfare and establishes a more representative and effective city government.

Mission Statement: The City of Vermillion’s mission is to continually improve the quality of life for its citizens through effective communication and strategic deployment of resources. By empowering our workforce and enhancing our facilities and organization, the City of Vermillion aims to attract, grow, and retain its population, and to be widely recognized as the kind of place people want to work, learn, play, and live.

Vermillion was recently named South Dakota's Community of the Year by the South Dakota Governor’s Office of Economic Development.

The City of Vermillion houses the code enforcement, engineering, light and power, street, utilities, planning and zoning, parks and recreation, finance, fire/EMS, library, police, and solid waste departments.