JunkFest Day in Carrington, North Dakota

Carrington's popular JunkFest has now turned into junk festivities - all around town!  People came from all over the state to see what treasures they could find waiting for them in Carrington!

 

As usual, Junk-n-Java drew lots of people to see their nicely restored treasures.  People shopped and visited in a comfortable, cozy atmosphere.  Provided with coffee, cookies, uniquely beautiful creations, and friends to chat with, it was hard to leave!

 

 

 

 

 



Off to the Carrington Armory for arts, crafts and vendors with interesting hobbies and skills!  There was plenty of room to wander around, check out all the goods, and visit with the vendors.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks to Cassie Smith, Missy Hafner, and Lynette Caylor (the JunkFest ladies) another super fantastic JunkFest took place at the Foster County Fairgrounds.  It is absolutely due to these talented ladies that so many people trek to Carrington for this special event!

 

 

 

 

 

All in all, it was quite a day for people who love to find treasures among what some consider junk.  We're definitely looking forward to next year, and judging from the past, JunkFest Day in Carrington will be an even bigger and better event!!

 

 



Successful New Business: Central City Remodelers

 

 

      Every once in a while a new business makes a successful debut in Carrington, and Central City Remodelers is a good example of such a business. Actually, this is their second year of expansion, and what a year it has been for them!


     The owners, Leo Straley and Ted Keller, made a critical decision to manufacture their own standing seam steel roofing panels, thus becoming one of the few companies in North Dakota to do so. In the process of perfecting their steel panels, Leo (an experienced metal worker from way back) invented a system that makes steel roofing even more leak resistant. Seeing that their steel roofs already have a 50 year warranty, his system means that the roof will most likely last the entire lifetime of the house with no leakage problems. This fact has impressed homeowners and builders all over the state, having a direct impact on the company's success. Being successful means that Ted keeps very busy traveling, meeting with builders, architects, and homeowners across North Dakota... and to other states as well.

      In fact, Ted recently met with builders in Seattle who chose the H window for their multi-million dollar project. You see, in addition to roofing, Central City Remodeling is the exclusive ND dealer for the H Window Company, a company that makes windows and doors that are especially designed for harsh climates with intense weather extremes (sound a little like North Dakota?!). You may have seen the company's commercials, showing the H window flip completely around for easy cleaning. It has the highest wind-resistance performance of any window in the United States. In fact, the harder the wind blows, the tighter it seals! This being the case, the H window has become very popular with commercial and residential builders across the northern states.

    

    

"Wednesday Night Wheels"

 Show & Shine

  

     Quite a selection of vehicles turned out for the Wednesday Night Wheels event on Wednesday, June 13th.  There was a great turnout of both vehicle owners and vehicle admirers!

   

   

   

     People of all ages showed great interest in the collection of unique cars and trucks that lined up in the SuperValu parking lot. 

     Don't miss the next two events!  July 11th at Hedahl's Parts Plus & August 8th back at the SuperValu lot.  Showtimes are 6 to 9 p.m. each evening.  Hope to see you there! 

   

Terrific Wine-Tasting at the Putnam House

Putnam House hosted another great wine-tasting event - for the tenth straight year!

 

 

Alison Schumann, the Putnam House Coordinator, made sure that there was plenty of wine flowing and lots of scrumptious appetizers to eat.

 

 

Be sure to take a look at the uniquely themed baskets (in the above slideshow) which were auctioned off to the crowd. Lots of thought, preparation and expense went into the creations - all for the love of Putnam House! The contributors deserve a big THANK YOU for their contributions.

 

 

Good music, good wine, good food and good company... What more could you ask for? Let's lift our glasses to all the people who took part in making this another successful celebration at the Putnam House!

Abolish Property Taxes in North Dakota

On Monday, April 16th, there was an interesting informational meeting at the Carrington Armory regarding eliminating property taxes in North Dakota. The main speaker, Charlene Nelson, co-authored the book: Property Tax Revolution: It's Our Home, Not Theirs! - Abolishing Property Taxes in North Dakota. A large crowd was present to hear Nelson's thoughts on the subject, and several were there to ask pointed questions... questions which she didn't hesitate to answer.

According to Ron Paul, who wrote a Foreward to Nelson's book, "The property tax is the most complex, burdensome, costly, and unfair tax imposed by state and local government. there cannot be true liberty when citizens are not secure in their own homes. As long as the government can impose taxes on one's property and enforce that exaction by confiscation of the property, there is not real freedom or security."


Nelson encouraged her listeners to go to the website - Empower the Taxpayer.Com - to study and learn all about Measure 2 and why it would be in our best interests to vote for it. The following information was taken from one of Nelson's handouts titled "Keep It Local, North Dakota."


Why Abolish Property Taxes

1. It will save $50,000,000 annually in administrative costs that provide no benefit to taxpayers.
2. The Beacon Hill Institute estimates it will result in ceation of more than 10,000 new jobs the first year property taxes are abolished.
3. New sales and income tax collections, without any increase in tax rates, will equal the amount of revenue gross property taxes currently generate.
4. Measure 2 mandates the state use general fund revenue (See No. 3 above) to fund all local governmental entities.
5. Measure 2 mandates schools and local governments be fully and properly funded before the state can address other budgeting - like special interests.
6. No. 4 & 5 above are not suggestions -- they are Constitutional mandates.
7. Imagine having an additional $3,000 to $4,000 annually in family spending power.
8. All businesses would have greater financial resources resulting in more hiring, more private investment and a more diverse selection of businesses locating in North Dakota.

It's Time To Prioritize State Spending

1. State spending has increased more than 135% in just 10 years, from $1.7 billion to $4.1 billion.
2. Personal income has increased at less than half that amount - 62%.
3. Our own State Tax Department tells us that property tax rates are going to increase between 2010 and 2013 as follows: ~ In 2011 & 2012 crop land valuations will be increased 32.16% and non-crop ag land will increase 22.67% statewide ~ Residential property (your home) will increase 20% ~ Commercial property will increase 20%.
4. Former Governor Ed Schafer acknowledges North Dakota can abolish property taxes and replace the lost revenue WITHOUT increasing any other tax or tax rate.

The Grand Canyon by Frank Ellingson

I received the following photos from Frank Ellingson. He and his wife, Jean (from Glenfield, North Dakota) are traveling across the country before it's time to get busy with farming this Spring. Frank is noted for his beautiful photography, so I feel very lucky that I have permission to put his photos online. Here is a public big THANK YOU, FRANK!!

Any of these photos can be supersized simply by clicking on the picture. I have several of them on my screensaver where I can enjoy them throughout the day as I pass by my computer when it's not in use.

North Dakota Is Changing

Hello from the far north! Not as far north as Alaska, but just as cold, with wide open spaces and few people. One of my favorite billboards along one of the main highways in North Dakota shows a freeway at heavy traffic time. There’s absolutely no one on the highway! Being an immigrant from California eight years ago, that image has always been good for a chuckle… then recently the truth has started to hit home. North Dakota is quickly and drastically changing. That billboard was created years ago – before the Bakken oil boom in the western part of the state and before people started migrating here in droves. Nowadays it’s hard to be on any main road in North Dakota without seeing lines of semis hauling all kinds of humongous equipment to the oil fields.

Carrington, our small town of less than 3000 people, has begun to see the effects of this new influx of people and boost to our economy. Being at the crossroads of two major thoroughfares (HWY 200 and HWY 281), Carrington has become a resting spot for many of the new travelers who are passing through. Our two motels, The Chieftain and Carrington Inn Suites, have parking lots that are always full at night, and the Stop N Go Gas Station which is located at the crossroads, is literally surrounded at night with huge trucks that are taking a break from the road.

People who have been traveling through Carrington on business have begun to take notice of our small town as a prospective place to settle down. More and more new faces are beginning to be recognizable as established in our area. And, not surprisingly, new businesses that cater to population growth are starting to appear on the scene. A new motel, a new apartment building, a new construction business are a few examples that immediately come to mind.

It will be interesting to see how Carrington handles this new growth spurt, to see how the old mixes with the new. As for me, I simply want to record all the interesting facets that I personally find interesting about our community. I’m curious to see if people will start locking their houses at night, if children will start putting chains on their bikes, if people will no longer leave their cars running while they shop at the local supermarket on a cold wintry night…. Those are some of the fascinating factors that helped me decide on settling in Carrington, myself. And, many of those admirable small-town values are what has kept me here.