Quote:
Originally Posted by RunForTheRoses
That looked like real nice Big Sky country. And the issue does seem complicated-yes there will be a disruption to the old way of life but there will be some definite economic enhancement.
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Nothing to date has ever happened with the refinery. Mortenson has made millions off this boom selling worthless land for 100 times what he paid for it. I don't have a problem with that at all. Here's where I do have a problem. Back in 2006 I bought twenty acres west of Williston right on Highway 2. Nothing but pasture lane across the highway to me to the south. Farm lane to the east and north of me. I live in a small development, all but mine are ten acre parcels. A couple years after I bought it Mortenson got 80 acres or so directly south of my rezoned from ag to Residential. Sold it all to a developer whom built a dozen homes or so. All specs. Most were little 900-1000 sq. ft houses. Still plenty of lots that aren't selling. Then directly east of that he got rezoned to commercial. A big shop was built right along the highway and a big man camp directly east of that. Over the hill to the south a bunch of shops were also built. All oilfield service companies.
Since those were built the county reclassified commercial. Or I should say what types of business's are considered commercial now. Under the new classification the existing business's don't qualify as today's commercial, they fall under heavy industrial. So he got it rezoned to heavy industrial because he couldn't sell any more land. I was the only one that fought it because I didn't want heavy industrial directly across the road from me. And even in the definition of heavy industrial that the county has it states not to be placed next to residential. It just amazes me nobody else cared. I now believe nobody else looked into it enough to realize they were duped. Before this even happened the amount of traffic on U.S. 2 by my place has quadrupled. They have built several load out facilities on the rail road west of me a dozen miles or so and the truck traffic is insane now. And a month before the vote on rezoning there were two major accidents at the end of my driveway killing three people. They were multi car wrecks. And a month earlier than that there was a major accident half mile east. And the county commissioners didn't even flinch and rubber stamped the rezoning. Mortenson has the commissioners by the nuts somehow.