November 6, 2009, 3:26 pm
Public fascination with one of the Cold War's most fearsome relics,
the Minuteman Missile, could mean a new tourist stop in South Dakota.
Sen.
Tim Johnson introduced a bill Wednesday that would transfer 25 acres of
National Forest Service land to the National Park Service for a new
visitors center to accommodate the growing crowds of people who want to
see the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site in western South
Dakota.
The center would replace the vistiors center off exit 131 on Interstate 90 near Cactus Flats in Jackson County.
More than half of the $6 million needed for the project already has been set aside.
The number of visitors has increased from fewer than 5,000 in 2004 to more than 30,000 last year.
"Construction
of a visitors center will allow many more to learn about this historic
site," Johnson, D-S.D., told reporters Wednesday.
The
missile site features two locations: the Delta-01 Launch Facility four
miles west of the present visitors center, and the Delta-09 Missile
Silo in Pennington County that is 11 miles west of the launch facility.
