Hill City Prevailer

Hill City moves forward with merchandise ordinance

Published by admin on Wed, 05/06/2026 - 10:02am
The City of Hill City passed the first reading of a merchandise display ordinance. The move came at the April 27 Hill City Common Council (HCCC) meeting after little discussion. Council president Lori Miner asked people about the ordinance after it appeared on the agenda two weeks ago. Although Miner had previously been against the ordinance, merchants expressed to her that alternatives would be difficult to enforce, and that while this was not a perfect solution, she had “no idea how to make this better.”

Prevailer stacks up SDNA awards

Published by admin on Wed, 05/06/2026 - 10:01am
The Hill City Prevailer News won seven awards last Friday at the 2025 South Dakota NewsMedia (SDNA) Better NewsMedia Contest held as part of the annual SDNA convention held last week at The Lodge in Deadwood. The Prevailer competed in Division I of the competition for cities with a population under 3,000. 
Leslie Hladysz won first place for Best News Series for her work covering county library funds.
“You stuck with the reporting on this story over several weeks. This is what a local series should be,” commented the judges. 

Groups unite to protect sacred site

Published by admin on Wed, 05/06/2026 - 10:00am
NDN Collective, Black Hills Clean Water Alliance and Earthworks filed motions for an emergency temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction against the U.S. Forest Service April 1 in response to a February decision to grant a permit for exploratory drilling at Pe’Sla, a sacred and protected indigenous site. 
The controversy stems from the Rochford Mineral Exploratory Drilling Project initiated by Pete Lien & Sons in an effort to locate  graphite.  

Neighbors band together over horse permit

Published by admin on Wed, 05/06/2026 - 9:59am
A group of Pennington County neighbors came to the April 27 Pennington County Planning and Zoning (P&Z) meeting to express their concerns over a conditional use permit (CUP) to allow a horse and RV campground on Hwy. 385 in an area often referred to locally as Dead Man’s Curve. Highland Horse and RV Campground sits on 6.52 acres of land with its owner requesting 13 sites to accommodate short-term stays for people traveling with horses. The site has an existing corral and will have tie areas and feed storage for horses. 

Body of missing man found

Published by admin on Wed, 04/29/2026 - 9:49am
The evening of Tuesday, April 21 a deceased individual was located north of Hill City on Deerfield Road. The man has been identified as 86-year-old Ronald Deloss Blanchard of Hill City, who went missing April 6. 
Blanchard was located by Pennington County Search and Rescue, which had been conducting continued searches in the area. Based on the preliminary investigation, there is no indication of foul play. Cause and manner of death will be determined following an autopsy and the conclusion of investigative work. 

Take it for ‘grant’ed

Published by admin on Wed, 04/29/2026 - 9:48am
The South Dakota Department of Education awarded Workforce Education Grants (WEG) to four school districts this week, including Hill City High School. 
“The WEG program was designed to drive meaningful innovation in career and technical education (CTE) across middle and high schools. It highlights districts that demonstrate strong collaboration with postsecondary institutions and industry partners to design and deliver programs aligned to current and emerging workforce needs,” according to the press release. 

South Dakota Wildland Fire unveils new mascot

Published by admin on Wed, 04/29/2026 - 9:40am
Flash Wild is the new face of the South Dakota Wildland Fire (SDWF) agency.
While the mascot hasn’t made his official debut, his name and presence are currently being used to promote fire prevention in the State of South Dakota. Flash Wild is currently being featured on the South Dakota Wildland Coloring Contest set to end April 30.

Prevailer to host Hill City candidate forum May 12

Published by admin on Wed, 04/29/2026 - 9:38am
The Hill City Prevailer News will host a candidate forum May 12 at 6 p.m. at the Hill City Center.
This is an opportunity to meet the candidates for mayor, alderman ward one and alderman ward two.
The first hour will allow the public to get to know each candidate as well as why they are running, while the second hour will allow constituents to ask questions.
The event is free and open to the public.

Early voting begins in some South Dakota counties after delay

Published by admin on Wed, 04/29/2026 - 9:34am
Early and absentee voting for the June 2 primary election is beginning in some South Dakota counties after a delayed start, though others remain in limbo awaiting ballots.
Davison County, which includes Mitchell, was one of the first in the state to open early voting. The county started about an hour after receiving ballots on Wednesday morning, said auditor Kathy Wingert.
“Despite this rough start to the election season, I’m confident in how the election will run. It should be smooth sailing from here,” Wingert said.

Aldermen table proposal, discuss projects

Published by admin on Wed, 04/22/2026 - 1:43pm
The nearly four-hour Hill City Common Council (HCCC) meeting April 13 was filled with mostly discussion, ranging from a new proposed ordinance to concerns about the infrastructure projects being over budget.
The city unveiled a proposed display of merchandise ordinance, which city administrator Nate Anderson said came up as a result of “concern over merchandise affixed to buildings.”