Rapid City's newest strip mall owners appear to be getting picky about which businesses they'll lease to, which may be a reason there are still so many storefronts available in what appears to be a vacancy glut.

For the more selective mall owners, it's about avoiding the usual lineup of pawn shops and title lenders and the reputation that can ride along.

"I think there are some people trying to get away from the check-cashing, casino, tanning- bed kinds of uses," said Marcia Elkins, director of the city's growth management department. "I've heard some comments from folks, that there's kind of a saturation there people are trying to get away from."

They're hoping to set a certain ambiance for shoppers as well as avoid competition.

With an eye to the growth of the surrounding neighborhood, dentist Bill Donhiser and Dr. Bruce Evans, both of Rapid City, built the Stoney Creek Plaza East and South buildings at the corner of Sheridan Lake Road and Catron Boulevard.

They turned some businesses down, holding out for the upscale and different, the kind of stores that will cater to those who live nearby, said Jim Dickerson, their property manager.

The look and location of the buildings mean you shop for clients to match, said Loren Miles, a broker associate with Prudential Kahler Realtors.

"Any project like that, you don't take everyone that comes along."

Some bars and casinos interested in moving into the new buildings left disappointed, Dickerson said. It might take awhile, but Dickerson is willing to wait for the right kind of business that fits Donhiser's goal for the location.

"It would become a destination," he said. "It's a place they would go to because of who they were."

Although a regular bar may not get the nod, Buffalo Wings & Rings, a chicken wing franchise that sells items such as burgers for $8 - fries not included - opened in February.

On tap at the corner is an upscale tapas bar.

"We're not going to just put in a bar," Dickerson said. "They'll be tied to buffalo wings and that type of thing."

Dickerson may soon close a deal with tenants who will fill the entire East building, he said.

At Tuscany Square along Omaha Street downtown, property manager Marci Wieseler of Century Development Corp. has tried to assemble a good mix of businesses that don't detract from each other, including an upscale lighting store and a family pizza place.

Wieseler turned down a casino and a title-loan operation whose owners were interested in the 76,000-square-foot location.

On Haines Avenue in north Rapid City, the 18,000-square-foot Cuatro Vistas building is nearing completion. Sandra Runde, a commercial real estate broker with Prudential Kahler Realtors, is getting close to filling the building with tenants. But the owners were adamant there be no video lottery businesses.

"We have definitely turned people down here," she said.

That is also the case at The Shops at Rapid City, a 20,800-square-foot strip mall built about a year ago on Disk Drive between Kohl's and PetSmart. Mike Derby of Bender Commercial said the owners wanted something specific for the building.

"We've had a lot of interest in that center, but the owners want a true retail presence and that type of business," he said. "They don't want to fill it up with just anybody."

At Lookout Plaza on U.S. Highway 16, owner Jim DeForrest envisioned an upscale vibe, unlike what he calls the "junky" strip malls built in the 1960s and '70s.

He began with Black Hills Coffee Company and developed Stonewalls Espresso Cafe & Pizza Kitchen at the location. The restaurant is a destination for fine coffee drinks and stone oven-baked pizza served with beer or wine.

DeForrest was careful about the tenants he chose to fill out the buildings. He wanted dependable businesses that would provide some foot traffic from what he sees as the right kind of customers.

"We have turned down certain businesses that we don't think will work well here," he said. "Not everything is a perfect fit."

Looking to the neighborhood is important, he said.

"You have to take your neighborhood into consideration," he said. "Those are the people who, just by proximity, should be your regular customers."

See related story: Strip mall owners endure empty buildings, while holding out for 'right' tenants