Active work on Housing and Childcare in Western North Dakota

From: The Vision West ND consortium housing committee is working on a template of available housing incentives that will be sent to the municipalities in the VWND region. The committee hopes this will help cities improve their capacity to attract housing developers. The Vision West ND Consortium held its regular meeting on September 15 via telephone conference call. Twenty five people, including consortium members, associate members, and state and federal agency staff participated in the call.  Buster Langowski, Hazen, chaired the consortium meeting. Vision West ND welcomed two new associate members during the consortium meeting. The members included Houston Engineering, Inc. and NDSU Extension Center for Community Vitality. The transportation committee is in the process of sending letters to the US and ND Departments of Transportation, the US Congressional delegation, Governor Dalrymple, and the ND House and Senate leadership in support of four-lane paving Highway 85 from I-94 to Watford City. The child care committee partnered with Child Care Aware to incorporate the child care portal into its website in an effort to take the information statewide.The child care portal, originally developed by The Strom Center in Dickinson and hosted on the state's SBDC website, connects those wishing to enter the child care industry with the resources necessarto start their business.   Experts reported it takes two months for required background checks to clear potential start up child care business owners, which puts an obstacle in the path for adding more child care spaces. The consortium declined to give associate members a vote, rather they kept them as participating, non-voting members. Karalea Cox from Common Sense Consulting reported on the VWND Technical Assistance Retreat held in Watford City, ND. The Retreat was for plan directors and consortium members to focus on economic development and diversity. The next consortium meeting will be held in Crosby, N.D. on October 20. More information can be found at www.visionwestnd.com. - article compiled with assistance from Katelin Dukart