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Mask mandate decision was right move

The Minot City Council made the right move Tuesday in delaying any decision on lifting a mask mandate implemented last October as a mitigation measure against the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the city has seen relief from the high infection rate last fall, the council is wise to be cautious about making any changes, given the uncertainty surrounding the virus. The potential for another increase in cases along with the appearance of new virus strains around the country create considerable uncertainty. Mayor Shaun Sipma has suggested waiting to reconsider the mandate once more of the ...

Don’t drop your guard on COVID-19 yet

We’re going to go out on a limb and say something that is probably not going to be very popular. Despite Gov. Burgum reducing the COVID-19 threat levels and removing the regulations and making them guidelines we implore people to continue to social distance, and wear masks. Limit your large gatherings and wash your hands. Do not touch your eyes. Do all the things we know that limits the transmission of COVID-19. Just because we’re on a down swing does not mean we’re out of the woods. The numbers speak for themselves: As of Friday, there were 1,675 active cases in the state ...

Legislative forums still on despite COVID-19

It is good news that the Minot Area Chamber EDC plans to host Saturday legislative forum as it has done in the past, sans COVID-19. For those of us a couple of hours away from the action at the state Capitol, every two years the popular forums are another way to stay informed. The forums also also perhaps the best way to make contact with area legislators, who make themselves available to constituents on their “days off.” Their attendance is always appreciated. But this time around one will have to have Internet access and the ability to use the Zoom platform to take part in the ...

Highway Patrol prepares to defend State Capitol

First, N.D. state legislators had to weigh the risks of reporting for duty at the Capitol during a pandemic. That was tough enough, now this. “This” being credible threats of violence that have been made against all the of nation’s state capitols including in Bismarck. We are not naive when we ask just what the hell is wrong with people these days. What is so terrible about living in the richest and most free country in the world? Does one really think you would end up with a perfect, or even just a better country if you tore down the United States of America and rebuilt? Who ...

Preserving history for generations

A replica of a landmark building now stands in Maxbass, thanks to the co-owners of a local construction company Steve and Todd Farden, co-owners of Farden Construction, Inc., bought the building that once was a bank and then a post office. The building was in poor condition so it was torn down and a new replica building of the old one was constructed there in the exact spot. Andrea Johnson of The Minot Daily News tells the story of the project in Monday’s edition. Rebuilding a landmark as the building in Maxbass is a way for generations to remember the past in their ...

Chamber, MADC merger steps into the future for Minot & region

The merger of the Minot Area Chamber of Commerce and Minot Area Development Corp. as of Jan. 1 of this year is a great move for the two organizations. Chamber and MADC investors overwhelmingly voted in favor of the merger in December, with 94% of the ballots to Chamber members noting approval and 95% of MADC investors in approval. The two organizations’ merger now gives them a new name – Minot Area Chamber/EDC. There were good reasons for the merger including, as John MacMartin, then Chamber president, pointed out prior to the vote. He said one of the goals of the merger is to ...