Custer County Chronicle - Opinion

We need Ice Age weather to warm world up again

Last week Friday there was snow on the ground in 49 of our 50 states and more was predicted for this week. That’s right. From Alaska in the north to the Panhandle area of Florida in the South, there was white stuff on the ground. If you include the mountain tops in Hawaii, there was snow in all 50 of our United States! Residents of the mid-Atlantic region of the country were bracing for their third major storm of the season.

Just what we need, more needless laws

Our state legislators are in Pierre until the middleof March, and we all know what that means—the annual competition of who can create the most nonsensical, waste-of-time law is well under way.

Buy Local campaign benefits community

Custer went through a community assessment process about five years ago that is now resulting in a tax increment financing (TIF) district downtown improvement project. TIF #4, as it is called, will result in a new look to our downtown area with buried electrical wires and historic lighting, among other things. Improving the looks of the downtown area was a top priority in the last assessment process and it is finally coming to fruition.

Parker talks Super Bowl, Favre and Playhouse

For the sake of clarity, let me say first that I don't know in what tense to write this column future? Past? You see, I am (was?) writing this last week. In other words, you know how the Super Bowl turned out, but I don't because it hasn't (hadn't?) happened yet.

The decade of 2000-09 We survived!

Jason s series of articles on the top stories of the decade brught back a lot of memories, as I was here for them all, having arrived in Custer Dec. 10, 1999, to purchase the Custer County Chronicle and the Hill Prevailer News knowing full well there was another paper in town.

Advice of task force ignored by the state

It s becoming quite clear in all this Black Hills Playhouse drama that someone wants the facility moved from where it has been for over 60 years. A governor-appointed task force in 2007 came up with the draft recommendation that the Playhouse should remain in its present location. Apparently this wasn t the recommendation someone in the administration was looking for. One way to force the issue was to refuse to renew the institution s 10-year lease on the property. When the Playhouse board filed a lawsuit against the state last fall claiming it did have a lease and that it was automatically renewed, something else had to be done

Finally Obama does something right

Since Barack Obama strapped that shiny presidential belt around his waist and victoriously threw his hands up after pummeling that old dude nearly to death a few Novembers ago, many have been very critical of him and how he has been running the big show

Why is the state playing hardball with the Playhouse?

Last Friday, a news release from the Department of Public Safety in Pierre confirmed that an inspection of the Black Hills Playhouse was conducted by the Office of Risk Management. It goes on the state that this office routinely inspects all state facilities for purposes of assessing liability risks to the State of South Dakota. The release further states that a final report of the inspection will be a public record and says the state is in discussion with Black Hills Playhouse representatives concerning the inspection of the Black Hills Playhouse facilities.

How can county end up on EPA list?

Through a strange set of circumstances, Custer County has ended up on the Environmental Protection Agency s (EPA) list of potential air quality violators. Yes, I know it s hard to believe when you gaze around at our near-pristine skies. Sure, we have a little smoke lingering from time to time from controlled burns or slash piles burning, but a little wind usually takes care of that.

We need national open meeting law

Every state in our nation has some kind of Sunshine laws, or open meeting laws as they are often called. These laws are designed to keep the doors open for meetings conducted by our local and state public officials. There are special circumstances called executive sessions that allow the public to be excluded from these meetings. Going into an executive session behind closed doors requires a majority vote of the members and discussion is restricted to the expressed purpose of the closure motion.