Hill City Prevailer

Proposed Rushmore Connector Trail draws praise, raises concerns

Published by admin on Thu, 05/13/2021 - 11:30am

About 50 people showed up to Prairie Berry Winery on May 1 to find out more about the Mickelson to Mount Rushmore Connector Trail project.

Those in attendance included several elected state and local officials as well as representatives from the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks.

The connector trail has been in the works for several years. The idea for the connector trail is a direct result of the success of the Mickelson, which has a “wide appeal” and is extremely “accessible.”

Hill City chamber gives update

Published by admin on Thu, 05/13/2021 - 11:29am

At the meeting of the Hill City Common Council on Monday, Janet Wetovick-Bily, executive director of the Hill City Area Chamber of Commerce, presented to the board about how the chamber is doing thus far into the spring.

For April, the chamber was focused on membership, its annual dinner and hiring and training new staff, among other things, Wetovick-Bily said.

OHV team taking action

Published by admin on Thu, 05/13/2021 - 11:29am

An off highway vehicle (OHV) action team has been established by the Black Hills National Forest (BHNF).

The team was formed out of a summit held in February of this year.

New Keystone Town Board president elected

Published by admin on Thu, 05/13/2021 - 11:29am

The Keystone Town Board has elected a new board president at the most recent town board meeting.

Kwinn Neff will replace Lynette Gohsman as president of the town board. Gohsman thanked “everyone for being so supportive” during her time on the board.

Matt Fullilove was sworn in as the newest town trustee. Mitch Johnson was sworn in as the town’s attorney, and Ron Bengs was sworn in as the town engineer.

Members of the library board, elderly housing commission and cemetery committee were approved for swearing in at their next respective meetings.

Shooters up in arms over gate, restrictions

Published by admin on Thu, 05/13/2021 - 11:29am

A debate between user groups has prompted the ire of some Keystone residents and Black Hills gun enthusiasts.

A gate was recently installed by the Black Hills National Forest (BHNF) rangers on Forest Road FSR 353.2C.

According to officials from the BHNF the gate was installed in the anticipation of closing the road for the month of June. The gate is an attempt to “prevent people from going down the road” and to “dissuade people from shooting” for a 30 day period, according to Jim Gubbels from the Mystic Ranger District.

Tourism week kicks off at Rushmore

Published by admin on Thu, 05/06/2021 - 11:39am

On a chilly Monday morning with occasional flurries at Mount Rushmore National Memorial, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem and South Dakota Sec. of Tourism Jim Hagen kicked off National Travel and Tourism Week.

The two addressed the past tourist season and what is to be expected for the 2021 tourism season — and by all metrics it’s looking to be a big year.

School district ranked No. 1

Published by admin on Thu, 05/06/2021 - 11:39am

With the school year winding down, Hill City School District superintendent Blake Gardner had some big news to share in his newsletter.

US News and World Report produced its annual rankings of the top schools in the each state, and Hill City High School was ranked number one in South Dakota.

“We are honored to be ranked number one,” Gardner wrote in his newsletter. “We have a great high school and a phenomenal feeder system. I have always felt that we are the best school in South Dakota, and I love when rankings like this support my beliefs.”

New library hours this month

Published by admin on Thu, 05/06/2021 - 11:39am

“Life is like riding a bicycle: to keep your balance, you must keep moving,” Albert Einstein

The library will be closed May 29, May 30 and May 31. Happy Memorial Day!

Starting Monday, May 3 the library will have new hours.

Monday: 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

Tuesday: 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

Wednesday: 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

Thursday: 8 a.m.-7 p.m.

Friday 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

Saturday: 9 a.m.-2 p.m.

Save the date

Woman arrested after bringing drugs to 24/7

Published by admin on Thu, 05/06/2021 - 11:39am

A cascading domino effect of poor decisions led to a woman being arrested by Custer County Sheriff’s deputies on multiple charges Friday. Among other things, the woman showed up for 24/7 testing at the courthouse allegedly with drugs and paraphernalia in her purse.

Deputy Derrick Reifenrath said 45-year-old Bobbi Buchholz, a 24/7 drug testing program participant from Pennington County, was scheduled to appear at the Custer County Courthouse for urinalysis Friday morning. He said since she lives in Hill City it is closer for her to come to Custer for the testing.

Pacer expansion almost complete

Published by admin on Thu, 05/06/2021 - 11:38am

Pacer Corporation is expanding, and in doing so, is diversifying the products in can offer.

The expansion project, which began last spring, is producing a courser grade of feldspar, which Pacer had not historically done. That, says Ryan Fredsall, Pacer’s general manager, opens up the market into possibilities of providing the new product for manufacturers of insulation and tile, two of the biggest consumers of courser feldspar.