Hill City Prevailer

Local, county bodies look to fill vacancies

Published by admin on Wed, 02/04/2026 - 9:01am
Nominating petitions for Hill City Common Council positions are available for pickup at city hall. 
Several positions are available, including that of mayor for a two-year term. The current mayor is Tana Nichols.
Two-year term positions for Ward I and Ward II aldermen are also up for grabs. The seats are currently held by Justin Thiry and Dennis Siebert.

Property taxes focus at crackerbarrel

Published by admin on Wed, 02/04/2026 - 8:53am
Nearly 60 people came to a District 30 legislative crackerbarrel hosted by the Hill City Prevailer and Custer County Chronicle Jan. 31 at the Super 8 in Hill City.
Similar to last year’s event, many in the room were there to discuss property taxes with the District 30 legislators, offering their take on what may play out in Pierre on taxes as well as other issues.

Concerns over contingency discussed

Published by admin on Wed, 01/28/2026 - 9:38am
Trustees approved an amendment to Tax Increment Finance (TIF) district No. 2 for the K Bar S  Lodge expansion project at the Jan. 21 Keystone Town Board meeting. The TIF project costs have increased 35 percent over the original amount. The TIF approved in May of 2025 had the project costs in the amount of $1,806,275 for the purpose of infrastructure improvements. The Developer, K Bar S Lodge, LLC, requested this  amendment to increase the eligible project costs to $2,438,471.

BHI puts print at former winery

Published by admin on Wed, 01/21/2026 - 9:54am
The Black Hills Institute of Geologic Research (BHI) now has an entire campus located on the site formerly housed by Prairie Berry Winery and Addie Camp General Store. While the property was under contract at one point and was even about to be divided, the entire 17.5 acre parcel was purchased and will eventually house a three- story museum and gift shop as well as a food and beverage space and event center, the latter of which is already accepting reservations. 

District sets sights on student behavior

Published by admin on Wed, 01/21/2026 - 9:52am
Hill City once again had something to celebrate at the Jan. 12 Hill City School District Board of Education meeting, applauding the Oral Interpretation students on a job well done at the state festival. Coach Jennifer Mueller had three teams qualify for state, receiving two superior and one excellent rating at the festival. The team will continue its season, competing in tournaments in Wyoming and participating in the National Qualifier in Cheyenne, Wyo., at the end of February for a chance to advance.

Alderman tasked with approving task order

Published by admin on Wed, 01/21/2026 - 9:51am
Aldermen changed a  task order for city engineer AE2S services at the Jan. 13 Hill City Common Council (HCCC) meeting. The order council members received was for $50,000, but aldermen approved only half that amount. Nate Anderson, city administrator,  said the fee was for engineering services outside of the wastewater treatment plan and water project.
He gave an example of looking at stormwater and grit removal for a proposed hotel at the Hubcap Diner site.

Keystone logistics, activities discussed for 250th

Published by admin on Wed, 01/14/2026 - 9:59am
About 20 people met at the Keystone Community Center to discuss Independence Day and the 250th celebrations for 2026. 
It was again confirmed that President Donald Trump will attend fireworks at Mount Rushmore July 3. The ticketing system will be made available on recre
tion.gov, although it is not yet available.
Three members of the Keystone Town Board were present at the meeting, but no vote was made and thus did not constitute a quorum. The meeting was advertised as one to present ideas, and many in the room shared exactly that.

Keytone gives thanks at first meeting of 2026

Published by admin on Wed, 01/14/2026 - 9:56am
There were many thank yous given at the Jan. 9 Keystone Town Board meeting. 
Trustee Nikki Ball recognized the Stars and Stripes Alliance for its work at the Keystone Senior Center and Social Club. 
“It brings people together,” said Ball. 
Paula Cottrell wants to break up the dates for the senior center monthly  lunch and brunch into other weekends. The group also wants to offer dinners during the winter.
Town board president Casey McNulty offered  personal funds for assistance with food. 

Library changes policies for county patrons

Published by admin on Wed, 01/14/2026 - 9:55am
Hill City and Keystone library patrons now have a different option for taking out books from the Rapid City Library, as what was formerly known as reciprocal borrowing has ended as of Jan. 10. Reciprocal borrowing allowed library patrons with the Hill City or Keystone library card to take out material from the Rapid City library using their Hill City or Keystone card. 
Rapid City Public  Library director Terri Davis said that program was “easy to trial with libraries since they all had shared funding from the county.” 

Bonfire lights up Beretta Road

Published by admin on Wed, 01/07/2026 - 9:52am
First responders in the area were busy New Year’s Eve as revelers held a bonfire in Johnson Gulch off of  Beretta Road just outside of Keystone and Hill City. The road itself was posted as closed, yet Pennington County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) deputies were able to identify approximately 70 individuals who ignored the closure and attended the bonfire.