Zurcher Cottage will provide care and treatment for the youngest and highest-needs children served at Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch, with most between 10-14 years old. The facility is still under construction.

Dr. Wayne Martinsen, the Ranch medical director, said the updating or replacing the current PRTF cottages had been a dream of his since he first came to the Ranch more than 20 years ago. Martinsen said the 50-year-old buildings showing their age wasn’t the only factor, as the needs of the children the Ranch serves has changed over the years as well.

“They weren’t built for the kind of high need, high risk residents we get now. We get kids with really deep trauma and a lot of behavioral problems,” Martinsen said. “These are cottages that have blind spots that are hard to supervise. They have multiple floors which increases risks. (Zurcher Cottage) that is just up to date, state of the art. We’re really excited to be moving into it.”

Martinsen said in the past the Ranch served as more of a foster care, but the primary focus now has shifted to psychiatric care. While the Ranch has no plans to expand the number of children in the facility at this time, Martinsen said the new facility’s 20 rooms will allow them to place the 16 children’s living arrangements to best suit their needs.

Each student will have their own room in the Zurcher Cottage, and have access to other amenities like a sensory room and space for family visits.

“If we have children with high needs, we can put them in a pod with three or four other kids rather than eight to 10 kids. So we can keep the chaos and the noise down for children who are in a different place in their treatments,” Martinsen said.

Other amenities will include a calming sensory room, a private room in the event they need some space, and a family visitation room which comes complete with a fridge and kitchenette.

Martinsen said momentum started growing to build a replacement about five years ago, and the decision was made to proceed with construction despite increased building costs in that time. The total cost of the construction was reportedly $8.5 million raised from 240 donations.

“Our donors have been incredibly generous. We are able to walk into the facility with it totally paid for, which is amazing,” Martinsen said.

There are no plans for the old cottages at this time, but Martinsen there were a number of options being considered including repurposing them or tearing them down.

The new facility is named in honor of Elmer, Connie and Earl Zurcher. Elmer Zurcher was on the Dakota Boys Ranch board of directors for many years and was involved in the planning and development of the Minot campus in the 1950s.

The special guest at the dedication ceremony in the Ranch gymnasium was Elmer Zurcher’s daughter Carol Zurcher Townsend. Zurcher Townsend shared her parents’ story, and her memories of her father’s involvement with the formative years of the Ranch.

“I remember many evenings when dad would come home from the field, get dressed, go to Minot and not return home until close to midnight,” Zurcher Townsend. “The mission of the Ranch was foremost in our parents’ minds and hearts.”