Stories Taken From Williston's Wire Line -- Western Stagecoach -- March 20, 2012

Finally, Sand Creek retail center to break ground in Williston.

It’s been almost a year since a Williston Menards was announced. Now new details are out on the Sand Creek Town Centre which will feature that Menards, a movie theatre and other retail, restaurant and motel ventures.

A March press release names Duemelands Commercial Real Estate of Bismarck as the exclusive sales and leasing agent for Sand Creek Town Centre.

“The first phase of the development will break ground in April and will be fully operational in early fall 2012. Additional phases are to be complete in 2013,” according to a press release.

New dollar store opens in Williston.

Basin Dollar and More opened on Feb. 15 and held a grand opening and ribbon-cutting Monday.
The store is at 203 Main, across from U.S. Bank.

Store-owner Carol Finkbeiner said she opened the store with her inheritance which she received last year.

Previously, she owned C and T Cleaning for more than 20 years, and she wanted to pursue a less physically demanding venture. She said when the True Value dollar store closed, the time was right. Her manager Amy Mattingly used to work at the True Value dollar store.

New Greek restaurant opens in Williston. 

Pita Palace, a new restaurant in Williston, is scheduled to open today. At 819 11th St. West, where J Dub’s Pizza was briefly located, the independent pita restaurant is bringing a Greek flare to Williston.

“It’s something different. I think we’ll have the best gyros you can get. We’re putting more meat on them than you’ll ever get anywhere else,” said Kyle Burkle, co-owner with Caleb Hinrickson.
Best gyros you can get? Probably the only gyros you can get in Williston.

The Elks: 'The Williston' -- steak and seafood.

The building at 408 1st Ave. East, across from the Old Armory, is receiving renovation inside, which will include a classy steak and seafood restaurant with “a Cajun flare,” though the building’s exterior will remain the same, said owner Joel Lundeen. “The Williston - boutique hotel, restaurant and bar” is slated to open in early June.

“It’s a great building and we’re going to try and preserve the outside of the way the building looks currently because it’s important to a lot of people we’ve talked to in the city,” Lundeen said. “Everybody has a story about this building, so we want to keep that feel of the lodge.”

Huge: Stevensville Stagecoach to Montana

Clocking out of a long 12-hour shift at the end of a two-week schedule in the heart of the Bakken, driving straight home to western Montana isn’t exactly the safest thing to do. So business partners and Stevensville residents Bill Lawrence and Dudley Chilcott came up with an idea. How about an express charter service to and from the Bakken for western Montana residents?

“We’re sitting here thinking, ‘How can we help, what can we do?’ And this popped into our heads,” Lawrence said. “It’s a safety issue.”

Within the last couple of months, the men formed R ‘n’ R Stagelines based out of Stevensville. It’s an express bus that stops in Williston, N.D., and Sidney but is a straight shot along I-94 and I-90 to Bozeman, Butte, Anaconda and Missoula, the primary destinations – at least at the beginning of the charter service. It’s a rest and relaxation form of transportation so travelers can enjoy watching movies or doing other quiet activities on the long ride home.

Watford City approves new housing development, apartment complexes, and a new truck stop (this link won't last long)

The council approved the annexation and subdivision plat of land northwest of the city for residential development by the Elemental Development Group of Henderson, Nev. and another annexation and subdivision plat by Greg and Monica Simonson of Watford City.

The two new housing projects, which will provide for a combined 400 units of multiple family and single family homes, is expected to provide housing for 1,000 people.

The city council also approved the annexation of 12.9 acres of land on the south side of the Highway 23 Bypass for the development of a new truck stop by Farmers Union Oil Company of Watford City.

The topic of a proposed U.S. Highway 85 Bypass south of Watford City also drew considerable public comment during Monday night’s meeting with the city council ultimately agreeing to send a letter to the North Dakota Dept. of Transportation stating that the city no longer wanted the substation road (25th Street NW and 128th Ave. NW) to be considered as a preferred bypass route.