The Associated Press

PIERRE - The South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks Commission agreed on Thursday to propose an increase in camping fees for most state parks next year.

Fees for various kinds of camping sites would increase by $2 a night. Camping fees for the parks were last raised in 1995.

The panel also agreed Thursday to propose an increase in the fees for use of the George S. Mickelson Trail in the Black Hills. The current $2 daily fee would be increased to $3, and the $10 annual trail pass would rise to $15.

Campsites with electrical hookups in many campgrounds now cost $12, and the fee would increase to $14 a night.

The fee for camping cabins at most state parks also would increase from the current $32 a night to $35 a night.

The commission will decide whether to approve the camping fee increases after holding a public hearing at its next meeting Nov. 1 and 2 in Gettysburg.

The camping fee increases would not apply to Custer State Park because the commission earlier this year approved a boost in fees at that park.

Doug Hofer, director of the state Division of Parks and Recreation, said the proposed fee increases will help offset the effects of inflation. The extra money will allow the parks to provide the services demanded by the public, he said.

The commission on Thursday also decided to reject the only two bids submitted for the concessionaire lease for a proposed deep-water marina at Spring Creek on Lake Oahe. Neither bid met the requirements set in the commission's request for proposals, Hofer said.

One bid was from the Brakss family, which has operated Spring Creek Resort for years. The other came from Rich Hahn and Tom Olson of Clear Water in Pierre.

Three other companies initially indicated interest in the project, Hofer said. All the companies said the state's original proposal would cause them financial problems, he said.

State officials now will seek to make changes in the proposal that would make the project financially feasible for the company that winds up getting the lease to run the marina, Hofer said.

The project is designed to build a marina that would have room for about 200 boats and be useable even during low-water periods.