Tractor Supply Company, a farm and ranch equipment store, likely will add a location in Rapid City, a TSC spokesman confirmed Wednesdsay.

The new store would open in April, according to Bob Hoskins of TSC media relations.

The new store could join the new retail area along East Mall Drive, if the Rapid City Planning Commission gives developers the go-ahead.

The board will consider requests at a meeting today that would put the store on the north side of East Mall Drive, just west of the Black Hills Visitor Information Center.

With city approval in hand, the store would add to the big retail stores that would anchor the development of that area. The newly-opened Cabela's sits nearby, as does the future Sam's Club, which will be lnext door to the outdoor retailer.

Carlsbad, Calif.-based Foursquare Properties, the developer, has dubbed that area The Gateway at Rapid City, according to the company's Web site. The Gateway area covers 67 acres east of Dyess Avenue, between Interstate 90 and East Mall Drive, just off I-90's Exit 61.

There is 600,000 square feet of retail space in the area, according to the company's promotional brochure. Cabela's is an 80,000-square-foot store.

Sam's Club, now on La Crosse Street, will relocate to the new, larger location. Community Health Center of the Black Hills, currently housed in a cramped building across the street, has made an offer for the 115,000-square-foot building.

Sam's Club told the Journal last month that the store would relocate within 12 to 18 months.

The Gateway developer is not commenting about new stores. Jeff Vitek, Foursquare's president, said the company should have more announcements soon.

Tractor Supply Company has 814 stores in 44 states and focuses on supplying farms and ranches. According to the company's Web site, TSC stores are located in rural communities and just outside major metropolitan markets.

For more information about the Gateway development, go to the Foursquare Properties' Web site at www.fsqp.com/properties/gateway_rapid_city.php

Contact Fugleberg at 394-8421 or jeremy.fugleberg@rapidcityjournal.com