What's North Dakota Doing Right?

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ideal conditions for wind power

But it's energy—vast, if hard-to-reach, oil and near-optimum conditions for wind-generated power—that holds the greatest promise for new job opportunities in Bismarck, Staiger says. "We're one of the best wind-turbine areas in the nation," he notes. "We have strong prevailing winds, and they're consistent." On 30,000 acres of land south of Minot, a city 110 miles north of Bismarck, construction began on Aug. 17 on the $250 million, 77-turbine PrairieWinds ND1 wind-farm project. The wind farm's developer, Basin Electric Power Cooperative, says it will be the largest such cooperatively owned project in the nation.

Another energy source, crude oil, is also a potential source of employment. The Bakken Formation, a geological phenomenon covering parts of North Dakota, Montana, and Saskatchewan, has an estimated 3 billion to 4 billion barrels of recoverable oil, only a tiny percentage of which has been tapped. The oil sits in subterranean rock formations that are particularly elusive given current technology. The oil industry already employs some Bismarck residents and could create thousands more jobs if scientists devise new technologies to reach Bakken's oil reserves.

Although there's little farmland in Bismarck proper, the city benefits greatly from having agricultural equipment dealers, livestock sales, and facilities to process dairy products. North Dakota is the country's largest producer of flax, sunflower seeds, and durum wheat, the principal component of pasta. Farmland covers 90% of the state, making North Dakota the most rural of all U.S. states.

the state has a $1 billion budget surplus

North Dakota has been spared the financial indignities that have plagued much of the country. The state finished its fiscal two-year cycle on June 30, 2009, with a $1 billion budget surplus; at least some of that windfall is likely to go toward creating more state-government jobs. And homeowners are enjoying lowered property taxes rather than foreclosures. "No low-documentation loans—'liar loans'—were given out in North Dakota," says Flynn at the University of North Dakota. "No metro community in North Dakota ever saw any more than 3% to 4% subprime loans." According to the real estate information site Zillow.com, the median list price for houses in Bismarck is $159,900, in contrast with the national $219,000.

Brian Peterson, proprietor of Knowles Jewelry, a 100-year-old retailer in downtown Bismarck, blames his store's flattening of sales on media reports about the national recession. "We've seen people tightening their belts," Peterson says. "I ask my customers: 'Have you lost your job? Has your interest rate gone up?' The answer is no. But consumer confidence is still hurt. I haven't laid anyone off, but I've put expansion plans on hold."

Rebecca Reisner is an editor at BusinessWeek.com .

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