News

City OKs LEO contract

Published by admin on Wed, 08/19/2026 - 12:13pm

Thirteen months after negotiations began, the City of Custer and Custer County have agreed on a new contract and will see the Custer County Sheriff’s Office resume providing law enforcement services to the city.

Rally numbers see sharp drop

Published by admin on Wed, 08/19/2026 - 12:11pm

Numbers were down across the board for this year’s Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, as anecdotal stories and hard numbers tell the story of a rally that saw a dip in visitation from last year’s 85th rally.
The South Dakota Department of Transportation said overall traffic count at the nine locations enterering Sturgis was down 10 percent overall, with a total of 448,166 vehicles entering over the course of the official 10 days of the rally. That number is off the previous five-year average for 10 days, which is 498,042 vehicles.

Custer psychologist facing charges

Published by admin on Wed, 08/19/2026 - 12:09pm

A Custer County psychologist is facing criminal charges on allegations he engaged in sexual acvitity with a patient.
Stephen Stuart Greene, 69, faces charges of sexual penetration by a psychotherapist, a Class 4 Felony, as well as sexual contact by a psychoterapist, a Class 5 Felony. Class 4 felonies are punishable by up to 10 years in prison and/or a $20,000 fine, while a Class 5 Felony is punishable by up to five years in prison and/or a $10,000 fine.

Fireworks cost more than it generated

Published by admin on Wed, 08/19/2026 - 12:09pm

The fireworks display last month at Mount Rushmore cost the state of South Dakota $450,000 more than the event generated in economic impact, according to the state Department of Tourism.
The state spent $2.8 million to plan and produce the July 3 celebration, which generated $2.35 million of economic impact, the department said in a Monday press release. The department attributed the economic analysis to the research firm Tourism Economics.

Bike wreck claims one

Published by admin on Wed, 08/19/2026 - 12:07pm

A Connecticut man died last Monday in a single-vehicle crash near Custer.
Preliminary crash information indicates Robert Thomas Ryan, the driver of a 2002 Yamaha Super Hawk, was traveling westbound on Hwy. 16A near mile marker 27. Ryan became separated from his motorcycle when the Yamaha left the roadway, entered the westbound ditch and overturned. He sustained fatal injuries.
The investigation is ongoing. All information released is preliminary. 

Changes implemented at Harlow’s

Published by admin on Wed, 08/19/2026 - 12:07pm

Changes are coming to Harlow’s School Bus Service for the 2026-27 school year, including updated bus tags for backpacks, cleaning schedules and regular maintenance from a third-party company. 
Harlow’s location manager for the Custer School District (CSD) Kelli Werlinger attended the board of education meeting in Hermosa Aug. 10 to share more about the updates in services. 
First is an increase in accountability for drivers. Werlinger said she holds drivers very accountable and addresses concerns or complaints immediately. 

No new fatalities as rally wraps up

Published by admin on Wed, 08/19/2026 - 12:00pm

The State of South Dakota’s Department of Public Safety lists three as the number of those who died district-wide as a result of Sturgis Motorcycle Rally-related accidents. Last year there were also three such fatalities. Below is a summary of all fata accidents that happened in the area from Aug. 11-16 of the rally. There were no new fatal accidents since last week’s update story.

Back to school for the Rangers

Published by admin on Wed, 08/19/2026 - 9:58am
With the end of the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally comes the start of the school year. Hill City and Keystone children have their first day Aug. 24.
Freshman orientation is Aug. 20 from 5-6 p.m. in the boardroom of the high school. 
Grilling on the Green, which is also the elementary school open house, is Aug. 20 from  5-6:30 p.m. 
The sixth grade orientation is also Aug. 20 at 5:30 p.m.
Laptop distribution takes place in the technology office Aug. 20 between 1-3 p.m. and Aug. 21 between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. 

Alderman say no to extra height

Published by admin on Wed, 08/19/2026 - 9:51am
Five sealed bids for the water tank were opened in mid-July and discussed at the Aug. 10 Hill City Common Council (HCCC) meeting. 
Maguire Iron was the lowest bidder. The tank will be painted as part of the sealed bid. Aldermen needed to decide if they wanted to expand the height of the tank (alternate one) and put the city logo on it (alternate two).
AE2S city engineer Joe Noble said his recommendation was to award base and alternates one and two, calling them “good value.”

School maintenance team paves the way

Published by admin on Wed, 08/19/2026 - 9:50am
The Hill City School District Board of Education met Aug. 10 for the last time before the 2026-27 school year begins Aug. 24.
A highlight of the meeting was the work completed by maintenance director TJ Schmidt and his team throughout the summer to prepare the district’s buildings and grounds for students to return.
“Thanks to the maintenance staff,” said Schmidt. “It’s a lot of work to go through each building and make sure we’re ready.”