Another South Dakota prison site falls victim to community pushback

Box Elder withdraws as site candidate four days after proposing location to Gov. Rhoden's Project Prison Reset Task Force

Another potential men’s prison site has been pulled off the table following another round of community backlash.

The city of Box Elder on Friday informed Gov. Larry Rhoden’s office they are removing themselves from consideration to be the home of South Dakota’s next correctional facility.

“Since the submittal of the response to the (Request for Information), we have received meaningful feedback from our community, and it has become clear that pursuing a correctional facility in Box Elder is not aligned with the sentiments of our residents or the current workforce realities within the Black Hills region,” said Sean Overeynder, Box Elder director of marketing, events and economic and community development, in an email to the governor’s office.

DOC Secretary Kellie Wasko under fire