Voting on controversial AMA race now up to the Sturgis community

STURGIS, S.D. (KEVN) - Sturgis residents have the opportunity to start their engines as they get ready to vote on whether or not they want to host an AMA Flat Track Race during this year’s rally.

After Monday night’s city council meeting’s 6 to 2 vote, residents will now have the ability to vote on possibly hosting a race that would be aired on FOX.

The concern from the community regarding the race comes as some residents said the decision to spend about $3.3 million on the event was never talked about with the community.

Those same community members gathered 250 signatures for the city to bring the issue to the council’s attention. This would be the second major petition by the voters in two years, both in an effort to have their voices heard.

“It’s definitely one step forward in the right direction. Many residents have felt like their voices fall on deaf ears. It’s unfortunate that in the last few years, they’ve had to rise up and actually petition the council’s actions so their voices can be heard. So, I really feel like this evening was a victory,” expressed Sturgis resident Brenda Vasknetz. “I think this was a good step to rebuild our trust.”

The decision came after the Sturgis Council reconvened from their executive session. Some of the council members felt the upcoming vote was a way to help start rebuilding the trust lost between the community and their government.

“What we’re trying to do is to try and bring people together and to not have people feel like they’re not... they don’t have a voice, and I think tonight is a first step in a way of trying to build that relation back with our community,” said Sturgis City Council ward 3 representative Aaron Jordan. “This is an opportunity for the members of our town to have a voice and make the final decision on if this is something we want to do for now and for the next five years.”

Among other decisions that were made at Monday’s Sturgis city council meeting, the council also voted to let people vote on whether the city manager position should be eliminated from the city government altogether. Voting on both of these issues will happen on April 9.

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