Rapid City food deserts provide access, availability barriers to thousands – Rapid City South Dakota news, weather, sports

RAPID CITY, S.D. — Thousands of Rapid City residents live in a food desert – areas with low incomes and low access to supermarkets.

That was according to a recent study about food availability in Rapid City.

The Food Security Needs Assessment of Rapid City was commissioned by the Black Hills Area Community Foundation to identify food needs, barriers, and recommendations to improve food security in Rapid City.

The study showed gaps in food access in terms of geography, transportation, and affordability, and lack of food pantries available after 5 p.m. or on weekends.

“In Rapid City, we really prioritize self sufficiency, we know as a value in this community, and our systems of support should reflect that by making sure that folks can reach charitable resources and access them if they’re working a job with conventional hours,” said Nicole Schlabach, Strategic Communications Manager, Black Hills Area Community Foundation.

The 2024 study found that 33,000 Rapid City residents live in a food desert – with the highest areas of concern being neighborhoods between north street and I-90 where 75 percent of the population lives at least a mile from a supermarket.

“We also see few charitable resources available after 5pm and on the weekends, and this was a key barrier that really stood out to us in reviewing the study, because in general, most resources in Rapid City are available during the work day, which makes it difficult for folks who are working a job with conventional hours,” Schlabach said.

The study concluded that decreasing federal support for food programs presented challenges for Rapid Citians.

Today, non-profits navigating changes due to losses in federal funding are encouraged to contact the foundation for grant opportunities.

In 2026 however, as a result of the study, the Black Hills Area Community Foundation will invest $100,000 in food security grants in an effort to remove gaps in food security.

“What we do with the $100,000 investment next year will depend both on the upcoming federal changes in October that may change the food landscape again, and input from the nonprofit community that we work with so we’re in the process of determining the focus of that investment,” Schlabach said.

The Augustana Research Institute Study was commissioned by the Black Hills Area Community Foundation and done in collaboration with other non-profit leaders.

The complete study can be found on the Augustana Research Institute website.

Jerry Steinley has lived in the Black Hills most of his life and calls Rapid City home. He received a degree in Journalism with a minor in Political Science from Metropolitan State University in Denver in 1994.