Now, after more than five flush years, oil prices are in a prolonged slump, the flow of workers has reversed [...] But Williston believes it can build something more enduring. [...]

The city used its newfound wealth to build a $70-million high school, a $68-million recreation center, and new water and sewer systems. It renovated Main Street and created a city position for someone to write parking tickets. Highways have been widened, and an airport is under development. — latimes.com

Many of the tallest structures in the world are not designed by starchitects, and you’ve likely never seen them [...] dozens of nearly anonymous towers around the United States, most in small rural communities, dwarf all but the tallest man-made structures in the world.

Take the KVLY-TV Tower in Blanchard, North Dakota, a township of 26 people north of Fargo. At 2,063 feet (628.8 meters), it’s the tallest structure in the western hemisphere and the fourth-tallest structure in the world. — Re:form

North Dakota’s governor has bitten back at a Minnesota lawmaker who compared his state’s Depression-era Capitol building to an insurance office, calling the critic ignorant of classic architecture.

The Capitol in Bismarck was built during the 1930s with a plain concrete and stone exterior, ostensibly to keep costs down. — washingtonpost.com

Williston used to build about five new homes a year. This year, Williston built 2,000 new homes. Next year, they're aiming for 4,000.

SHAWN WENKO: This is similar to the California gold rush.

Shawn Wenko is the Workforce Development Coordinator for the city of Williston. He shows me a dozens of ceremonial "ground breaking" shovels stacked in the corner of the office. He says they used to make special shovels for every groundbreaking, but they've had to go generic because of all the projects. — marketplace.publicradio.org