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Council to research permanent site for Feeding South Dakota after Set Free Church closure
Summary
Feeding South Dakota and local volunteers seek a recurring distribution site in Beresford; council will survey locations and visit a distribution to identify space needs including refrigeration and a dock.
City officials told the council Feeding South Dakota, working with local coordinator James "Moose" Fitzgerald and volunteers, needs a recurring distribution site in Beresford after the program left its previous host site.
Mayor Sealy said the program formerly operated from Set Free Church and has used a Methodist Church parking lot on the town's southwest side for drive-through distribution; organizers estimate they serve about 100 families when the program operates. "They wanna work with Moose," a council member said, describing local volunteer coordination.
Council members and volunteers discussed practical needs: truck unloading and sorting space, a dock or overhead door to handle pallets, and refrigeration. The city examined the old police station as a possible option but officials said that building lacks refrigeration, contains sensitive water-testing equipment and has had mold issues; staff described it as likely unsuitable for regular food distribution.
Officials said most distributions have been roughly one day and can run from the morning until food runs out, sometimes into midafternoon; Feeding South Dakota currently anticipates weekly distributions on Thursdays.
The council asked staff to gather more information about logistics and facility needs. Mayor Sealy and other council members said they would arrange site visits: city staff will observe a distribution to inventory space, refrigeration and traffic-flow needs and will report back to the council with options at a future meeting. The council also asked members to consider potential host sites such as the senior center or other community buildings, and to identify freezer/refrigeration availability and any traffic or neighborhood impacts.
Clarifying details recorded at the meeting: volunteers estimate about 100 families receive food at a distribution; distributions have previously used a parking-lot drive-through model; Set Free Church previously provided indoor facilities and large refrigeration; the program currently aims for once-weekly distributions on Thursdays but frequency has fluctuated.
No formal vote was taken; council action was to investigate site options and report findings at a subsequent meeting.
