Foreign Investors Eyeing The Bakken -- Note The Byline -- July 7, 2014; Meadowlark Brewery Opening In Sidney

The AP is reporting:

WILLISTON, N.D. (AP) -- Foreign investors more familiar with projects in the emerging markets of Eastern Europe and tropical escapes of Southeast Asia are finding a new destination for their dollars and francs: Western North Dakota's oil patch that's home to booming towns, low unemployment rates and high incomes.

SelectUSA, a government foreign investment initiative, said the state has drawn at least 31 publicly announced foreign investment projects since 2003 worth a total of $1.04 billion.

Now two foreign companies are planning a pair of large oil patch developments worth $800 million.

Among the latest projects is Swiss firm Stropiq's plan for a $500 million, 219-acre mixed-use development called Williston Crossing featuring 1 million square feet of retail, entertainment and hotel space along with offices and residential plots.

The oil patch is "an emerging market by most definitions, except it is in the continental U.S.," said Stropiq co-founder Terry Olin. "We have rule of law and property rights — things that in most emerging markets can be challenging."

Olin has North Dakota roots but spent the past two decades working on projects in Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia.

Another foreign investment firm, Singapore's Barons Group of Companies, has proposed a $300 million project in Dickinson called Barons Vista that includes a mall, four-star hotel, spa, offices and condos.

Both projects have been previously posted at the blog, but sourced at regional / local newspapers. This is now a national news story.

A lot of those service industries will need a lot of young people. The "Dreamers" streaming across the border?

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Other items of interest from the Williston Wire

Less than a year after breaking ground, the Badlands Town Center (BTC), located on the corner of 42nd St. W and 9th Ave W, is ready to open its doors.  Coyoacan Mexican Bistro has announced it will call BTC its home in Fall 2014. Ronica O'Dwyer of Triland Holdings, LLC said that the Town Center will be, "a pedestrian friendly mix of retail and dining. BTC's first tenant, the United States Postal Service, is opening its second Williston location July 1.

Four exciting new restaurants are making their way to Williston in Fall 2014!  Midwestern fast food staple, Culver's, is opening its fourth North Dakota location right here in Williston in November, 2014! They will be located southwest of Williston near the Sand Creek Town Centre.  Meanwhile, Qdoba Mexican Grill will join the Smiling Moose Deli at Plaza 26. The fast food Tex-Mex restaurant is recognized for its fresh, handcrafted meals prepared in front of it patrons. The Smiling Moose offers a fresh, built to order menu featuring hot sandwiches, soups, and salads, including vegetarian options, and are open 7 days a week for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Smiling Moose is proud of their unique and laid-back dining experience. The fourth is the Coyoacan Mexican Bistro mentioned above.

Meadowlark Brewery, a pub, brewery, restaurant and coffee shop, has opened in Sidney.  Centrally located on South Central Avenue, Meadowlark is the first brewery in Sidney since Prohibition, which was repealed in Montana in 1926.  There are a variety of beers on tap, which rotate and have included Moose Drool, Jack's 90, Buffalo Bill Rye, Pump Jack, 312 Urban Wheat, Bent Nail IPA, Batch 19, Red Lodge Porter, Black Widow and Goose Island IPA.

Now that Beulah has voted in a new 1-cent sales tax for a wellness center, the heavy lifting is about to begin.  The June 10 vote wasn't overwhelming - just 38 "yes" votes swung the balance - but it starts the new tax rolling and helps fund construction of a 30,000-square-foot, multi-million-dollar facility adjacent to the community's fairly new outdoor swimming pool.  The community park board will meet July 1 to start naming a board to oversee project construction and operations along with an executive director.

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Definition

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