Latest news with #TheJamestownSun
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Roundabout chosen for intersection in Jamestown
Jun. 3—JAMESTOWN — The North Dakota Department of Transportation has selected the roundabout option for the U.S. Highway 52 and 10th Street Southeast intersection, according to Jamestown City Councilman David Steele. Steele informed the City Council during committee reports on Monday, June 2, that the North Dakota Department of Transportation has also selected a five-lane road with a two-way left-turn for Business Loop West, which is similar to the existing road. The project would reconstruct the U.S. Highway 52 and 10th Street Southeast intersection and Business Loop West from 4th Avenue Southwest to 10th Street Southeast. The two bridges on Business Loop West will also be replaced. The project includes restriping 1st Avenue South from 7th to 10th Street Southeast to help match the configuration of the Road Diet project further north in the downtown area. The other three alternatives for the U.S. Highway 52 and 10th Street intersection were a radial T, double crossover and displaced left turns. The other three alternatives for the reconstruction of Business Loop West were four lanes with full intersection access at all streets with raised medians, four lanes with three-fourths intersection access with a raised median, and four-lane right-in and right-out intersection access with a raised median. The estimated cost is nearly $9.2 million for the roundabout and about $6.5 million for the five-lane road with a two-way left-turn lane, The Jamestown Sun reported in February. The purpose of the project is to address bridge and pavement condition, vehicular traffic operations and sidewalks for bicyclists or individuals who walk along and adjacent to the U.S. Highway 52 corridor in Jamestown from 7th Street to 4th Avenue Southwest, the Sun reported in February. The city of Jamestown's Land Use and Transportation Plan identifies the need to improve traffic operations and pedestrian comfort at the intersection of 1st Avenue South and 10th Street Southeast, The Sun reported. The Land Use and Transportation Plan also identifies the need to address gaps in the sidewalk and trail system in the general area. Construction on the project is scheduled for summer 2027. The Jamestown City Council unanimously approved listing city-owned properties for sale in southeast Jamestown. The city-owned properties are located at 301 and 401 11th Ave. SE and 1104 and 1220 Railroad Drive SE. The properties at 301 and 401 11th Ave. SE are in the Harold P. Bensch Addition. The properties at 1104 and 1220 Railroad Drive SE are in the Kourajian Second Addition. The request for proposals for the four properties will be advertised on June 7 with applications due on Aug. 15. The selection date and notice will be on Sept. 2-3, respectively, or as determined by the City Council. The minimum price acceptable for each of the properties is $2 per square foot at 401 11th Ave. SE and $2.50 per square foot at 301 11th Ave. SE, according to the city of Jamestown's request for proposals. The minimum price is $2 per square foot for the property at 1104 Railroad Drive SE. Mayor Dwaine Heinrich said the price of the property at 1220 Railroad Drive SE, which includes a building, is $151,600. "One of the other conditions on the sale of that one with the building on it is that ... the exterior has to be refurbished because it doesn't look very good right now," Heinrich said. The purchaser must agree to sell the property back to the city at the original purchase price if development does not occur within 30 months of the purchase in accordance with the development plan submitted as part of the original purchase proposal. The City Council unanimously approved the annexation of property adjacent to 25th Street and 11th Avenue Southwest. The property is about 7 acres and is located west of Walmart. The property will be used for the construction of a housing complex, Heinrich said at the Jamestown Finance and Legal Committee meeting on May 20. The annexation request was made by Beyond Shelter Inc. and Jtown Land LLC. In other business, the City Council held the first reading of an ordinance to amend and reenact section 8, article 1 of the city of Jamestown's municipal code related to keeping fowl. The ordinance would loosen restrictions on keeping fowl within city limits by eliminating a setback requirement from the applicant's residence. The current ordinance for keeping fowl in an enclosure has a setback requirement of 100 feet at its nearest point from any residence. "Fowl shall be kept in an enclosure not less than 60 feet at its nearest point from any other residence, including any attached structures, and must be constructed as to prevent such fowl from wandering or flying from the enclosure," the new ordinance says. "Any enclosure for the Fowl shall be not less than 30 feet from the permittee's residence and any attached structures." The proposed number of chickens allowed is up to eight. Heinrich said the topic will be on the agenda for the Finance and Legal Committee meeting on June 24. "We do have some proposed changes, and I have visited with our city attorney and we know there's some other changes, but we're confident that we're not ready to go forward with that," he said before the first reading of the ordinance. Lisa Kainz, a Jamestown resident, said the setback distance of 100 feet from a neighbor's residence is "not the best thing." "I know my neighbors personally and they're 150 feet from me because where I live, but I also believe that if you are a minority and you don't have what I have and you receive permission from your neighbors and the majority of the people around you would like you to be able to have chickens because they would enjoy them also, they should have that right," she said.
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
In case you missed it in The Sun the week of May 19, 2025
May 24—The following stories from this week appeared on and in The Jamestown Sun. Students, faculty, staff and administrators of Victory Christian School as well as parents and Jamestown Area Chamber of Commerce ambassadors marked the completion of the school's new addition on Friday, May 16, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. "It's going to benefit the church and benefit the community of Jamestown to have this space," said Mike Woodley, executive director of Victory Christian School. Beginning this fall, Victory Christian School will offer classes for students prekindergarten through ninth grade. The school offered classes for students prekindergarten through eighth grade this past school year. A new grade will be added each year with the addition of 12th grade in 2028. Victory Christian School launched its $5 million "Growing Together" capital campaign in April 2024 for the construction of the new addition with a goal of starting a high school. Woodley said $4.2 million has been raised of the $5 million goal. The Stutsman County Commission in a 4-0 vote on Tuesday, May 20, appointed Benjamin Tompkins to serve on the board. Tompkins was one of 11 applicants who applied to fill the vacant seat on the county commission."I'm very excited," Tompkins said. "I think that I can bring a lot of perspective that not everybody gets to see." The other applicants were George Barnes, John Baumgartner, Paul Belzer, Dernel Denning, Steven Gerszewski, John Grabinger, Daren Peterka, Trever Sahr, Taylor Vining and Alan Williams. Tompkins took the oath of office and filled the vacant seat after he was appointed on Tuesday. The vacancy was created after the death of Commissioner Jerry Bergquist on April 24. Bergquist was elected to the commission in November 2022. Tompkins will hold the office at least until the next general election. North Dakota Century Code 44-02-05 says the appointee holds office until the appointee's successor is elected at the next general election that occurs at least 95 days after the vacancy and the successor has qualified. The next general election cycle is in 2026. The Jamestown Building, Planning and Zoning Committee unanimously recommended approval on Tuesday, May 20, of a minor subdivision in northeast Jamestown . The final plat of the Buffalo Estates First Addition is a replat of a portion of Horizon Estates First Addition. Buffalo Estates First Addition is located east of the Two Rivers Activity Center between 25th and 27th Avenue Northeast and north of 5th Street Northeast. There is no street for 25th Avenue Northeast at the location. In related business, the Building, Planning and Zoning Committee unanimously recommended approval of the future land use plan amendment for Buffalo Estates First Addition from vacant/agricultural to a single-family residential district. The committee also unanimously recommended approval to introduce the first reading of an ordinance to amend and reenact ordinance No. 1556 of the city code by amending the district map to change the zoning of blocks one and two of the Buffalo Estates First Addition from a one-family residential district to a one-family residential and duplex or two-family residential district. The reason for the requests of the future land use plan and zoning map amendments is "to have the optimum ability to develop the area between single-family homes and single-family attached homes," according to the applications. The Jamestown chief of police says an ordinance is needed that would impose fees for repeat offenders of false burglar or fire alarms at businesses in Jamestown. Scott Edinger, chief of police, told the Jamestown Police and Fire Committee on Thursday, May 22, that the discussion for an ordinance is in the preliminary stages. He said the Jamestown Police Department has responded to an average of 218 false alarm calls per year for the past 10 years. In a letter to the Jamestown City Council, Edinger wrote that less than 0.25% of the alarms the Jamestown Police Department responds to have any actual emergency involved. Edinger said many of the false burglar alarm calls are at the same businesses. Fire Chief Jim Reuther said the Jamestown Fire Department is also experiencing a lot of false fire alarm calls. Mayor Dwaine Heinrich said city staff should research what can be put in an ordinance and present it to the City Council. Edinger said the ordinance should be in place starting on Jan. 1, 2026. "That gives us an opportunity to get this information out to the businesses," he said. No action was taken on the issue. The status of funding for Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center and other facilities operated by the U.S. Geological Survey through its Ecosystems Mission Area is still unclear even after the House of Representatives passed the Trump administration-sponsored budget bill on Thursday, May 22. Sen. John Hoeven's office replied in an email to a request for information before the budget bill passed the House of Representatives by saying, "We checked with the Department of the Interior regarding the Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center. DOI is evaluating their facility options and no budget decisions have been made at this point regarding staffing or funding." Rep. Julie Fedorchak's office did not provide information regarding the status of funding for the Ecosystems Mission Area the morning after the budget bill passed during the overnight hours. Various media outlets and national and regional wildlife and ecological organizations have reported that the Ecosystems Working Group and its laboratories around the country will be eliminated as part of budget cuts going into the next federal fiscal year, which starts Oct. 1.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Jerry Bergquist remembered for his dedication, work for Stutsman County
Apr. 30—JAMESTOWN — Gerald "Jerry" Bergquist is being remembered for his dedication, loyalty and hard work for the county and Jamestown community. "I don't think the county has ever had a more dedicated, loyal employee than Jerry Bergquist," said Mark Klose, who served on the county commission for 40 years. Bergquist, 72, Jamestown, passed away on Thursday, April 24, in SMP Health Ave — Ave Maria. He was serving as the Stutsman County Commission chairman when he passed away. "He was just one of those guys that loved our community and was involved in every aspect of it," said Scott Edinger, Jamestown chief of police. "Actually, he didn't just talk about how he'd like to make change. He went out and was constantly involved in making change." A post on Stutsman County's Facebook page on Monday, April 28, says everyone is "shocked and saddened" about Bergquist's death. "To honor Mr. Bergquist, and to allow County staff the opportunity to attend his funeral, all non-essential County offices will be closed all day this coming Friday, May 2nd, 2025," the Facebook post says. Bergquist was serving his first four-year term on the Stutsman County Commission. He was elected in November as a write-in candidate. Klose said Bergquist was doing a "great job" as a county commissioner. He said Bergquist was very knowledgeable about county government operations. "He was always wanting to know all sides before making a decision and he thought it out well," he said. Klose said Bergquist was well liked by many people in the community. "When we reorganized the commission, ... I think every one of the portfolios wanted him on their board because they liked the way he operated and had a way of getting things done," he said. Bergquist served as the Stutsman County emergency manager for 32 1/2 years before retiring in 2021. Klose was a member of the commission when Bergquist was hired as the first emergency manager and 911 coordinator in Stutsman County. Klose said Bergquist did a "very fine" job while he was employed by the county. "I always kidded him when I went to visit with him that he had so many damn many awards that they are going to have to build another wall to hang them all on," Klose said. "He was recognized quite a few times at the state level." After Bergquist was hired, he managed the process of establishing addresses for people living in the country, The Jamestown Sun reported in June 2021. That replaced the rural routes that previously served as addresses outside cities. The 911 system in Stutsman County was the second countywide system in the state when it became operational in 1990. Stutsman County Emergency Manager Jessica Moser said Bergquist was excited to help her in her new role and share his knowledge about emergency management. "There was no one who was more selfless and willing to serve the community and making sure we were on the right path as far as being proactive in safety, mitigation and preparedness," she said. Scott Cebula, Stutsman County Communications Center/911 supervisor, worked with Bergquist from 2005 to 2021. Cebula said Bergquist was an extremely hard worker who put in a lot of hours. "He's gonna be sorely missed," he said. "He had a wealth of knowledge that nobody else had concerning the county and 911 operations as a whole because he basically is the one who put together the 911 for Stutsman County way back in the day." Edinger said Bergquist did a great job working with all the agencies while he was employed by the county. "The guy knew everything that was going on," he said. "He was just really detail oriented, and was always looking to improve things and make sure he did the best for the community that he could." Edinger said Bergquist also was involved with different organizations and served on their boards as well. Bergquist's obituary says he served on committees and boards for the Jamestown Salvation Army, St. John's Academy (Foundation for Advancement of Christian Education), South Central Homeless Coalition, American Red Cross, Jamestown Area Chamber of Commerce committees, emergency planning committees, land use and transportation planning, Central Valley Health District Board of Health, Stutsman County Weed Board, Jamestown Regional Airport Authority, Stutsman County Human Rights Coalition and was treasurer of the Jamestown Amateur Radio Club. "It's hard to find somebody that cares that much and is involved as deeply as he was," Edinger said. Bergquist was named the Jamestown Area Chamber of Commerce Citizen of the Year in 2020, an award that was co-shared with Reuben and Clarice Liechty. He also received the chamber's Above and Beyond Award in 2009. When Bergquist was named the Citizen of the Year, he told The Jamestown Sun that the award "raises the bar" but it would not change the way he did his job and participate in the community. "Keep doing what I've been doing," he said. "Trying to make the community a safer and better place." Eddy Funeral Home is handling Bergquist's funeral arrangements. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. with a vigil service at 8 p.m. on Thursday, May 1, at St. James Basilica in Jamestown. Mass of Christian burial will be held at 10 a.m. Friday, May 2, at St. James Basilica. Interment will be in Calvary Cemetery.
Yahoo
19-04-2025
- Yahoo
Jamestown man sentenced for role in boat accident
Apr. 19—JAMESTOWN — A 51-year-old man was sentenced recently in Southeast District Court in Jamestown for his role in a two-boat accident in September on Spiritwood Lake. Jeffrey Romsdal, Jamestown, pleaded guilty to reckless or negligent operation of a motorboat or vessel, a Class B misdemeanor. Romsdal was accused of operating a vessel that struck another boat that was anchored on Sept. 14. Adam Zimney, Jamestown resident, told The Jamestown Sun in September that he, his children and niece were on the boat that was struck. He said two on the boat sustained concussions and two others reported minor injuries. Judge Daniel Narum sentenced Romsdal to 30 days in the Stutsman County Correctional Center with 30 days suspended. Narum ordered Romsdal to complete 40 hours of community service, not to possess or own firearms for 360 days, participate in the 24-7 Program for 339 days and not possess, purchase or consume alcohol for 360 days. Romsdal was also ordered to pay a $125 criminal administration fee, $100 defense/facility administration fee, $1,500 fine/state, $25 victim-witness fee and a $25 community service supervision fee. A Class B misdemeanor is punishable by 30 days in prison and a $1,500 fine.
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
In case you missed it in The Sun the week of April 7, 2025
Apr. 12—The following stories from this week appeared on and in The Jamestown Sun. The Jamestown City Council unanimously approved on Monday, April 7, a notice of intent to request a release of funds for Stride Development's Riverside Cottages Project. Mayor Dwaine Heinrich was authorized to sign the notice. The city of Jamestown will submit a request to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for the release of Community Development Block Grant funds for the project at 902-1514 Gardenette Drive. The City Council also unanimously approved a finding that the project will have no significant impact on the human environment. An environmental impact statement under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 is not required, according to city documents. The Riverside Cottages project is a multiphase affordable housing rehabilitation project led by Stride Development. The $48 million project comprises three phases and includes acquiring and rehabilitating the 168 single-bedroom unit development into 150 units providing one-, two- and three-bedroom options. While there has not been a confirmed case of measles in North Dakota since 2011, there is at least some interest in vaccinations among adults, according to Kim Lee, director of nursing for Central Valley Health District. "A few vaccinations for those 55 and older," she said. "Boosting because of travel." The U.S. is seeing a spike in measles cases this year. There were 607 confirmed cases in the U.S. in 21 states with 74 of those cases requiring hospitalization as of Friday, April 4, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Measles is highly contagious and anyone not protected against it is at risk, according to the CDC. If one person has it, up to 9 out of 10 people nearby will become infected if they are not protected. The MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine is commonly given in two doses. "The measles (vaccine) is very effective," Pinnick said. "It is about 90% effective after one dose and 97% to 98% effective after the second dose. MMR is not something boosted." The James Valley Library System Board of Directors unanimously approved on Wednesday, April 9, updates to its policy on challenging materials in its libraries. The application for challenging materials will also be updated at the next library board meeting on May 14. Updates to the library system's challenge policy include having the complainant read, view or listen to the entire work the individual is challenging and including his or her street and email addresses. "You have to take it in context of the whole work," said Joe Rector, library system director, referring to reading, viewing or listening to the entire work. The policy was also updated to say no appeal is valid if a complainant has appealed and the library board has declined the appeal on three or more requests within a three-year period. The policy previously said no appeal is valid if a complainant has appealed and the library board has declined the appeal on five or more requests within a two-year period.
