BARNESVILLE /places/barnesville BARNESVILLE en-US Fri, 19 Jan 2024 20:31:22 GMT More workers, lighter regulation needed to spur home, apartment building in the Red River Valley, experts say /business/more-workers-lighter-regulation-needed-to-spur-home-apartment-building-in-the-red-river-valley-experts-say Helmut Schmidt HOUSING,CONSTRUCTION ,FARGO,NORTH DAKOTA,WEST FARGO,HOME BUILDERS ASSOCIATION OF FARGO MOORHEAD,MOORHEAD,DILWORTH,HORACE,BARNESVILLE,HAWLEY,HARWOOD,CASSELTON,KINDRED,MAPLETON,BUSINESS NEWSLETTER BRIEF 3 With 16,000 more living spaces needed in the next decade, builders need help to meet demand, says Bill Rothman, head of renamed Building Industry Association of the Red River Valley. <![CDATA[<p>FARGO — Construction is strong in the region, but with 16,000 more homes and apartments needed in the next decade, builders need more workers and fewer regulations to build enough housing to keep the local economy humming. That's according to area and national home builders representatives, who spoke Friday during a news conference at the Building Industry Association of the Red River Valley's offices.</p> <br> <br> <p>Bill Rothman, president of the BIA-RRV, formerly known as the Home Builders Association of Fargo-Moorhead, said that growth in the region requires a strong building industry and affordable housing.</p> <br> <br> <p>Rothman, also chief financial officer for Kilbourne Group, said the local housing market compares well to that of the U.S. as a whole, but that a study released by the Fargo-Moorhead Metropolitan Council of Governments in June 2023 projected that 16,000 more housing units will be needed in the next 10 years. One particular area of need is &ldquo;missing middle&rdquo; housing, such as townhomes, duplexes and triplexes, he said.</p> <br> <br> <p>A region-wide partnership with state and local governments is needed to tackle the region&#8217;s housing challenges, particularly for workforce housing, Rothman said during the event at 1802 32nd Ave. S.</p> <br> <br> <p>&ldquo;We know that we can do more together,&rdquo; he said.</p> <br> <br> <p>Rothman said housing permits and valuations are regularly gathered for Fargo, Moorhead and West Fargo, the bordering towns of Dilworth and Horace, as well as Barnesville, Casselton, Harwood, Hawley, Kindred, Mapleton and Oxbow.</p> <br> <br> <p>The most recent report found that through November 2023, those cities recorded more than $1.1 million in property valuations from 4,196 building permits for housing and commercial projects, remodeling, and public and miscellaneous projects.</p> <br> <br> <p>The report by Brady Martz and Associates found that construction valuations were down about 15% from 2022, but the number of permits had risen 9%. Twinhomes were a bright spot, with permits up 773%, and valuations up 568%, Rothman said.</p> <br> <figure> <img src="https://cdn.forumcomm.com/dims4/default/a86c8e7/2147483647/resize/800x/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fforum-communications-production-web.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F6f%2Ffc%2F424ee8b94e45a2100cf8ce5d9353%2Fbill-rothman.1.1924.jpg"> </figure> <p>And among the cities, Moorhead recorded 111 permits in 2023, up 88% from the year before, and valuation rose to nearly $28.9 million, up 74% from the year before.</p> <br> <br> <p>But multifamily construction in the area saw a 58% decrease in permits and a 31% decrease in valuations, Rothman said.</p> <br> <br> <p>Jim Tobin, president and CEO and president of the National Association of Home Builders, also spoke.</p> <br> <br> <p>Tobin said inflation appears to have been corralled. In mid-2022, it had topped 9%, but is now just over 3%. However, the 11 interest rates hikes imposed by the Federal Reserve since March of 2022, while effective, had &ldquo;a chilling effect on the housing market across the country.&rdquo;</p> <br> <br> <p>Mortgage interest rates are now in a transition phase, Tobin said, down about 1% in the last two months, which is getting homebuyers back into the market.</p> <br> <br> <p>Tobin said the NAHB expects the &ldquo;new normal&rdquo; for interest rates to dip to the 5-5 ½% range by 2025, which should loosen up the housing market.</p> <br> <br> <p>Economic growth in the Red River Valley will need housing for workers if it is to continue, Tobin said. He urged lawmakers to support lighter regulations on housing construction to keep costs down.</p> <br> <figure> <img src="https://cdn.forumcomm.com/dims4/default/55f35c6/2147483647/resize/800x/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fforum-communications-production-web.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F59%2F6f%2Ff587190b4b79a957fa88e542f59e%2F012024.N.FF.AffordableHousingTalk.1.11924.jpg"> </figure> <p>&ldquo;I am very, very optimistic about 2024 as a pivot year, as we move into the future. Now is the time&rdquo; to get our house in order, Tobin said.</p> <br> <p>He said three &ldquo;headwinds&rdquo; must be addressed:</p> <br> Workers in the industry are aging. About 400,000 trained workers are needed in coming years. Trades programs need to be reinvigorated, Tobin said.<br> Regulation has hurt affordability. Tobin said 25% of the cost of new homes is tied to rules at local, state and federal levels. For multifamily buildings, he pegs that cost at 43%. <br> Supply chains for lumber and other materials must be bolstered to be sure they can handle increased construction demands. <p>As part of the event, Rothman also explained the decision to change the name of the Home Builders Association of Fargo-Moorhead to the Building Industry Association of the Red River Valley.</p> <br> <br> <p>The new name better represents the group&#8217;s &ldquo;scope and vision," he said.</p> <br> <br> <p>&ldquo;We are thrilled that this new name better reflects the makeup of our membership&rdquo; and hope it encourages membership growth, Rothman said.</p>]]> Fri, 19 Jan 2024 20:31:22 GMT Helmut Schmidt /business/more-workers-lighter-regulation-needed-to-spur-home-apartment-building-in-the-red-river-valley-experts-say Researchers check honeybee health by testing honey DNA /news/minnesota/researchers-check-honeybee-health-by-testing-honey-dna Dan Gunderson / MPR News SCIENCE AND NATURE,NORTH DAKOTA STATE UNIVERSITY,BARNESVILLE,FARGO,AGRICULTURE National Agricultural Genotyping Center in Fargo has been running DNA tests on dead honeybees from across the country since 2016. They started by testing for nine viruses and two bacteria in adult bees. Now they can test for 18 different pathogens. <![CDATA[<p>BARNESVILLE, Minn. -- Hundreds of bees buzz around Zack Bateson as he bends over a frame from a hive that's loaded with honey.</p> <br> <br> <p>Using a small tool, he lifts a dripping square of honeycomb into a container.</p> <br> <br> <p>He needs about one and a half teaspoons of translucent golden liquid. Bateson will take the sample back to his lab and run it through a PCR test. It&#8217;s the same process used to detect the COVID-19 virus.</p> <br> <br> <p>This bee disease test looks for fragments of genetic material from pathogens.</p> <br> <br> <p>"We're able to detect viruses, bacteria and fungal pathogens that are found in bees, that are also found in the honey,&rdquo; said Bateson. &ldquo;So the honey is a great way to survey for various diseases in bee yards. It's a nice, quick, easy sample."</p> <br> <br> <p>Bateson is a research scientist at the National Agricultural Genotyping Center in Fargo. The non-profit develops genetic tests for diseases, tracking invasive plants and other problems in the ag industry.</p> <br> <br> <figure> <img src="https://cdn.forumcomm.com/dims4/default/5ff595b/2147483647/resize/800x/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fforum-communications-production-web.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F8e%2F1a%2Fd70b20d74aafa0e4e4efc1e5bc74%2Fmprhoney-dna-test-02-821.jpg"> </figure> <p>The lab has been running DNA tests on dead honeybees from across the country since 2016.</p> <br> <br> <p>They started by testing for nine viruses and two bacteria in adult bees. Now they can test for 18 different pathogens.</p> <br> <br> <p>Initially the tests could only identify the presence of viruses and other pathogens harmful to bees. Now the testing can quantify the level of each pathogen in the hive, providing beekeepers with more detailed information about the health of their bees.</p> <br> <br> <p>Bateson collects about 200 bees from this hive, dropping them into a container with rubbing alcohol. The alcohol kills the bees. It's a common way of testing for invasive varroa mites in bee colonies. The mites can spread disease and are considered a significant contributor to the loss of honey bee colonies.</p> <br> <br> <p>The loss of bee colonies is a problem for commercial and hobbyist beekeepers who often lose hives to disease, especially over the winter months.</p> <br> <br> <p>Pathogens, loss of habitat and pesticides are all thought to play a role in honey bee colony loss.</p> <br> <br> <figure> <img src="https://cdn.forumcomm.com/dims4/default/b86ac5d/2147483647/resize/800x/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fforum-communications-production-web.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Faa%2F43%2F619e9f53438687f2cee992949656%2Fmprhoney-dna-test-03-821.jpg"> </figure> <br> <p>Testing honey instead of bees would be more convenient, said Bateson, and honey from several colonies in a single location could be combined in a one test, providing a snapshot of disease in a group of bee hives.</p> <br> <br> <p>These hives belong to Rich and Lisa Burns, who are hobby beekeepers on a small acreage about 20 minutes southeast of Moorhead.</p> <br> <br> <p>"The more research and more data that you get, the better we can find results for whatever problems we&#8217;ve got coming up, or potential problems coming up,&rdquo; said Rich Burns.</p> <br> <br> <p>"Anything that we can do to help with the beekeeping cause, you know, we want to do that," said Lisa.</p> <br> <br> <p>Lisa Burns is past president of the Red River Valley Beekeepers, a hobby beekeepers group. She&#8217;s encouraging other hobbyists to participate in this project, which will test honey samples from hobbyists and commercial beekeepers.</p> <br> <br> <p>Commercial bee operators often blame hobby beekeepers for spreading disease and pathogens.</p> <br> <br> <p>There&#8217;s also research indicating that commercial bee hives moved around the country to pollinate crops carry a higher load of viruses and other pathogens.</p> <br> <br> <p>"There's always this kind of butting of heads with the commercial and hobby beekeepers,&rdquo; said Lisa Burns. &ldquo;And so it will be really interesting to find out if really the hobby beekeepers are creating a problem."</p> <br> <br> <p>This project might help clarify that question.</p> <br> <br> <figure> <img src="https://cdn.forumcomm.com/dims4/default/dfc1909/2147483647/resize/800x/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fforum-communications-production-web.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F18%2F9d%2Fde6d6aad4da3b65b71aab8e91180%2Fmprhoney-dna-test-04-821.jpg"> </figure> <p>"We wanted to start looking at the hobbyists here in Minnesota and North Dakota for this project, and we want to compare commercial versus hobby colonies as close as we can to see if that assumption is true,&rdquo; said Bateson.</p> <br> <br> <p>In several years of testing adult bees for pathogens, Bateson said they've found certain viruses are good indicators of whether a honeybee colony will survive the winter.</p> <br> <br> <p>"And so we're kind of using them as an indicator of health. We can use these pathogens as a way to say, &#8216;Hey, this colony is potentially stressed because we're seeing a lot of different pathogen diversity in a particular hive,&#8217;&rdquo; he said.</p> <br> <br> <p>Lisa Burns thinks this quick, easy disease monitoring test could also be an important tool for educating hobby beekeepers about disease.</p> <br> <br> <p>"Don't just get the bees because they're cool, you know, you&#8217;ve got to manage them, you know, just like having kids or dogs you know, you&#8217;ve got to take care of them."</p> <br> <br> <p>Bateson will be collecting honey samples from hobbyist and commercial bee hives for several more weeks as he works to validate the process of testing honey for genetic evidence of bee killing pathogens.</p> <br> <br> <br>]]> Fri, 19 Aug 2022 21:38:59 GMT Dan Gunderson / MPR News /news/minnesota/researchers-check-honeybee-health-by-testing-honey-dna