Some Lincoln County residents say they felt caught off guard over the state's announcement on plans to build a new penitentiary in the area.
That issue, along with continued discussion of a proposed carbon dioxide pipeline were topics of pointed remarks at the latest Lincoln County Commission meeting.
The Department of Corrections recently announced plans to build a state penitentiary a few miles south of Harrisburg. It will replace the existing facility in Sioux Falls, which has long suffered from overcrowding.
Clayton Hatley owns land a couple miles north of where the proposed prison would be built. He was previously a prison guard for the state.
“I guess you could say I am for a new prison, for the safety of the staff and inmates," Hatley said. "But, at the same time, I did not appreciate the idea that this was kept from me. Because, like I said, I found out when you did.”
Jill Paulson is a landowner in Harrisburg. She said she fears having the prison close to her property will change the lifestyle she chose for her family.
“If this is built, I will be scared for my children to be outside without my being with them," Paulson said. "With potentially 400 employees and families of inmates driving around our area, I will not feel the safety that I do now.”
Lincoln County commissioners said they were made aware of the purchase at the same time everyone else was. They were not given a chance for input.
Summit Carbon Solutions and their carbon capture and sequestration pipeline was another agenda item that drew a lot of public comment. Since the state Public Utilities Commission denied Summit's application last month, the company has renewed efforts to work with local governments on setback ordinances and other rules impeding the development of the pipeline.
Commissioner Joel Arends said Summit is now willingly working with the commission.
“The concession that they made on that, is that they will voluntarily agree to do six-foot depth of cover in their easements with landowners," Arends said. "They agreed to increase those things when I talked to them. So, a number of concessions were made on that front."
Arends also said Summit plans to provide additional information about environmental studies to policy makers.
After the public input section of Tuesday's meeting, commissioners expressed their desire to work with the state on the new prison location.
