Construction on the Bakken Area Skills Center has begun with the ceremonial groundbreaking on July 18, 2022. This center has been in the works for years and will be a place for hands-on technical training for both high school students and those already in the workforce. Construction is hoped to be finished by late 2023. Financial commitments to the project have been coming in from a variety of entities including North Dakota Career and Technical Education, McKenzie County Economic Development, McKenzie County School District #1, ONEOK, Stenehjem Holdings, Titan Energy Services, City of Watford City, Fort Union Masonic Lodge #128, Chord Energy, Northern States Fishing Tools, ConocoPhillips, Marathon, Carl E Rogan Post 29 American Legion, and Grayson Mill Energy. Financial contributions are still being accepted. Visit here for more information.

The July economy at a glance is now available. Some data of note include:

• McKenzie County’s May 2022 unemployment rate came in at 2.2%; in May 2021 it was 5.0%

• Year-to-date occupancy tax distributions for Watford City is at $67,054; last year it was $44,789.

• McKenzie County’s May 2022 labor force was 8,860; in May 2021 it was 8,525.

The June economy at a glance is now available. Some data of note:

• Occupancy tax distributions for Watford City year to date are $58,821; compared to the same period last year it was $38,884.
• Watford City sales tax distributions year to date are at $1.63 million; for the same period in 2021 it was $1.35 million.
• Brookledge apartment occupancy rate for June 2022 is 85%; in June 2021 it was 62%.

McKenzie County’s 2021 taxable sales and purchases came in at $242.8 million according to the North Dakota State Tax Department. That represents a 6.9% rebound from the 2020 calendar year, but still behind the highs of 2018 and 2019. For more information visit the ND Tax Department data page.

¿Hablas Español? As our county welcomes people from throughout our state, nation and world to become members of our workforce and community, not everyone who comes knows how to read English. As the recent Census data shows, there has been a 1000% percent increase in the Hispanic population of McKenzie County. In an effort to help integrate newcomers who only read Spanish, an effort is underway to provide information about current community events written in Spanish. To stay abreast visit the Hispanic Advocacy of North Dakota Facebook page.