Mayor Boke Fighting Booth Hatchery Closure; Noem Strangely Noncommital

Spearfish Mayor Dana Boke understands that we need to save the D.C Booth Fish Hatchery:

“This is part of our culture,” Boke said. “My 10-year-old daughter read about it in the paper, and it brought her to tears. That’s how all the kids feel. There are memories all across South Dakota and beyond of this place and the family memories it’s created over time. It’s tied to who we are.

“We need to champion the cause and assist in any way we can to get this thing turned around,” the mayor added [Tom Griffith, "Spearfish's D.C. Booth Fish Hatchery Helped Change South Dakota History," Rapid City Journal, 2013.08.25].

Senator Tim Johnson seems to get it, too:

“I am very disturbed about the rumors that the D.C. Booth Fish Hatchery in Spearfish might be closed by the Fish & Wildlife Service,” Johnson said. “The D.C. Booth Fish Hatchery is a tremendous asset of the Black Hills. I have fought hard for funding to invest in the restoration of the hatchery and to make it an informational and educational showcase of fish hatchery operations in the Black Hills and the U.S.” [Griffith, 2013.08.25]

I think Congresswoman Kristi Noem gets it, although as usual, Noem's aloof, self-absorbed talking-point detachment makes it hard to tell. Rep. Noem told a packed Spearfish town hall Friday that she'll "push to get more information and ask the right questions." But after hearing such vociferous feedback from so many Spearfish residents and even visiting the hatchery herself Friday, our Congresswoman's only social media reaction to the town hall is to thank "interested parties" for the "info" and to post photos of herself while cheering the great turnout at "my townhall".

Kristi, get with the program. You go to a town hall during working hours in Spearfish. Concerned citizens pack the hall to express concern about an obviously bad decision from Washington that will kill jobs and hurt tourism and tax revenue. The mayor's daughter is in tears! Politically, the D.C. Booth Hatchery issue is a no-brainer. You tell those eager constituents on the spot, "The Hatchery rocks. It stays open. I'll call the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and read them the riot act." You use your social media presence to send the message immediately that you listened and you're doggedly on the case. "Thx for the info" doesn't rally the troops or make a memorable impression on voters who want to know you'll fight for them and for the Hatchery.

I understand Rep. Noem may have difficulty getting passionate about an issue that doesn't appear in the weekly briefing points from Speaker Boehner. But South Dakota's lone Representative needs to get off script and join Mayor Boke in representing her constituents and fighting to save the D.C. Booth Hatchery from the thoughtless Washington budget axe.

Fish and Wildlife Service Wants to Close Booth Hatchery in Spearfish

Holy cow... er, trout! Contrary to my usual experiences in Spearfish, I stop in the Queen City of the Black Hills, and the first thing I hear about is a really stupid idea. It comes not from Spearfishers, but from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which thinks it would be a good idea to close the D.C. Booth Fish Hatchery:

For a number of years, the National Fish Hatchery System, a branch of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, has struggled with declining funding and annual increases in the costs. In addition to rising operating costs, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Directorate in Washington, D.C., has emphasized and prioritized other programs over those of the National Fisheries Program.  As a result, the agency has made the decision to permanently shut down multiple fish hatcheries nationwide, including the D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery ["D.C. Booth Fish Hatchery to Close," Black Hills Pioneer, 2013.08.20].

Closing the D.C. Booth Hatchery provides a spectacular example of budget-cutting gone nuts. The hatchery is a Spearfish gem. It draws visitors from all over the place. Every time I've walked down there, I've found locals and travelers enjoying the well-kept grounds, feeding the fish, watching the ducks, and climbing the canyon trails. The hatchery provides an excellent educational experience for visitors about fish, wildlife, and the Black Hills, thus supporting the mission of USFWS.

The hatchery also provides a great boost to the local and state economy. Consider just their summer workforce. The hatchery recruits RVers from all over the country to come serve as interpretive guides and do other work on the grounds. These folks draw no paycheck. In return for their service, the city of Spearfish provides them free camping spots in the beautiful adjacent city campground, listening to the shushing waters of Spearfish Creek. These RVers live in Spearfish all summer, spending their disposable retirement income on groceries and entertainment. Everybody wins!

The D.C. Booth Society is riled up, and so should you be! Here's the Booth Society's run-down of all the benefits the hatchery provides to the community:

The Booth Society is against wasteful spending and supports a fiscally sound government. However, the national fisheries program and a facility like D.C. Booth are excellent examples of good government spending. They provide an economic impact that the public should be proud of. For example a 2011 economic impact study indicates that:

• Each taxpayer dollar budgeted for the National Fisheries Program generates $28 in economic returns ($28 : $1). The revenue generated can be seen at sporting goods stores, marinas, boat dealerships, guides and outfitter services, bait shops, gas stations, restaurants, and hotels.

• 68,000 American jobs are attributable to the economic contribution of the National Fisheries Program.

• The National Fisheries Program contributes $3.6 billion in annual contributions to the U.S. economy. That equates to $70 million a week or $10 million a day. In fact, a company with $3.6 billion in annual profits would rank No. 41 on the Fortune 500 List of America’s Most Profitable Corporations – behind Verizon but in front of Kraft Foods. 

• $903 million in industrial output results from angling for fish originating in National Fish Hatcheries. 

On the local level, a 2007 economic impact study on D.C. Booth Historic NFH conducted by Black Hills State University revealed:

• The operations at D.C. Booth Historic National Fish Hatchery results in $2.1 million dollars in annual business revenues.

• An estimated $1 million is spent by nonresident visitors in Spearfish each year who attributed their visit ONLY to the existence of the hatchery.

• $141,393 in local and state tax and fee revenues are collected indirectly from the visitation at D.C. Booth.

• Nearly 30 jobs are created locally as a result of the operations at D.C. Booth.

• Over 14,000 volunteer hours are donated annually to D.C. Booth. This is equivalent to seven full-time employees [D.C. Booth Society, "Save Our Hatchery from Closure," 2013.08.20].

Rep. Noem, Senator Thune, Senator Johnson, get on the horn to the Fish and Wildlife Service, and tell them these budget cuts will cost Spearfish and South Dakota far more than they will save.

Be a Yokel, Buy Local... Beer!

My teetotalitarianism has kept me from recognizing a golden opportunity for local businesses. South Dakotans have been building factories to brew alcohol for our cars; why haven't we recognized a bubbling market and invested in brewing local alcohol for our bellies?

Jeff Drumm, a San Diego emigré* now of Spearfish, saw that opportunity. He now runs Crow Peak Brewing Company, which gets a great write-up in the Mitchell Daily Republic from Seth Tupper. (Another advantage of being a professional journalist: every now and then, you can get paid for making a beer run to the Black Hills.)

Wholesalers have been slurping up Drumm's brew faster than he can make it, so he's expanding, as are craft breweries across the country. This is actually a return to the days before a few big out-of-state corporations cornered the keg market:

...about 30 commercial breweries that operated in South Dakota following the repeal of Prohibition. The last one in operation was Dakota Brewing in Huron, which closed 67 years ago.

The reason for commercial brewing’s failure in South Dakota was simple, [state archivist Ken] Stewart said. Bigger, out-of-state companies with bigger customer bases expanded their sales and their advertising budgets until South Dakota’s smaller brewers were pushed out of business.

“Competition was intense,” Stewart said. “It was the old thing of the whale, the big fish, swallowing the smaller fish” [Seth Tupper, "Spearfish Couple Revive Commercial Brewing in South Dakota," Mitchell Daily Republic, 2009.10.10].

Drumm and his wife and co-owner Carolyn Ferrell support local commerce beyond his own chosen product. They beat the drum for the local farmers market, which sets up shop right next to the Crow Peak brewery.

I'll still forswear Drumm's finest, even if it has cool names like Spearbeer and Pile O' Dirt. But Crow Peak is showing that South Dakota doesn't have to rely on big out-of-state corporations for everything. If you've got to have beer, why not buy local?

*p.s.: Is there a trend here of San Diego folks moving to South Dakota to start successful local businesses?

Spearfish Subsidizes Downtown Movies

The Spearfish City Council made an interesting nod toward the importance of the arts and downtown development last week. At their April 20 meeting, the city approved the Spearfish Arts Center's request for $13,000 to purchase a film screen and projection system for the Matthews Opera House. SAC exec Debora Smoot tells RCJ that the equipment will allow the group to host film festivals as well as show old-time movies, documentaries, and other non-big-release productions for the community and visitors. The downtown moviehouse idea has been in the works for years, but got a kick in the pants from tour companies calling to ask what Spearfish was going to replacce the now-closed Passion Play with.

Spearfish recognizes as well as any town in South Dakota that public investment in the arts brings a good return, culturally and often financially. Perhaps Madison and the LAIC should take note: what better way to start a lasting downtown renovation than converting the vacant Masons' building into a downtown movie theater?