Rapid City builders have been busy this year, and now the numbers show just how busy. The city has passed $400 million in building permit valuation for 2026. That has happened only one other time in the city's history.
KOTA reported that the city's 2026 total stands at $401.6 million, with nearly three months still left in the year. The city crossed the line after the Building Services Division issued a $3 million permit for the Sanford Hospital project on Addison Avenue. That permit covers site improvements and erosion and sediment control for the first phase of the project.
The only other year Rapid City topped $400 million was 2023. That year, the city issued 2,815 building permits worth a combined $463.5 million, still the record.
How this year compares
To see how big a year this is, look back at 2025. The city's year-end building services report, released in January, showed 2,428 permits worth more than $390.9 million. That was the third-highest total in city history, behind the 2023 record and the $393.5 million in 2021.
In other words, 2026 has already beaten every full year except 2023, and the year isn't over. With October, November and December still to come, the total will keep climbing. Whether it reaches the 2023 record depends on what else gets permitted before the end of December.
The Sanford project is a big piece of the 2026 story. The $3 million permit that pushed the city over $400 million covers only site improvements and erosion control for the project's first phase, so more permits for the hospital are likely as the work moves along.
Large permits have been a big part of Rapid City's recent run. The 2025 report counted 68 permits worth more than $1 million each, including 12 worth at least $5 million. That compared with 54 permits over $1 million in 2024. The biggest single permit last year, valued at more than $22 million, went to the Children's Home Society of South Dakota, with Gustafson Builders as contractor, for phase two of its facility at 5301 Mount Rushmore Road.
What about housing?
Big commercial and medical projects get the headlines, but housing has been part of Rapid City's growth, too. The city's 2025 year-end report showed 186 permits for single-family homes. That was the third-highest total in that category since 2007, and a big jump from 119 in 2024.
The city also issued 24 duplex permits in 2025, which it said was more than the previous six years combined. One example from last year: in July, the city issued 18 permits valued at about $1.68 million each, or $30.3 million together, to Presbyterian Retirement Village with Scull Construction Service as contractor for duplex housing at Terrace Hills Trail and Shaker Court.
"Overall, it was another solid year for building in Rapid City," Community Development Director Vicki Fisher said in January. "We are extremely pleased to see the increases in single family home and duplex construction. We are hoping for another year of strong building activity in 2026."
That hope has come true, at least on the total dollar value. The city has not yet released a 2026 year-end breakdown showing how much of this year's total is housing and how much is commercial, medical or public work. The 2025 report came out in mid-January.
For now, the milestone shows that money is still moving into construction in western South Dakota.
Why it matters for Contractors
A $400 million year means work for a lot of people. That includes general contractors and subcontractors, plus suppliers, equipment dealers and the crews who pour, frame, wire and finish. A large hospital project in its first phase also points to more work in the years ahead as the project moves from site prep to vertical construction.
For residential builders, the 2025 jump in single-family and duplex permits was a good sign, and it will be worth watching whether 2026 holds that pace once the year-end numbers come out. Rapid City is one of the busiest building markets in South Dakota right now. The city posts monthly building permit reports on its website, and contractors who want to grow in the Black Hills should keep a close eye on what gets permitted next.