By Kacie Svoboda
The citizens of Keystone will vote on the Mineral Mountain Resources, Ltd. (MMR) lease agreement with the city on Thursday, April 14.
MMR decided to defer its pursuit to enter into a lease agreement in early March due to the “current downturn in commodity prices and its negative impact on the minerals industry,” according to an official press release submitted by project manager and geologist Kevin Leonard. However, the Keystone Town Board followed South Dakota codified law 9-20-11 by honoring the referendum and continuing the public vote in order to set a precedent for Keystone leasing city property to MMR in the future.
This has led to a confusing decision for the town’s citizens. Part of the misperception stems from the description on the ballot, which still includes terms from the MMR lease the company decided not to pursue at this time. This makes it appear that the town is still voting on the terms of that specific agreement, when in fact the town is voting on a guide on whether the town of Keystone can lease city land to MMR at all.
Originally, MMR came to Keystone because of the history of the Homestake Mine and its 125-year run and due to the finding of gold within cores drilled by Energy Fuels Inc. in the ’90s. According to Leonard, MMR is still in the process of re-drilling and double-checking Energy Fuels’ findings and has so far had matching results with its core samples.
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