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Commissioners Discuss Goals For 2023

The Roosevelt County commissioners say their goals for 2023 will include getting some important projects completed.

The top goal regards a new emergency services tower and radio system. The tower will be located in Poplar and will handle services for many emergency services including the sheriff’s office, highway patrol, fire departments, Wolf Point Police Department, ambulances and tribal law enforcement.

Commissioner Gordon Oelkers said the tower will provide better coverage for the entire county.

The new system will offer handheld radios for all law enforcement on patrol.

“When we’re done, we will have full coverage in the county,” commissioner Gary Macdonald said.

He added that the county has been working to make the project possible for almost 20 years.

Another important project is establishing the existence of county roads in order to have public access.

At one meeting in 2022, Oelkers explained that about 70 percent of Roosevelt County’s roads don’t have public roads easements or right-ofways.

Public meetings regarding the matter have already been held in the Froid and Bainville areas. About four more meetings are being planned for the east side of the county.

“Then, we will start working this way,” Oelkers said of roads on the west side of the county.

The only construction projects being planned for the county are the Shotgun Creek Bridge near Bainville and a cold storage building for the Roosevelt County Sheriff’s Office.

Also on the commissioners’ plate would be redistricting the commissioners’ districts. District 1, which is represented by Oelkers, has increased to 4,190 people. District 2, represented by Macdonald, has a population of 3,670 while District 3 has 3,534 residents. The districts need to become more evenly populated based on state law.

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