star2city

Great Plains Examiner: Can oil save my hometown? Forbes: North Dakota added 60,000 jobs in decade Rig count expected to be 290 late this year (178 now) x 80 jobs / rig = 9000 more jobs by end of year of temporary nature (some of these are in Montana) At least 2000 new oil wells this year x 8 jobs / oil well (long term local impact while wells are operating) = 16,000 new potential longer-term jobs just this year Impact over next 15-20 years, while wells are operating: 25,000 more oil wells to be drilled x 8 jobs / oil well (long term local impact ) = 200,000 more jobs in 15 - 20 years if the "8" multiplier is correct. A Montana business paper was projecting Williston's population to be 100,000 sometime next decade.

Lake Sup St faces crucial decisions to find hockey conference Laker choices:

No doubt UND doesn't want to spend extra rent on the Alerus. But if somehow the city could lessen it's costs by having the REA personnel operate the Alerus arena, everybody could save money and be a winner. Even if the Alerus was only rented for November through late March - with the Alerus periodically reconfigured for trade shows or concerts, that would certainly help UND track & field, as well as soccer, softball and FB. The Alerus could have a banked track, maybe even up to 300 m. The banked track would have to be bought ($'s), set up and taken down, unlike the surface at a training facility. But still, if the track could remain up for two weeks or more at a time, and actual indoor track meets could be hosted, there would be a lot of benefits.

The greatest need for UND is an indoor training facility. But guess what? There is an arena called the Alerus with new turf that is sitting empty 95% of the time. Why not have the REA manage both the Ralph and the Alerus, consolidate staffs, use all resources more efficiently, and save everybody money. Building an indoor training facility also doesn't make anybody any money. Using the Alerus as a part-time training faciltiy saves UND capital cost of a totally new facility If the REA managed both, it's very possible that the Alerus losses would go down substantially, and neither the Ralph nor the Alerus would compete against each other for events, and UND wouldn't need to come up with the $20+million to pay for a new training facility. The Alerus needs more events: why not schedule women's soccer there in late October or a spring softball tournament in March? Why not a few UND basketball games? Drop baseball and get men's lacrosse for even more dates. Cross promote events between the REA and Alerus. Instead of spending money on a new training facility, UND should plow that money into expanding or renovating the Alerus to make it a possible venue for FBS. If UND doesn't at least have the capability to move to FBS, it's bargaining position with any conference is limited. The other signficant facility issue is that the Ralph has limited availability as the ice needs to be available 95% of the time for games and practice. Almost every weekend between late September and mid-March, the Ralph is needed for either men's or women's hockey. Practically every weekday, the Ralph is needed for practice. The REA simply isn't available for basketball scheduling, even if UND basketball went to a level that needed more seating. For the upcoming BB season, the dates possible for the UND-NDSU are limited to Dec 16-17, or Dec 23-24. The NHL size rink in the Ralph is also the practice venue that both the men's and women's teams need, unless they have a road game upcoming at an Olympic-size rink. Essentially, the Ralph is underutilized 80% of the time for practice. If there was a smaller adjacent arena with ice that could easily be converted to basketball, the flexiblity of the Ralph complex would be immense. Concerts could be scheduled for almost anytime, as it wouldn't interfere with hockey practice. The Ralph is actually a preferred venue for most concerts over the Fargodome or the Alerus, but the Ralph can't take advantage of that advantage because of few openings. For Grand Forks, it just needs more concerts, regardless of if they are at the Alerus or the Ralph (especially if the REA manages both). Wisconsin is adding on to the Kohl Center with another smaller ice arena for that very reason: add flexibility to men's & women's practice schedule and add flexibility to women's hockey scheduling.

For those in Grand Forks, did this story get any media time? A google search showed that WDAZ reported on it, but no indication the Herald lifted a finger. Rather bizarre that a national organization and a national news media would be outraged by an incident at UND, yet there is no outrage either by faculty/students at UND or even coverage in the local paper. Is Grand Forks media so insular that they can't grasp the bigger issues?

Grand Forks Police Report Robert Boyd's Letter to Caleb Warner - Aug 26, 2010 FIRE Letter to Robert O. Kelley, May 11, 2011 UND's Response to FIRE - May 20, 2011

From Bismarck Tribune, March 6th: UND refuses to reopen case of expelled student Bismarck Tribune comment:

WSJ: Yes means yes - except on UND's campus

A very flattering article on North Dakota higher ed in the WSJ: WSJ link

Prices are up 25 - 30%, about the same as jet fuel compared to last year. There aren't any bargains anywhere, even flying Southwest to MSP. If you have frequent flyer miles and want to go to GFK, that's the way to go.

Alvarez was pushing a Big Ten confederation with Miami, WMU, and Bowling Green well before Terry Pegula ever gave his Penn State contribution. Big Ten hockey in some type form has been on Delany's checklist ever since the Big Ten Network was formed.

If the idea is to add schools that are "likable" to Notre Dame - academically and DI - so that Notre Dame (and maybe other higher profile schools in the West later) would join, no Minnesota State school would be acceptable. Miami - DI, high academics - check Denver - DI, high academics - check CC - DIII, high academics - partial check UNO - DI, commuter school - partial check (rushed through a DI acceptance to make UNO acceptable?) UMD - DII, decent academics - partial check - but don't be surprised if UMD needs to pursue DI as part of this deal UND - DI, Tier 1 - check All the Mn State school don't pass any of these tests. Before there is a smirk, look at the Big East. A number of its schools are rated lower than UND/Miami/Denver: West Virginia, Louisville, Villanova, Providence.

If Moorhead wasn't pursuing hockey, they would have a press release or statement, not a press conference. So I think we can safely eliminate ( c). Other than Bemidji's arena, Scheels arena would be top in the new WCHA.

There are more and more reports stating that four AHA schools, Robert Morris, Canisius, Niagara, and Mercyhurst are looking at sliding over to the CCHA, shifting that conference east and centering it around Lake Erie. That's all the more reason for NMU to leave. Lake Sup St could still live with that geography. Since Atlantic Hockey only allows 12 scholarships, that kind of move would be good for college hockey, as four more programs would be "all in". CCHA: Lake Sup St Ferris St Bowling Green W Mich (maybe) Mercyhurst Robert Morris Canisius Niagara UAHuntsville (hopefully) Perhaps Grand Valley State could add hockey too, giving that league manageable divisions. If Atlantic Hockey is down to 8 schools, they would have room to add Navy and Rhode Island, which have both been long rumored as possible additions. Except for RIT and AFA, Atlantic Hockey would then be an I-95 conference.

My votes: Notre Dame, Iowa State, Texas, Washington, Stanford, USC.

Have to give Fred Pletsch, the CCHA's new commissioner, a lot of credit for being open and honest: CCHA response to NCHC announcement For the remaining WCHA AD's and the Commissioner to state that they were blindsided by this, when the CCHA is on record that they've been discussing Miami's potential departure for months, is totally disingenuous. Northern Michigan has had months to prepare to go to the WCHA, not days. Hopefully, some of the AHA schools move over to the CCHA, so Bowling Green and Ferris St can continue. I'd also prefer WMU to stay, as it would be the one Nat (can I say that?) school without a great rink, and it needs time to gain solid footing as a program. In three or four more years, WMU could be revisited. BC Interruption: Hockey realignment

Agree, Moorhead really needs to put all its eggs in the hockey basket and dump all the other loss leaders, but the problem is that the Northern Sun would dump them, just like the NSIC threatened to dump St Cloud if they dropped football. Omaha had a non-football conference to accept them (even the DII GLVC would have accepted them without football), while Moorhead doesn't have that luxury. Maybe Moorhead could patch together a new DII conference with UMCrookston, Mayville, Valley City, Jamestown, SD Mines, Dakota St, but that would take years.

That seven-team conference, with UMass or Vermont, would be more desirable to Notre Dame (and it's network) than the Super League and definitely more so than Hockey East. Notre Dame could very well be working the phones to make that conference happen. Would definitely explain Notre Dame's hesitance to join the Super League, as well as WMU's status. Sorry about the double link.

UWBadger.com blog: Change in college hockey nothing to fear

NDSU hockey won't happen. NDSU fans pride themselves in permanently dissociating themsevels with the DIIs of the world like the Mankatos, Bemidjis, and St Clouds. NDSU in the new WCHA would be entirely beneath them

Hadn't seen this link before.. May explain why WMU seemed to be in, and later was out. Hockey East obviously wouldn't provide the scheduling flexibility that Notre Dame wants, if this report is true. Notre Dame wants a seven team league WMU could still be in the superconference if an unbalanced scheduled is used: 4 games x 5 teams + 2 games x 2 teams = 24.

KFGO: Dragon DI hockey revisited

The CCHA would have to get some AHA teams to move over to survive if both NMU and UAF are moving to the WCHA: Bowling Green Ferris State Lake Sup State +Robert Morris +Mercyhurst +Niagara +UAH maybe W Mich maybe Lindenwood WCHA: Mich Tech N Mich SCSU Mankato Bemidji Anchorage Fairbanks maybe Moorhead

You and some other idiots don't understand nuanaces. Did you actually need a to understand? Gopher fans have demanded that UND sacrifice to preserve the old WCHA, yet can not fathom sacrificing anything themselves. Besides, Gopher athletics is just a leach on the Big Ten: it would be better off in a lesser league.

mikejm: Are you so seriously lacking in reading skills, or bipolar, or both\? Read the post again. You're on ignore.