North Dakota
State threatens to close Walsh County Jail if new facility isn't built
GRAFTON, N.D. — The fate of the Walsh County Jail is in the hands of voters.
The North Dakota Department of Corrections has warned the county that the jail will be shut down if a new one is not built.
It’s not a question if the current Walsh County Jail will close, but when. County leaders are under the impression that date is much sooner rather than later.
Sewer backups in cells, corroded pipes and mold in the basement are just a few of the dozens of problems inside the 50-year-old jail, which also houses the sheriff’s department.
The jail also has no air conditioning.
“Our jail has outlived its lifespan. There has been continual maintenance done on the jail, but it has just simply worn out,” said county commissioner Kristi Brintnell.
Twelve years ago, the jail was reduced from 25 beds to 16 due to the condition of the facility. Sheriff Ron Jurgens said he currently spends nearly a quarter of a million dollars shipping inmates across the state.
Right now eight county inmates are spread out as far away as Williston, more than 300 miles away from Grafton.
“We put them in the back of a squad car and drive them three, four, five, six hours away,” he said.
Proposed is a $42.6 million jail and sheriff’s office. The new law enforcement center would be three times bigger than the current LEC. The jail would have 46 beds. It would include beds for women and people experiencing mental health episodes.
“They are allowing us basically to remain open because we are looking at building a jail,” Brintnell said.
Voters will be asked two questions:
The first is a sales tax increase of 3/4 of a percent. That equates to 75 cents for every $100 spent in the county.
Question 2 is a 20 mill increase on property taxes. That’s about an extra $90 a year on a $100,000 home, or $199 a year on a quarter of land.
Both need a simple majority to pass.
Brittnell said the county did a study that showed if the new jail is not built and the county has to transport inmates for 20 years, doing so would cost $12 million more than building the new jail.
Not only would it cost more, but Sheriff Jurgens said it would take deputies off patrol to transport inmates across the state.
“Having 20 more inmates to try and find beds for will be a nightmare for me,” he said.
If the project is approved by voters on May 13, construction would begin next year and be finished in 2027.
The old LEC would then be demolished for a parking lot.
The polls are open from 9 a.m. until 7 p.m. on Tuesday at the Walsh County Courthouse.
Absentee ballots are also available.
Walsh County citizens can calculate the tax impact on their home and property by visiting the walshcountyvote.com
Matt Henson is an Emmy award-winning reporter/photographer/editor for WDAY. Prior to joining WDAY in 2019, Matt was the main anchor at WDAZ in Grand Forks for four years.
North Dakota
North Dakota voters to decide single-subject requirement for future constitutional amendments on June 9
BRECKENRIDGE — Coaches, teammates, friends and family gathered in the south parking lot of Breckenridge High School for another state tournament sendoff.
Corbin Abner Lee / Wahpeton Daily News
This year, it was Troy Berndt taking the ceremonial convertible ride. He is headed to St. Michael-Albertville High School for the Minnesota Class A State Track and Field Meet on June 4-6.
Corbin Abner Lee / Wahpeton Daily News
He will be running in the third heat of the 400-meter prelims, scheduled for 4:52 p.m. June 4. There are seven athletes in each heat, 21 total, and nine will advance to the finals at 6:20 p.m. June 5.
The top two finishers in each heat advance, along with the next three best times. Berndt’s personal best time of 50.67 has him seeded 13th, but the 10th-, 11th- and 12th-seeded runners are less than five hundredths of a second ahead of him. The eighth- and ninth-seeded runners are also close, at 50.33 and 50.39, respectively.
Berndt dropped nearly seven-tenths of a second from his previous personal best at the Section 6A West Subsection Meet on May 21, running 51.35, and shaved another 0.68 seconds off at the Section 6A Championships on May 28 with a time of 50.67. If he keeps lowering his time, he will have a shot at reaching the podium against the best runners in Class A.
Corbin Abner Lee / Wahpeton Daily News
Results and photos will be available online immediately following the race June 4 and in the June 10 print edition of the Wahpeton Daily News.
Corbin Lee is a sports reporter for the Wahpeton Daily News and Richland County News-Monitor. Corbin can be reached by calling (701) 291-3551 or emailing corbin.lee@wahpetondailynews.com.
On this day in 1971, Rugby repeated as North Dakota’s high school sand greens golf champion behind medalist Dwight Stempson’s winning performance.
Here is the complete story as it appeared in the paper that day:
Rugby Repeats As Sand Greens Golf Champion
RUGBY, N. D. — Rugby repeated as North Dakota high school sand greens golf champion here Wednesday, posting a four-man total of 293 strokes for 18 holes.
Led by medalist Dwight Stempson’s medalist 36-35 — 71, the Panthers were eight strokes ahead of runnerup Stanley, which had a 301. Following were Garrison 311, Beulah 315, Leeds 322, Ashley 323, Bottineau 328, Pembina 329, Tioga 332, Parshall 341 and Hettinger 342.
Stempson and teammate Bruce Carlson each had one-under par 71s, but Carlson was unable to be at the regional and wasn’t qualified for individual honors.
Rounding out the Rugby totals were Delwin Wilson 40-37 — 77 and Dennett Hutchinson 35-39 — 74. Gary Kirchoffner, 41-39 — 80, was Rugby’s fifth entrant with the best four-of-five scores counted.
Runnerup Stanley was led by Steve Springan’s 34-38 — 72 and Joe Springan’s 36-38 — 74. Their two-man total of 146 strokes was good enough for the doubles title. Two strokes back with a 148 was the duo of Stempson and Wilson. Stan Saathoff and Mike Stepina of Garrison each had 76s for a 152 total and the Ashley combo of Steve Maier (76) and Dave Kretschmar (78) was fourth with a 154.
Stempson was the driving contest winner with a distance of 280 yards. Chris Knutson of Garrison headed the pitch and putt competition.
Kate Almquist is the social media manager for InForum. After working as an intern, she joined The Forum full time starting in January 2022. Readers can reach her at kalmquist@forumcomm.com.
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