oil patch – Page 6 – Dustin Monke

Dickinson needs a longterm population solution

Last week, one of my work colleague’s struck up a conversation with a Dickinson newcomer who had recently moved here from Idaho.

The man said he had left an economically depressed area but was doing well here. Still, he had no intention of bringing his family to Dickinson so that he could both work and live here. Why not? It was economically infeasible for him to do so. He was making good money but not enough to find an affordable living situation to make the move work.

So, here the man stays, working hard away from his family and sending most of the money he earns in North Dakota back to his real home. Like so many others, he’s not much more than a visitor to our city and state.

This man’s story shows a reality of what’s really happening in Dickinson and western North Dakota.

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Tornado hits south of Watford City

WATFORD CITY — A tornado touched down about 5 miles south of Watford City on Monday night, damaging a dozen trailers at an RV camp, according to the North Dakota Department of Emergency Services.

Meteorologist John Martin with the National Weather Service in Bismarck said a tornado warning was issued for areas of McKenzie County at about 7:46 p.m. CDT Monday and learned shortly thereafter that a tornado had touched down. Martin said it was the first tornado of 2014 in North Dakota.

“We know that there were 12 trailers that were destroyed,” said Cecily Fong, the public information officer for the state Department of Emergency Services.

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Larsens handle ‘controlled chaos:’ Watford City family-owned drug store sees benefits, challenges of boom

0316 Larsens 2 — Pharmacist Larry Larsen, right, works with his daughter and pharmacist Jenna Wahlstrom on Feb. 13 at their store, Larsen Service Drug on Main Street in Watford City.

WATFORD CITY — Larry and Debbie Larsen know the benefits and pitfalls of owning a small business in an Oil Patch boomtown.

Despite being flush with new clients and busier than ever, Larry said keeping up can be “a struggle.”

“A lot of times, we just call it controlled chaos,” he said.

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The boom’s ‘epicenter:’ Oil Patch hub Watford City adjusts to burgeoning population, financial questions

WATFORD CITY — There are days, Brent Sanford said, when he struggles to wrap his head around everything happening in his hometown.

Ten years ago, Sanford returned to Watford City to take over his family’s automotive dealership. He soon found himself on the city council and was elected mayor in 2010 — right as oil and gas exploration in the Bakken shale formation was beginning to put a stranglehold on northwest North Dakota communities.

Today, Sanford and other Watford City leaders are facing challenges few small towns in America ever have to endure. All the while, he said, they’re trying to keep their once-quiet community from becoming just another “dirty oil town.”

The goal, Sanford and other city leaders said, is to keep pace with growth that has gripped Watford City because of the unprecedented oil boom — it enters the construction season with $240 million in infrastructure needs, ranging from streets to schools — while maintaining its appeal as a progressive and welcoming home where people want to put down roots.

But that is more challenging than anyone could have ever imagined.

“Everything is in flux, basically,” Sanford said.

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There’s no place like Watford City

Nothing in America compares to what’s happening right now in Watford City. It’s as simple as that.

As Williston gets the headlines and Dickinson sees the benefits of the Bakken oil boom while not having to deal with the truly dirty side of it, Watford City is stuck right in the middle of it all — “the epicenter” of the biggest shale oil play in American history, as McKenzie County Economic Development Director Gene Veeder put it.

Most of the talk about Watford City in the past couple years has been about the bypass to send Highway 85’s heavy truck traffic around the city. Lately, we learned of a company in Watford City improperly disposing of radioactive filter socks.

But to truly understand what’s happening on the ground, you have to sit down and speak to the city’s leaders.

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