Photo: Jeffrey Beall · CC BY 4.0Living in Box Elder, SD: what to set up and who to call
The Box Elder water system reported 7 health-based violations to EPA in the last five years: radioactivity (gross alpha, excluding radon and uranium) ×4, radium (combined radium-226 and -228) ×3. 83% of systems its size reported none. Midco and Bluepeak both wire most of Box Elder; 65% of addresses can get fiber.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Box Elder, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.
Power, water and internet
Who to call to start service at a new address in Box Elder.
Power comes from Black Hills Energy
Black Hills Energy (Black Hills Power, Inc.), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Box Elder. Its homes paid an average of 15.1¢ per kWh in 2025, about $106 a month (its average across South Dakota).
Start or move service: blackhillspower.com · (800) 742-8948
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Box Elder water system
The Box Elder water system supplies Box Elder: about 84% of residents live in its service area. Ellsworth Afb serves another 14%. About 5% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It draws ground water and serves 14,000 people in all.
7 health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026: radioactivity (gross alpha, excluding radon and uranium) ×4, radium (combined radium-226 and -228) ×3, the latest beginning Jul 2025. 83% of the 3,525 systems serving 10,001–50,000 people had none.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan–Dec 2023, was 2.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. That’s higher than 65% of similar systems’ latest results.
The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report
EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0. Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. SD4600046.
8 home internet providers serve Box Elder
96% of 2,553 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 65% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Midco | Cable, Fiber | 95% | 2,000/1,000 |
| Bluepeak | Fiber, Cable | 72% | 5,000/5,000 |
| Quantum Fiber | Fiber | 8% | 940/940 |
| CenturyLink | DSL, Fiber | 8% | 200/200 |
| AT&T | Fixed wireless | 64% | 25/3 |
| T-Mobile | Fixed wireless | 40% | 100/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
Kieffer Sanitation picks up trash in Box Elder
Pickup days, the drop-off and recycling in Box Elder, from the town’s own site.
We couldn’t find pickup days or drop-off hours. Check boxeldersd.gov →
From boxeldersd.gov, the town’s official site, checked Oct 23, 2026. Rules change: the town’s page is the last word. .
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Most of Box Elder (90%) is in Douglas School District 51-1; parts are in Rapid City School District 51-4 (10%).
B−School gradeSee Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
Town hall and registering to vote
Who to call, and how to register.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Sep 2025; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
Box Elder spans 2 ZIP codes
ZIP codes where Box Elder residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Box Elder | ZIP’s residents in Box Elder |
|---|---|---|---|
| 57719 | Box Elder, SD | 85% | 88% |
| 57706 | Ellsworth Afb, SD | 15% | 80% |
A few homes fall in 57703.
Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.
Getting around, the ER and the library
One line each; the subject pages have the rest.
ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.
Questions about living in Box Elder
Who supplies Box Elder’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
The Box Elder water system (EPA ID SD4600046). It reported 7 health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026: radioactivity (gross alpha, excluding radon and uranium) ×4, radium (combined radium-226 and -228) ×3. 83% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 2.0 ppb (Jan–Dec 2023), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Box Elder?
Black Hills Energy (Black Hills Power, Inc.), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 15.1¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Box Elder?
Midco, Bluepeak, Quantum Fiber, CenturyLink, AT&T, T-Mobile (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Box Elder?
57719 (85%), 57706 (15%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Box Elder in?
Douglas School District 51-1. Parts of the city are in Rapid City School District 51-4.
How do I register to vote in Box Elder?
South Dakota has no online registration; you can register in person until 15 days before Election Day or by mail (received 15 days before). Elections here are run by the Pennington County Auditor. Check your registration at vip.sdsos.gov.
Sources & dates
Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.
- Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
- Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
- Trash: Box Elder’s own website (boxeldersd.gov), read Oct 23, 2026, pickup and drop-off facts extracted and checked against the page they came from.
- ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
- Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
- Registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
- Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
- Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.