Looking Ahead: Steve Allender

Steve Allender

Mayor of Rapid City

What was your first job?

I worked for a tractor and implement dealer the summer I turned 15. I ran errands, cleaned up and made minor repairs to used tractor bodies. I also painted old tractors — all for $2 per hour. The lesson from that experience was that no matter how small the responsibility, there is always a legacy left behind.

For years, I saw those tractors around town and recognized some of my work. It helped cement the memories of working there. My boss, a great guy named Sebastian, gave a know-nothing kid responsibility and I did the best I could. I learned and grew from it. There were no meaningless moments, I hope, for either of us.

How has 2020 changed you?

If I’m being honest, it’s been a rough and thoroughly disappointing year. The past five years have been a productive and rewarding time, but some of that has been stalled or reversed this year. The pandemic and the tremendous amount of stress it has inflicted on the community has changed us, at least temporarily. Rapid City is still doing well because of each individual’s effort, rather than a collective team effort. The mask debate is the most prominent symptom of how we are feeling this year, but it’s not the only symptom. We are polarized and politicized and in some cases paralyzed. I know we are resilient and that alone is reason to believe we will come out of this stronger than before. When the pandemic season has passed, picking up the pieces will be important, providing we can find the pieces.

If I’m not being honest, 2020 hasn’t changed me or my role at all.

Why are you excited for 2021?

I believe 2021 will mark the beginning of a new chapter for Rapid City. The housing and construction industries are surging, the B-21 bomber contractors and airman are already arriving, and the greater Rapid City area is on the cusp of a very significant period of growth in terms of population, economy and quality of life. Years from now, we will look back on 2021 as the year of positive change, and to be able to be a part of it is truly an honor.

Why do you live in Rapid City?

The variety. I can choose from a hundred different things to do, drive there and start doing those things within an hour or two, almost any day of the year. Our access to outdoor activities is among the best in the world and I see this as a gift. But just as importantly, the people here are among the friendliest anywhere. Rapid City is everyone’s home town, because when you are here, you are among friends. Rapid City is an easy place to love.