News

Change order OK’d for Hermosa School

Published by admin on Thu, 02/11/2021 - 10:07am

The Hermosa School project once again took center stage at the February meeting of the Custer School District Board of Education on Monday, as the board heard a construction update and approved a nearly $17,000 change order on the project.
Architect Jeremy Altman of Architects, Inc. told the board a mistake had been made which resulted in the steel decking on the second floor of the building being kinked during the pouring of concrete. He said workers had put a piece of equipment in the wrong place which caused the deformation of the deck.

Beware vaccine scams

Published by admin on Thu, 02/11/2021 - 10:03am

The FBI, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Better Business Bureau (BBB) warn of scams that are circulating as the Unites States continues to roll out COVID-19 vaccinations.
Know that you won’t have to pay to receive the COVID-19 vaccine when it’s your turn. If you’re asked to pay or provide private information, that’s not legit.

How sweet it is: Kaitlinn Verchio starts chocolate company

Published by admin on Thu, 02/04/2021 - 9:59am

Kaitlinn Verchio is the very definition of local kid done good.

The 2012 Hill City High School graduate who was born and raised in Hill City went to culinary school after high school and has now started her own chocolate business: Dazed on Sugar, which was officially launched in November 2020.

“Thinsg are going great,” she said. “Way better than what I expected. People have been super generous and kind and super excited for me. That has been making my journey easier because starting a business is stressful and scary and hard.”

New city employee starts

Published by admin on Thu, 02/04/2021 - 9:59am

City hall in Hill City has a new fish in its pond.

Tracy Fish is the newest employee at city hall, starting last month as the office assistant.

“I am...helping the finance office with organizing and filing and catching up on some things,” she said. “And I’m learning a lot, too.”

Fish was born in South Dakota and grew up in a small town south of Sioux Falls. She married into the military and had been away for some time. She and her husband had some land in Custer, and upon his retirement from the Army, they moved back here.

Committee forms to look at vacation rentals

Published by admin on Thu, 02/04/2021 - 9:58am

A committee has formed to look at and create a policy regarding vacation rentals in Hill City.

The decision to form such a committee came out of Monday’s Hill City Planning and Zoning Commission and after the Hill City Common Council approved a conditional use permit to allow for a vacation rental at its last meeting.

Search for Dennard suspended

Published by admin on Thu, 02/04/2021 - 9:58am

The search for missing child Serenity Dennard is being suspended, according to a post on the Pennington County Sheriff's Facebook page.

The investigation, however, remains open.

“Absent new information, the search for Serenity Dennard is being suspended,” the post says.

Dennard was 9 when she went missing from the Black Hills Children’s Home in Rockerville on Feb. 3, 2019 at about 10:45 a.m. A 911 call from the Children’s Home was placed at 12:26 pm.

Citizen request not an option

Published by admin on Thu, 02/04/2021 - 9:57am

A recent request to consider donating money to the Hill City Youth Athletic program for new uniforms has been put on hold.

The request to help the organization made by a local citizen at a recent Keystone Town Board meeting was supposed to appear on the Feb. 3 agenda but will not be discussed.

“This is a great cause,” said Keystone town finance officer Cassandra Ott. “But it’s not a great fit for either organization right now.”

The problem lies in the strict rules the athletic program must adhere to with their uniforms.

County rescinds firearms in courthouse

Published by admin on Thu, 02/04/2021 - 9:22am

The general public is once again no longer allowed to carry firearms into the Custer County Courthouse after a resolution that allowed them to do so was rescinded by the Custer County Commission at its Jan. 27 meeting.
“I really don’t feel this is all worth this,” said commissioner Travis Bies, who was serving at the first meeting of his new term as a commissioner. “All this media...cost back on the taxpayers, the inconvenience for everyone having to go to Pennington County—I think we should go back to where we were.”

Theatre set to return

Published by admin on Thu, 02/04/2021 - 9:20am

If the stars (or perhaps in this case, the stage lights) align as hoped, community theatre may return to Custer as early as this spring. The Custer Area Arts Council has announced a partnership with local playwright Wally Steele to produce Steele’s original play “The First Practice of ‛He’s Dead, He’s Dead!’” later this month with an opening set for April.

Bies sworn in after confusion

Published by admin on Thu, 02/04/2021 - 9:19am

Travis Bies was sworn into his new term as a Custer County Commis-sioner at the commission’s Jan. 27 meeting, but he wasn’t sworn into the two-year term for which he was elected. Rather, Bies will serve only two years before his term expires.