Oil Companies Helping With Housing Shortage -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA

Several of the major oil companies and the oil service companies have on-site areas for temporary living facilities for their new employees, including employees' personal recreational vehicles (which sounds like a misnomer) and commercially-provide man-camp facilities.

At least one of the top ten oil companies in the Bakken has taken it a step farther. The company has bought at least one parcel of land in the center of the residential area of Williston, has cleared the land, put in water, sewer, utilities, and is preparing to build what appears to be about 24-single unit homes. At least it appears there is room for 24-single unit homes. It's possible there will be mixed residential facilities to include apartments, but it seems single unit homes are more likely.

The oil company, I am told, put in the water, sewer, and utilities itself simply because the city would have not gotten to the project quite as quickly due to the demand for infrastructure.

To me, this suggests that the oil folks think that the surge in oil activity will continue for many years. They are not building permanent structures for a short stay.

By the way, speaking of building. Remember the 2,500 new units going in northwest of Williston? Some folks have suggested that Menard's of Minot is going to be very, very busy helping supply the raw materials needed for these new houses. Perhaps Menard's will be visited by folks after they move into their new homes and do some of their own remodeling and additions, buy my hunch is that Kiewit, et al, will be bringing in their own raw materials by train. It appears the next stage will foundations, either basements or concrete slabs. I would hope they would put in basements. Basements add a lot to homes in northwestern North Dakota (don't require much heating during the winter, and are very cool during the summer) but something tells me to expedite things, these homes will be sitting on concrete slabs. I hope I'm wrong. I think I may be in the area long enough to see what they do out there.