Huge Development Proposal for South Heart -- Dickinson Area -- The Williston Basin, North Dakota, USA

Link to the Dickinson Press here.

If an out-of-state developer gets his way, South Heart will see an RV park, assisted living center, restaurant, convenience store and two hotels built within the next four years.

Tom Davidson, president of Centerra Development, based in Denver, stood up in City Hall during a council meeting Monday and told council members he wants to invest in their town.

“We want to work with the town, and we want to do a quality project here,” Davidson said.

Davidson’s proposal arrives a month after William Matson, a representative of Waterfront Homes LLC, proposed building 25 12-unit apartment complexes in South Heart.

The commissioners sounded accommodating, but the limiting factor appears to be water.

The assisted living center is a very interesting idea.

In addition to water, the RV park has the commissioners concerned. If they are worried about the trailer park becoming "junky," the commission needs to put in strict language, rules, regulations regarding trailer parks and then assess a very, very high bond that would make it unlikely that less-than-serious developers with inadequate financing would come in. The bond would be held in escrow and used to keep the park in compliance if the developer fails to do so, and would be used to close the park if/when it is no longer needed. I don't think the commissioners use bonds enough to cover their risks/concerns.

The Williams County commissioners now require bonds for man-camps, if I recall correctly, although there is concern that the original bonds were not high enough to cover clean-up once the man-camps are brought down. If the operators are reputable, the bonds would be relatively cheap, and the cost passed on to the residents, regardless.

My three cents worth.

Inflation.