The Daily Slice, your Black Hills news podcast in under 10 minutes. Delivered every morning Monday-Friday at homesliceaudio.com/dailyslice
Natural Grocers opening set for July 22 in downtown Rapid City
RAPID CITY, S.D. — Natural Grocers announced July 8 that its downtown Rapid City store will open July 22. Jersey Mike’s Subs and Juna Sleep Systems are now open at the redevelopment site at 855 Omaha St. Juna Sleep’s Rapid City showroom is the company’s third location. The former Albertsons property has been vacant since 2017 and is being redeveloped by Dream Design International. Natural Grocers’ grand opening will include a donation presentation to Feeding South Dakota, a ribbon-cutting ceremony with community leaders, giveaways, discounts and free samples. (Full story)
Sturgis Council Supports Preliminary Resolution for Proposed TIF District
STURGIS, S.D. — The Sturgis City Council approved a preliminary policy direction resolution supporting continued evaluation of a proposed tax increment financing district for vacant property west of the intersection of 20th Street and Lazelle Street at the mouth of Boulder Canyon. Bergman Construction, L.L.C. requested the resolution as it considers commercial development of the Highway Service Commercial-zoned property. The resolution does not create a TIF district, approve a project plan or development agreement, authorize debt or commit the city to reimburse project costs. Mayor Rod Bradley said it only expresses support for further evaluation of the proposal. (Full story)
Rapid City Releases 2025 Drinking Water Quality Report
RAPID CITY, S.D. — Rapid City has issued its Drinking Water Quality Report for the 2025 reporting year. The Water Quality Report is an annual update provided by the Rapid City Water Division, detailing important updates and information on timely topics involving the department and community. This year’s annual report provides the latest test results on various regulated substances in the City’s drinking water system, the status on the lead service line inventory project and factoids about the City’s water system. The report is available online at www.rcgov.org and visiting the Water Division page. It is also available in hard copy from the City’s Cashier/Finance Office. (Full story)
South Dakota Mines Student Develops Precision Fertilizer Technology
RAPID CITY, S.D. — A student at South Dakota Mines is developing a fertilizer precision technology to help farmers. Zach Karg grew up on a family farm in Colorado and his background motivated his work to help farmers plant crops more efficiently. He is part of a research team at South Dakota Mines working on a project founded by the National Science Foundation to help farmers identify where crops need more nutrients. The system uses drones, sensors and machines to find problem areas and address them accordingly. Karg says the technology can help farmers combat rising fertilizer costs and minimize negative impacts to the soil. (Full story)
Build Dakota scholarships support two Western Dakota Tech automotive students
RAPID CITY, S.D. — Two students have earned full-ride scholarships through the Build Dakota Scholarship Program to attend the automotive program at Western Dakota Technical College in Rapid City. Parker Bartling and Noah Cessna signed agreements Thursday and will work in South Dakota for three years after graduation. Black Hills Tire, a program sponsor for seven years, will help fund the scholarships, provide part-time employment during school and consider the students for jobs after graduation. Created in 2015, the Build Dakota Scholarship Program addresses workforce shortages by funding technical education in high-demand fields across South Dakota. (Full story)
Wyoming tightens wastewater rules after Meta datacenter incident
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (The Guardian) — Wyoming officials have adopted stricter wastewater disposal rules after a contractor building Meta’s new AI data center discharged water contaminated with the naturally occurring bacterium Cupriavidus gilardii into Cheyenne’s public sewer system. The contamination was discovered during routine testing in February, prompting the city to revoke Meta’s wastewater discharge authority and require closed-loop cooling systems to collect and dispose of wastewater offsite. Meta said drinking water was not affected, its contractor stopped discharging wastewater immediately, and independent testing found no trace of the bacterium. (Full story)
US home prices hit an all-time high as sales slow and mortgage rates rise
(AP) — Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes slowed in June, but a key measure of home prices climbed to an all-time high, adding to prospective homebuyers’ affordability challenges. The National Association of Realtors said Thursday that existing home sales fell 2.4% last month from May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.09 million units. Sales rose 2.8% compared with June last year. The latest sales tally fell short of the roughly 4.21 million pace economists were expecting, according to FactSet. The national median sales price increased 1.8% in June from a year earlier to $440,600.(Full story)
Bonnie Tyler, who topped the charts with epic ‘Total Eclipse of the Heart,’ has died at 75
(AP) — Bonnie Tyler, the gravelly voiced Welsh pop star known for “Total Eclipse of the Heart,” has died at 75. She was hospitalized in Portugal in May 2026 for emergency surgery and placed in an induced coma. Tyler earned three Grammy nominations and represented Britain at Eurovision in 2013. Her iconic song, boosted by real eclipses, has over 1 billion streams. Born Gaynor Hopkins, she grew up in Wales and was inspired by artists like Janis Joplin. Her career took off with hits like “It’s a Heartache.” Tyler was married to Robert Sullivan, a former Olympic judo competitor. (Full story)
