IRENE, S.D. (KELO.com) — Residents in four Yankton County townships could make history if they’re successful in breaking away.
The action is being led by farmers who say the Yankton County Commission is no longer allowing them the freedom to operate due to county agricultural zoning rules. Irene farmer Simon Healy helped organize a meeting Saturday night in Irene with more than 150 people in attendance to discuss their options.
Healy says they were originally talking about merging with Turner County, but now have a second option which is forming their own county.
However, Healy admits getting a majority of Yankton County voters to pass their petition will be a tough lift.
The four townships that want to disassociate from Yankton County are: Marindahl, Turkey Valley, Walshtown, and Mayfield.
He says they’ll be holding organizational meetings in the coming days to determine which option they are taking and start circulating petitions.
(Jerry Oster, WNAX, contributed this report.)
