Hill City Prevailer

Election results are in

Published by admin on Wed, 11/11/2026 - 9:39am
Voters across South Dakota headed to the polls Nov. 3 to decide a number of state and local races as well as important decisions for communities throughout the Black Hills. 
Pennington County reported 43.28 percent voter turnout, falling below the statewide average of 48.37 percent. Only 310,298 of South Dakota’s 628,563 registered voters participated in the general election.

Multiple resignations for Keystone

Published by admin on Wed, 11/11/2026 - 9:38am
The Town of Keystone is experiencing some upheaval with a number of resignations taking place at a special meeting Oct. 26 followed by additional resignations submitted Nov. 6.  
On Sept. 21, the Keystone Board of Trustees had held a special meeting to accept the resignation of public works supervisor Jerry Przybylski. 

Keystone considers water, marketing, bike trails

Published by admin on Wed, 11/11/2026 - 9:34am
Personnel issues have garnered much of the attention at recent Keystone Board of Trustees meetings, but water concerns, a mountain bike trail grant and marketing radius questions were also topics of discussion at the Nov. 4 regularly scheduled meeting. 

PUC approves BHE rate hike

Published by admin on Wed, 11/11/2026 - 9:32am
South Dakota utility regulators unanimously approved a rate increase last week that will add about $16 to the typical Black Hills Energy residential customer’s monthly electric bill, while an additional request from the company to add a $20 surcharge is pending.

Council discusses payment plan for sewer phase three

Published by admin on Wed, 11/04/2026 - 9:43am
No more surcharges—that is the Hill City Common Council’s desire as it reviews the sewer facilities funding application for phase three, which will finalize the funding package for the project. 

History for the taking as museum closes

Published by admin on Wed, 11/04/2026 - 9:41am
After 16 years in operation, the South Dakota State Railroad Museum has officially and permanently closed to the public.
“Closing of the South Dakota Railroad Museum (SDSRM) on October 12, 2026, marked the end of our physical location after 16 years, but we are continuing our mission of preservation and education,” wrote Lesta Turchen, the president of the board of directors.

Robin Martinez joins Prevailer staff

Published by admin on Wed, 11/04/2026 - 9:40am
COVID-19 brought a wave of newcomers to our area in 2020, including Robin Martinez, who recently joined the Hill City Prevailer News team.
A New Mexico native, Martinez is from a ranching background, received her degree from New Mexico State University in ag business and has pursued several career paths since that time, including ag lender, stock broker, car sales, innkeeper and she has an extensive background in real estate title and escrow.  Martinez is quick to note the common theme throughout each of her endeavors—effective communication.

Council establishes GMP contract for sewer

Published by admin on Wed, 11/04/2026 - 9:38am
Going back to the guaranteed maximum price (GMP) from Scull Construction Services, Inc., the Hill City Common Council needed to approve two items to proceed with the wastewater treatment plant project. It needed to first approve the establishment of the GMP and second, authorize Scull Construction to proceed with the project based on the GMP. This was discussed at the Oct. 26 meeting. 
In total, the GMP was $14,413,951, with an additional $945,958 in alternates and $1,850 in design costs from city engineer AE2S. The total project cost presented was $16,263,951. 

City poised to tackle major projects with budget

Published by admin on Wed, 11/04/2026 - 9:38am
The Hill City Common Council (HCCC) approved the city’s 2027 budget at its meeting Oct. 26, with total appropriations and accumulations projected at $3,928,347.00. This is an increase of $450,510.25 from the 2026 budget, a total uptick of 12.95 percent.

Keystone rolls through minimal agenda

Published by admin on Wed, 10/28/2026 - 9:36am
The Keystone Town board easily rolled through a light agenda Wednesday night at the Keystone Community Center board room, addressing various infrastructure maintenance projects, municipal-level pay applications and renewing liquor licenses for local businesses.