Black Hills native Harold Storsve says the state’s proposed renovation of Highway 85 southwest from Cheyenne Crossing to the Wyoming border is motivated by the lust for quick bucks. In a letter submitted at the end of the Department of Transportation’s extended public comment period last week, Storsve asks the DOT to minimize its alteration of the road and value the Hills for what they are, not for the money that can be wrung from them:
As currently planned, reconstruction will disrupt the basic ecology of a quieter and more subtle dimension of the Black Hills in favor of louder, and yes, let’s say it, more profitable destinations. But, for so many, the true destination, the real beauty of the Black Hills, is in its tranquil interstices, like those found along Highway 85. These places of rejuvenation are dwindling now as human activity advances. Yet, as obscured as they’ve become, when we do find them, they offer the rich and elusive gifts of the geological ages, gifts that speak in whispers and in the figures of their own language. One slows down and grows quiet in order to apprehend them. They are of another order and need unique advocates, since those on the fast and noisy side have already captured more than their share of the Hills. My request to DOT is that it take time to attend to the voices on nature’s side. Consider repairing the highway as it is, make some non-intrusive safety adjustments where needed, but take no more from the natural order than is warranted. Continue to protect and nurture the priceless side of the Highway 85 experience. Do that and you’ll have the profound thanks of a multitude of people who live and work here or come to visit [Harold Storsve, open letter, South Dakota Standard, 2026.09.05].
DOT has published Storsve’s letter along with hundreds of other messages submitted from May 29 through September 8. Comments in favor of the DOT’s plan are few and far between; the vast majority of respondents align with Storsve’s view: do what’s necessary for safety, but don’t expand its footprint at the expense of the remaining natural beauty along the Highway 85 corridor.
Let me just say that you haven’t lived until you’ve driven a refrigerated truck from Deadwood to Newcastle, Wyoming and back again twice a week for a year and a half on US85 sometimes over ice and snow covered roads.
Today, I can see US85 from my house in New Mexico, drive it nearly every day and my dreams still feature deadlines to meet.
https://interested-party.blogspot.com/2026/07/guest-post-keep-us85-historic.html