S.D. Supreme Court sides with property owners in Day County dispute

County action violated state law for appeals

A couple that was denied a permit to build a home in Day County in the Pickerel Lake Subdivision won a South Dakota Supreme Court case Thursday that reverses the decision.

The Day County Board of Adjustment denied the permit to Les and Julie Gonsor in June 2020 based on an earlier dispute in 2015. The board’s decision was upheld by a circuit court judge after the couple appealed.

But a unanimous Supreme Court found in favor of the Gonsors, reversing the decision of the circuit court and board.

The roots of the dispute stem from an incident in 2015. The Gonsors violated the county’s zoning ordinance after they altered the grading of their property and installed rock. When they learned of the violation, they filed an application for a variance with the Board of Adjustment. On Nov. 17, 2015, the board voted unanimously to allow the rock and grading to remain.