RAPID CITY, S.D. – Black Hills Area Habitat for Humanity broke ground Monday on a 40-unit project off Creek Drive, adding a new direction in the way they meet their mission to address the housing crisis.

“We know we can’t keep doing things the same way we always have done them,” Scott Engmann, Executive Director, Black Hills Habitat for Humanity said. “So East Creek Village is an opportunity for us to scale the model and to really focus on affordable financing to close the gap.”

“The issue is, really, we woke up and realized if we build one house at a time, we’re not going to put a dent in this problem,” he said.

East Creek Village is designed to meet the needs of several financial abilities of homebuyers as a mixed-income attainable homeownership opportunity for 40 qualifying individuals and families earning up to 120 percent of Area Median Income – currently, $40,200 – $123,600 in Pennington County.

About 30 percent of the people in the Black Hills can qualify for a Habitat home.

“The gap between what people are earning and what people can afford for a house, or what people can buy a house for, is growing by the day,” Engmann said.

Engmann said Habitat was using a commercial contractor – RCS Construction – to build the units. Half of the units will be available for higher income households who typically wouldn’t meet Habitat’s income guidelines.

“So, it’s a true mixed income workforce development neighborhood,” he said.

The 4.25-acre project – East Creek Village – is an affordable/workforce housing development at 1727 Creek Drive, currently a vacant lot near the Cambell Street Family Fare grocery store.

Townhomes will range from approximately 1,500 – 2,000 sq. ft. Each townhome will have its own garage/parking and will be purchased with its own plat of land.

“The need for affordable housing has not diminished over the last few years,” Sen. Mike Rounds said. “People find themselves being priced out of the housing market and in order to keep our communities strong and improve our quality of life we can’t simply sit by and accept this.”

The lot East Creek Village will leverage existing city infrastructure and is located near the bike path, a grocery store, restaurants, softball fields, public transit and employment opportunities.

Engmann said volunteers will be part of the project but not to the extent they have been in other Habitat projects. The single unit projects, Engmann said, would still be part of Habitat’s building projects, but larger scale projects – based on success of current projects – may get more traction with the organization.

“It has been important to us to create something that is appropriate for singles and families, meeting a critical need for the workforce of our region. The fact these will be purchased and occupied by homeowners who live and work in our community will make it durable and a great neighborhood for years to come,” Engmann said.

Infrastructure (curb, gutter, sidewalks, street, sewer, water) work starts in September with Phase I construction starting in 2027.