About Hillside ARC

The Hillside UHF ham radio repeater was established in the mid to late 1990s by local ham radio operators. Initially created under Kurt Carufel's callsign (KB0KDG, silent key), members formed a new club around 2002 to operate and own the repeater under the callsign KC0AHL — also known as the Hillside Amateur Radio Club.

Founding members included Dan A. Polk N0WJM (silent key 2012), Kurt Carufel KD0KDG (silent key 2003), John Tuthill N0JGW (silent key 2009), Bob Tracy N0TC, and others. The club name was temporarily changed in 2022 to the Capital City Amateur Radio Club.

The repeater and shack were located at the intersection of Country West Road and Clydesdale Drive in Bismarck, ND — inside the fenced property of the large "can-shaped" city water tower at coordinates 46.836854, -100.812069. The small wooden shack sat at the base of the tower, housing the club's equipment for over two decades. You can see it above, door ajar, in the days after the equipment was removed.

In mid to late 2025, a faulty AC unit ignited the roof of the repeater shack. The fire destroyed the roof and left the building a total loss — but the ham equipment inside was not damaged. The city elected not to rebuild and ordered all equipment removed. As you can see in the photo above, the destruction was significant. The club's Comet UHF antenna, however, remained on the tower. As of October 2026 it is still mounted there — visible at the top left of the tower photo below — alongside other commercial, private, and city antennas that have since gone silent.