Meade County, SD

In South Dakota's Meade County, the site of the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, just 37 percent of the residents are fully COVID vaccinated before the annual event that is expected to attract more than 700,000 people, the Associated Press reported. Health experts called the Sturgis rally a "superspreader" after it was...

STURGIS – The South Dakota Game, Fish, & Parks Department plans to build a $10 million shooting range near the intersection of Elk Vale Road and Elk Creek Road in Meade County. But landowners near the site worry about how the range will impact both livestock and the environment. John...

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KOTA) - Firearm sales are through the roof, and part of the reason why has to do with new gun owners. The Firearm Industry Trade Association reported that 5 million Americans purchased a gun for the first time in 2020. Leaving all those new gun owners in need of a place to practice.

STURGIS — A small portion of the Buffalo Chip campground has been added back into the coverage area map of the Sturgis Ambulance Service. When the Rural Meade Ambulance Tax District was being formed, a portion of the Buffalo Chip Campground was opted out of the district because it was uncertain if it would be determined that Buffalo Chip would be deemed a town.

A legal team representing Hideaway Hills residents will be able to argue to the state Supreme Court whether or not a lower court had jurisdiction to decide if Meade County should be involved in the lawsuit. The Fitzgerald Law Firm, representing about 140 Hideaway Hills residents, will make their argument...

STURGIS — The Meade County Commission will extend a COVID-19 stipend to all regularly scheduled part-time employees who remain with the county through July 25. The commission voted to provide a taxable stipend of $30 for every month of employment from March 1, 2020 to July 25, 2021 to its four regularly scheduled part-time employees. The stipend would come at a total cost of $2,226, and would be paid using American Rescue Plan Act funds from the federal government.

STURGIS — Increases in nonprofit funding requests in Meade County reflect the need for more competitive wages, economic development incentives and infrastructure, and the increased cost of goods and services. The Meade County Commission continued its budget solicitations from nonprofit organizations, inviting representatives to address the commission with funding requests...

As he prepares for the 81st Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, the chief of police says he's more concerned about a new open container ordinance than those who will be consuming medical marijuana. Sturgis Police Chief Geody VanDewater said having open containers within downtown boundaries will be a major learning curve and...

STURGIS — Meade County is seeking a new Veterans Service Officer and Emergency Manager with the departure of Doug Huntrods. Huntrods didn’t go far. He is the new Emergency Management Specialist at Fort Meade VA Medical Center in Sturgis. “It’s really about career progression. I’m stepping up into a federal...

RAPID CITY, S.D. — With the Rally a few weeks out, the Meade County Sheriff’s Office is looking to increase its numbers. The process for hiring is year-round, but the department starts sending out letters in June, inviting certified members of law enforcement to work during the Rally. Even with...

STURGIS — The Meade County Fair & 4-H Achievement Days is returning to a more normal schedule this year after a virtual fair during the pandemic last year. The event is scheduled for July 30-31, at the Meade County Fair Building and Sturgis Brown High School east of Sturgis. “We’re...

MEADE COUNTY — Meade School District Business Manager Brett Burditt, left, administers the oath of office to Aaron Odegaard, Terry Koontz, and Charlie Wheeler during Monday’s meeting. To read all of today's stories, Click here or call 642-2761 to subscribe to our e-edition or home delivery.

STURGIS — Meade County will begin discussions and invite public input for an ordinance to regulate medical marijuana at their next meeting, July 27 at 10 a.m. Ken Chleborad, chief deputy state’s attorney told members of the commission Tuesday that the state appears to be moving much faster than originally anticipated, with guidance expected to come as early as Oct. 4, several weeks before the Oct. 29 deadline. Therefore, he said county officials from various departments will begin giving their input for what a Meade County regulations ordinance should look like for medical marijuana use and facilities.

STURGIS — Meade District school board members will receive a revised 2021-22 budget for discussion at their August meeting. The budget was scheduled for approval at Monday’s meeting, with no recommended changes. However, the original motion failed on a 4-4 vote. Holly Good, Lee Spring, Joe Urbaniak, and Charlie Wheeler...

STURGIS, S.D. — The Meade County Commission has passed an open fire ban regulating fireworks, campfires and other incendiary devices within Meade County. Drought conditions due to significantly low moisture, late frost conditions, extreme heat, and strong winds are cited among the reasons for the ban in the resolution passed Tuesday afternoon.

The Meade County Commission issued a burn ban for the county effective Tuesday until fire conditions improve. The emergency resolution prohibits open burning and open fires throughout Meade County. The resolution bans "any outdoor fire, including campfires, that is not contained within a fully enclosed fire box or structure from...

Sturgis, SD - Due to the extreme fire dangers that exist, the Meade County Commission has initiated an immediate county-wide burn ban. The Burn Ban Resolution will remain in effect until it is deemed by the Commission that conditions have improved. OPEN FIRE BURN BAN. WHEREAS, Meade County has enacted...

STURGIS — Meade County is officially under a burn ban. Citing severe drought conditions due to significantly low moisture, late frost conditions, extreme heat, and strong winds, the Meade County Commission enacted the burn ban on Tuesday. Commission Assistant Jerry Derr said while about one-third of the county is in a moderate drought, the rest of the county, from Union Center all the way north to Faith is in a severe drought.

Part of Meade County falls within the Black Hills Fire Protection District and state law prohibits the discharge of fireworks within its boundaries. Meade County Ordinance #27 regulates fireworks, campfires and incendiary devices. State Law. SDCL 34-37-16.1 Allow the general public to discharge fireworks only between June 27 and the...