Sunday, October 30, 2011

South Dakota: Helipad opponents get chopper demonstration. (With Video)

The air over Silver Mountain Road near Rockerville was filled with the sound of helicopters Saturday morning -- a sound a local businessman wants to bring to the area but one some local residents fiercely oppose.

Michael Jacob, owner of Black Hills Aerial Adventures, hopes to build a helipad alongside U.S. Highway 16 just west of Rockerville, to operate helicopter tours of the Black Hills and Mount Rushmore. After an attempt to get county permission failed earlier this year, Jacob is trying again -- and trying to mollify the opposition of local landowners.

"I am willing to make concessions," Jacob told a meeting of residents Saturday. "We attempt to mitigate as much of the inconvenience as we can."

Residents gathered at the proposed heliport location to watch as Jacob's pilots took off and landed several times. Nearby landowner Chuck McLain and several others opposed to the project remarked on how loud the choppers were -- one of several aspects of the proposal they object to.

"Should it pass, it's going to change the way of life for this neighborhood forever," McLain said.

Two other concerns include lowered property values and safety -- particularly on Highway 16, where residents fear the traffic and distractions of a busy heliport will lead to more accidents.

Jacob, who has operated a helipad near Custer for several decades, said his experience suggested residents' concerns were overblown.

"A lot of the things you are saying are valid questions -- but a lot of the things you're concerned about have been disproved based on what we've already done in the last 20 years," Jacob said.

None of the landowners were swayed Saturday by Jacob's assurances. But he has started to make headway with some county officials who opposed his previous attempt.

Charlie Johnson, chairman of the county planning commission, said he was in a "softer position" than his previous opposition. Getting additional information from the South Dakota Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration, Johnson said, satisfied some of his prior concerns.

"You have to look at everyone's rights on these issues if you sit on the planning commission," Johnson said. "It's not emotion. It's what's the appropriate thing to do according to what ordinances are in place."

Nearby residents told Jacob and county officials that they want more time to study reports from the county, the FAA and the state DOT. Jacob said he has got some flexibility but can't wait too long because his agreement to purchase the land in question might run out.

Jacob currently operates a helipad in Keystone, where he said he is operating on a year-to-year lease and is being sued by several property owners there.

"I would personally prefer to stay in Keystone," he told the Rockerville-area landowners.

Local resident Ross Niemann suggested Jacob look at moving his helipad a few miles further away into a commercial area, rather than one surrounded by homes, like the Silver Mountain Road region.

Jacob said he had considered that idea and it wouldn't work. The extra miles of flight to the Black Hills would force him to raise his rates by $50 to $100 per flight, which he said would price his flights out of the budgets of many tourist families.

He offered his own compromises, saying he would be willing to move his flight path to accommodate concerns, and to plant a stand of trees to help block some of the noise from the closest property owner.

But after more than two hours of discussion and demonstrations Saturday, neither side was willing to give.

Jacob's request for a permit to build his heliport is currently before the planning commission, which is scheduled to consider it on Nov. 14.

Read more, photos and video: http://rapidcityjournal.com

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