News

Harbach Park bids high

Published by admin on Thu, 07/15/2021 - 9:43am

The current high cost of building materials has thrown a wrench into the plans to renovate Harbach Park, as the bid openings for the first and second phases came in well over the engineer’s estimate of $890,000. At the July 6 meeting of the Custer City Council, it was learned the only bid received for the project, from RCS Construction in Rapid City, was for $1,270,537.

Friction increases over residential rentals

Published by admin on Thu, 07/15/2021 - 9:18am

The Hill City Planning and Zoning Commission took a hard stance toward nightly vacation rentals by tabling a request for a conditional use permit for an application at 760 Bishop Mountain Rd. The move came at its July 6 meeting.
However, a subsequent motion by Rollie Noem ultimately granted the application begging the question of “with the ordinances as they are right now, does this request violate them?” Noem went so far as to ask the commission if what they are really after is a moratorium, not a change in the town’s ordinances.

Keystone grapples with trash responsibility

Published by admin on Thu, 07/15/2021 - 9:15am

A host of confusion regarding the trash issue filled the July 7 Keystone Town Board meeting.
The discussion centered around how much businesses should be fined for failure to comply with the city’s trash receptacle ordinance and who would be responsible for enforcing the ordinance.

Placing ‘Bridge to Nowhere’ discussed

Published by admin on Thu, 07/15/2021 - 9:15am

A discussion of the proposed fees and where to place  the “Bridge to Nowhere” occurred at the July 7 Keystone Town Board meeting.
At a previous meeting the board had voted to place the bridge at Watson Park.
Resident David Cofoid, who was not present at the meeting, asked the board to consider that the bridge has already been engineered for placement at Cemetery Road.
“I guess his question was why we were spending $36,000 on engineering the pedestrian bridge when we already have engineered for Cemetery Road in the past,” said board president Kwinn Neff.

Local bar lets you to drink for a cause

Published by admin on Thu, 07/15/2021 - 9:14am

A fundraiser for veterans causes is taking place at the The Mangy Moose in Hill City.
Owner Jessica Jacobs was approached by  one of her liquor reps asking if she’d be interested in participating in  Operation Ride Home, a Jack Daniel’s program which is designed to help  with travel assistance for deployed members of the military. Jacobs’  nephew was affected by this when stationed in Italy.
“My father had died and he couldn’t afford to come home,” Jacobs said.
The plane ticket was around $1,300. When Jacobs heard about the program she knew she had to participate.

GMA coming to Keystone

Published by admin on Thu, 07/15/2021 - 9:13am

“Good Morning America” will come to Keystone July 19. The program will be shooting footage  in the area for a July 20 segment called “Rise & Shine.”   
“Good Morning America’s Rise & Shine series is taking viewers to all 50 states, crisscrossing the United States and showcasing the country as America starts to safely re-open,” said Elizabeth Hecht of ABC.
On July 20 GMA will feature South Dakota, including Mt. Rushmore, Black Hills Adventure Tours, Watecha Bowl and more.

President Coolidge vacations in South Dakota

Published by admin on Thu, 07/15/2021 - 9:10am

President Calvin Coolidge was on the hook and just needed reeling in.
William Williamson described his role in convincing President Calvin and First Lady Grace Coolidge to vacation in the summer of 1927 in the Black Hills in his autobiography, “William Williamson: Student, Homesteader, Teacher, Lawyer, Judge, Congressman and Trusted Friend.” He was South Dakota’s congressman from the state’s third congressional district, which covered the state’s west river counties, from 1921-33.

Presidential busts vandalized in Hermosa

Published by admin on Thu, 07/15/2021 - 9:09am

The Custer County Sheriff’s office is receiving tips and following up on leads regarding vandalism that occurred last Tuesday, July 6, at Southern Hills RV Park and Campground in Hermosa.
It was 11:30 a.m. that morning when the owner of the campground, Jerry Styles, contacted Custer County Dispatch to report two of the large presidential busts on the property had been vandalized, with “Murderer” being spray painted across George H.W. Bush’s bust, while “Drug Dealer” was spray painted across Ronald Reagan’s bust.

Ambulance may set call record

Published by admin on Thu, 07/08/2021 - 9:52am

Part 6 of a series of articles examining the numerous economic and lifestyle impacts of the current in-migration to Custer County.
If you ask Custer Ambulance director Ruth Airheart to describe what things are like these days for her agency, you might get the same one-word answer we did: “Busy!” As with all of the public and private sector services we have profiled so far in this series, Custer Ambulance Service, Inc. is indeed busier than ever and on track to answer more emergency medical calls this year than ever before.

Buffalo Gap Blow Out set to return

Published by admin on Thu, 07/08/2021 - 9:50am

The fourth annual Buffalo Gap Blow Out will take place this Saturday, July 10, with a full day of events and live music.
There will be games and activities for children as well as adults, including horseshoes, cornhole and human foosball. There will be various food and drink vendors as well as a beer garden, and dry camping is also available.
There will be a parade at 11 a.m. on Main Street. There will also be a free classic “Car n Park” all day. Free vendor spaces for the event are available.