South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem isn’t giving up completely on her plan to add controversial campsites to Custer State Park in the Black Hills. But she says she will scale back a bit.
Noem had proposed a $10 million project to add 176 new campsites to the park. The original plan was getting a cold shoulder at the State Legislature. Legislators said the original plan likely wouldn’t make it out of committee next week.
Following a closed-door meeting between Noem and State Game, Fish & Parks officials this week, the plan was reworked. It now calls for just 66 new sites and relocates the expansion away from the originally proposed site along the park’s Wildlife Loop Road. The expansion’s size was also reduced from 75 acres to 50 acres.
Gov. Noem’s plan also received a lot of heat from state residents concerned over traffic in the park, and its effect on wildlife. Private campground owners also weren’t happy with the state trying to increase its share of the booming Black Hills camping market.
The revised plan now goes back to the S.D. Legislature for future consideration.
##RVT1037b
Too bad. I’ve stayed at Custer many times. I would have loved to see 176 more campsites. I’m not so sure why the location is a problem. It’s by the airport. Most people and animals don’t like the noise.
The park certainly needs larger RV sites. Glad to see that the expansion is not dead in the water yet.
Seems like a good compromise solution, though the Black Hills area could certainly have used the original number of sites.
Glad to hear the expansion would be moved out of the wildlife loop. As I stated when the original article was posted, I think it’s better to expand in already developed areas of the park and leave the wildlife loop as is.
You could have at least included a picture of the governor! 😍😝
Why?
Look her up
Here we go … money before common sense, yet again! Keep our parks pristine.
I love this park!!!