Businesses in Rapid City have invested more than $10 million in the continued support of Elevate Rapid City’s mission: Elevate the region for all.

Elevate was formed in 2018 and functions as a merged organization of the Rapid City Chamber of Commerce, Rapid City Economic Development Partnership, and the Economic Development Foundation. The initial campaign goal was $4.25 million to create 4,000 jobs and attract $300 million in business investment in the region.

"Rapid City is now on the national stage,” said president and CEO, Tom Johnson. “We are the 36th fastest-growing city in the country. And MSNBC just rated Rapid City as the third-best place in the nation to start a career. We're glad folks are starting to see what we've already known about the Black Hills region.”

To date, the region has seen:

• 5,127 jobs created,
• $742 million increase in consumer spending,
• 3% increase in incomes, and
• $362 million in annual capital investment.

Additionally, Elevate played a key role in supporting small businesses through the COVID-19 pandemic, opened the David Lust Accelerator Building, hired a Housing Coordinator, and served as a strong pro-business advocate at the state, city, and county levels.

In the next five years, Elevate is putting an even stronger focus on workforce development. The five-year goals include:

• $250 million increase in annual gross sales
• 15% increase in average weekly wage
• 5,000 jobs created
• Labor force participation rate greater than the national average
• $400 million in annual capital investment

Johnson added: "Even though we hit some of our initial fundraising goals, the work over the next five years continues. We aren't done yet. Rapid City has the same challenges as many places in our country: housing, workforce shortages, available childcare, regional planning, and infrastructure needs. These challenges aren't going away. And we can't tackle these issues without continued investment in the organization. No one is going to outwork this organization. Absolutely no one."

During a private celebration dinner a Hotel Alex Johnson, investors were gifted a one-of-a-kind piece of art designed and created by Jason Reuter, Against the Grain.