US senators stress importance of Douglas School expansion ahead of B-21 arrival

A B-21 Raider conducts flight testing at Edwards Air Force Base in California. (Courtesy photo)

SIOUX FALLS — Douglas School District’s $15 million state funding request to help build a new elementary school ahead of B-21 bombers arriving at Ellsworth Air Force Base has gained influential supporting comments.

U.S. Senators John Thune and Mike Rounds, both Republicans from South Dakota, spoke to a panel of state lawmakers Thursday.

“As you all think about these issues, you have a lot of issues to grapple with just like we do in Washington, trying to figure out how to prioritize and allocate resources to certain areas and hitting the targets you need to hit, but I would offer up to you how important I think this is,” Thune said.

$1.5 billion of construction planned for new bombers at Ellsworth

The senators spoke to the Legislature’s Select Committee on Legislative Relationships with Ellsworth Air Force Base. The base, near Box Elder and Rapid City, is undergoing a flurry of construction to prepare for the arrival of B-21 bombers sometime this decade. The planes are under development for the Air Force by Northrop Grumman.

Story continues

TRENDING NOW

LATEST LOCAL NEWS