SCHMID: LOOKING BACK FROM THE LEFT COAST - OCTOBER 7, 2019
FARGO GROWS UP “Agriculture was once the economic engine, but Fargo is now a regional healthcare, education, research and manufacturing hub, too.” — Fargo Mayor Tim Mahoney. Perhaps you’ve noticed, during the recent cyclical ag downturn, Fargo has continued relatively robust growth, in fact, it’s one of the best cities in the Midwest. Consider this a sign that Fargo is no longer exclusively chained to the state’s farm economy.
BEGGING FOR REFUGEES Just two years ago, there was mounting concern in Fargo about the cost of absorbing 600 refugees a year. The tide has turned — the city is receiving only 100 refugees a year and Mayor Mahoney said the city needs more refugees for jobs such as health caretakers and housekeepers in hotels. He said, “Ninety percent are fully employed within 90 days.”
JUSTICE GERALD VANDEWALLE (86) is the longest-serving sitting chief justice in the country and the longest-serving in ND history. The T. Roosevelt Rough Rider Award winner said he will not seek reappointment as chief justice, but plans to stay on the court.
ARE GOOD TIMES RETURNING TO UND? Joshua Wynne, interim president at UND, gave an annual update for the campus. He acknowledged the school had tough times in the recent past, but said notable changes are taking place. UND is in the midst of $350 million of upgrades including a new Student Union. Those upgrades do not include a new flight operations building authorized for the Aerospace School and a new College of Business building. The latter will be partially funded by a $20 million lead gift from Werner and Colleen Nistler of Portland, Oregon. Werner is a 1968 accounting graduate who is chairman of Touchmark, an owner of senior living communities. The Board of Higher Education expects to choose a new UND president in December.
UNANSWERED QUESTION Columnist Mike Jacobs paralleled the above item with a discussion of the health of higher education in ND. The state system has endured a budget crisis and other challenges, but Jacobs now sees “improving conditions and a vibrant system.” As an aside, he mentioned that SD’s colleges and universities had a 3.5% decrease in enrollment this fall and have 20% fewer students than ND. That is particularly surprising because SD’s population is about 16% greater than ND. The two states have similar demographics, although SD has a proportionately larger Indian population. It would be interesting to see a more complete comparison of the two higher education systems to possibly determine why they have such different enrollment outcomes.
CHICKENS COME HOME TO ROOST Over two years ago, two women bragged to reporters in Iowa that they set fire to heavy equipment in ND and used torches to pierce valves to delay the Dakota Access Pipeline. It appeared they might get away — until now. A grand jury in Iowa has charged the women with conspiracy to damage an energy facility and they will be tried in federal court.
PUSHING A ROCK UPHILL? A workshop in Fargo was part of the Western Governors’ Association’s theme of “Reimagining the Rural West.” A speaker said, “Reports about small-town America dying have been greatly exaggerated.” He said jobs are plentiful and the challenge for small communities is to build places “people want to live in.” Gov. Burgum furthered the theme saying “If we want to build a workforce in rural communities, we need to build more livable rural communities.” ND history is not on the side of a rural renaissance.
SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST "In America, the big get bigger and the small go out.” — Sec. of Agriculture Sonny Perdue warned that small farms will struggle to compete. He noted that our country does not guarantee the profitability of any small business. His comments alarmed small dairy farmers in Wisconsin where he was speaking.
NO SURPRISE In the initial stages of the Trump impeachment inquiry, U.S. Representatives from ND and Minnesota have lined up along party lines with one notable exception. Democratic Rep. Collin Peterson represents western Minnesota adjoining the ND border. He believes “impeachment proceedings will be a lengthy and divisive action with no resolution.”
HOLDING CONFLICTING VIEWS The airport in Thief River Falls, Minnesota, receives an annual subsidy of over $3 million through the federal Essential Air Service program; the Grand Forks Airport gets no such subsidy. A GF Herald editorial says this may be unfair, since the two airports both offer service to Minneapolis and are only an hour apart. On the other hand, EAS service may be essential to regional powerhouse Digi-Key, a very large company employing 3,200 in TRF. The Herald concluded that the EAS subsidy for TRF may be important to regional health. Airports in Jamestown and Devils Lake also receive EAS subsidies.
AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY — 2018 results for Minnesota showed a state comfortably above the national average in income. Median earnings are $39,000 (No. 11 in the nation) and median household income is $70,000 (No. 15). ND incomes lag slightly behind Minnesota; SD and Montana are noticeably lower. Minnesota also ranked 15th in inequality, partially caused by the high earnings of baby boomers in or near retirement. Median household incomes of whites in Minnesota are nearly double those of blacks. ND and SD are among the states with the greatest equality. Minnesota has one of the nation’s highest percentages of working women (86%).
DAKTOIDS: A WalletHub study ranked ND the nation’s best state for teachers. As for the quality of the school system, ND ranked 9th and Minnesota 6th . . . A U.S. College Hockey poll ranks UND #18 — defending NCAA champion Minnesota Duluth is #1 and two other Minnesota schools are ranked above UND . . . Effective January 1, ND court records above the municipal level will be open to remote online access . . . ND had the wettest September on record, which could be a harbinger of spring flooding . . . ND has 639 abandoned oil wells — the Industrial Commission is considering stricter rules to slow the growth of abandoned wells.
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