SOURCE: BLACK HILLS PIONEER

Story & Photo By: Wendy Pitlick, Black Hills Pioneer

Keating Resources invited neighbors and locals to Deer Mountain this week to gather ski rental equipment that has been in the lodge for the last four years. Skis, boots, poles, tubes, helmets, and some memorabilia were all up for the taking as Gerard Keating, CEO of Keating Resources, prepared to demolish the building. “The 50-year old lodge has reached the end of its useful life, and we want to start out new and fresh,” Keating said of the lodge that was recently declared to be unsafe. While Keating does not have plans for new construction at the site, he said those decisions will be made in the future. He expects demolition to start on a day to be determined this week, and completed by Aug. 1. Keating said he still plans to open a tubing hill in December of 2022. “What we’ve learned is people are excited about tubing, not sitting in a lodge,” Keating said. “We’re going to focus on the tubing.”