Rapid City leaders tour Dinosaur Park following accessibility renovations

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KEVN) - Rapid City’s Dinosaur Park features five large dinosaur sculptures atop a hill just west of downtown.

Historically, making the trek from Skyline Drive to the Brontosaurus at the summit has been challenging if not impossible for people with mobility issues. With money from Rapid City’s Vision Fund, a project has been completed to build a ramp on a slight incline to make this journey more accessible.

Friday, Thore Jenshus rode his motorized wheelchair up the ramp, leading Mayor Jason Salamun, city council members Pat Roseland and Lindsey Seachris, and dozens of others to the brontosaurus. These new renovations allow easier access to up-close looks at the large sculptures and views of Rapid City and the Black Hills.

For Councilman Roseland, this project was special. He said his grandchildren love coming to Dinosaur Park.

“They enjoy the same thing, coming up here, crawling on the tails of the dinosaurs, and doing the same thing I did 70-some years ago,” Roseland said.

Roseland also spoke about his advocacy for signage in the park commemorating sculptor Emmett Sullivan, who built the dinosaurs in the 1930s.

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