partnerships The power of

By Tom Dennis

BISMARCK, N.D. – Efficient, economical and unadorned, the Capitol skyscraper in Bismarck says a lot about North Dakota’s values. But those who’d like to learn more about Bismarck itself should seek out another local landmark: the MDU Resources Community Bowl, longtime home of the state track meet.

The facility is managed by a joint powers agreement that was set up by Bismarck, Bismarck schools, Bismarck Parks and Rec and the State Board of Higher Education. Bismarck State College, the University of Mary and St. Mary’s High School also use the bowl and have a hand in its governance.

Then there’s the Bismarck-Mandan Chamber of Commerce Foundation, which recently raised $8 million to renovate the bowl, and MDU Resources, which earned naming rights by giving $2 million.

Clearly, an even better name for the facility might be the Partnership Bowl.

Because partnerships are a big part of what Bismarck’s all about.

“If I were to describe something in Bismarck that is unique, it would be the number of partnerships that Bismarck has been able to pull off,” said Brian Ritter, president of both the Bismarck Mandan Development Association and the Bismarck-Mandan Chamber of Commerce.

“We have two universities that say they don’t compete with each other, they complement. The airport has used the business community to guarantee revenue for flights. We have two hospitals that share a cancer center.

“Those are unique situations that you don’t see as often in other places,” Ritter said.

Bismarck Mayor Mike Seminary agreed, though he noted that collaboration is a trait shared across all of North Dakota. Consider the Red River Valley, where whole populations line the banks to toss sandbags when the rivers rise in a city.

“What we learn from those times is this: You have to have your neighbors’ back – even those neighbors you don’t like,” Seminary said.

“Sometimes, the elements are far more powerful than we are. And that’s something that really shapes the people’s character, because we have to roll up our sleeves and help each other out.”

While Seminary’s right that the trait is shared, Ritter’s right, too: Bismarck stands out.

Here are a few examples that show how.

Bismarck Cancer Center

On North 7th Street in Bismarck sits Sanford Health. On North 9th Street – two blocks due east – sits Bismarck’s other hospital, CHI St. Alexius Health.

“And we’re on North 8th Street,” said Amy Gross, executive director of the Bismarck Cancer Center, a joint venture of the two hospitals.

“We’re right in the middle. That’s great, because we collaborate with all of the physicians at both hospitals, and it’s so convenient for patients who have appointments on either side.”

At the heart of the Cancer Center are linear accelerators – radiation therapy machines that can cost $4 million each. Back in the 1990s, the hospitals decided that one standout center of such technology would be better and more efficient than two more modest ones.

The Bismarck Cancer Center was the result. “And what the partnership means is that we’re able to offer state-of-the-art care,” Gross said.

“When we compare ourselves to bigger organizations across the country, we see that we’re leading the charge. In a small city like Bismarck, that’s because of the support of both hospitals, so we just feel so lucky.”

The nonprofit center has a staff of about 48 and sees 50 to 60 patients a day.

“Three members of our board are from CHI, and three are from Sanford,” Gross said.

“When they meet, they take off their hospital hats so to speak, and they put on their Cancer Center hats.

“Again, we’re so fortunate to have these competing organizations work together on this, because it really has changed how we care for our patients.”

Bismarck Airport

Years ago, Bismarck had only one airline, and that airline flew to only one place: Minneapolis.

Today, three year-round and two seasonal airlines serve Bismarck. That lets travelers fly nonstop to Minneapolis, Denver, Dallas, Chicago, Orlando, Phoenix and Las Vegas, depending on the time of year. Economic growth has something to do with that. Partnerships do, too.

“In the case of both Frontier and American airlines, the business community came together with the city of Bismarck to offer a minimum revenue guarantee,” Ritter said.

“Using money raised from both the public and private sectors, we were able to promise the airlines that if for whatever reason our traffic didn’t meet their demand, we’d raised x-amount of dollars to help them make this work.”

As a Bismarck Tribune editorial noted in support of the guarantees, “If we want our city to continue to be economically healthy, vibrant and growing, we must work hard to attract businesses.”

Child care

And as with airports, so, too, with child care – a service that matters almost as much as air travel to a community’s growth.

In Bismarck, three economic mainstays took action when a shortage of child-care openings loomed. Specifically, they partnered, teaming up with the YMCA to create a new facility with designated slots for the partners’ employees.

The 18,000-square-foot YMCA Youth Development Center North was the result. It can hold 240 children to age 5, with 200 of those spots reserved for employees of the Y and the three corporate partners: Sanford Health, Basin Electric and CHI St. Alexius.

“It’s going very well,” said Amber Rae Bernhardt, marketing director for the Missouri Valley Family YMCA. “It grows every year, and it’s able to start filling new rooms and new spaces. We’ve all been really pleased.”

Downtown art

“It was dull. It was drab. It was just like any other alley,” said Bismarck Mayor Seminary.

“Now, it’s an attraction.”

Seminary is talking about Alley 5.5, a public/private partnership that used donations to paint large murals on the walls of a downtown Bismarck alley. The project was organized by the nonprofit Dakota West Arts Council, and followed a similar effort that resulted in public art gracing 13 traffic-light utility boxes downtown.

“We consider arts and culture a part of economic development,” said Eileen Walsh, the council’s executive director.

“Think about an alley that now is being seen by thousands. There are people walking through it all the time. … The council and the city took a leap of faith on this, but it’s paying off for the community.”

Seminary agreed. “Young people, the Chamber, city leadership and the Arts Council said this is something important to us, and they got it done. I couldn’t be more happy.”

Bismarck State College and the University of Mary

Last but not least, consider Bismarck State College and the University of Mary, crosstown rivals with different missions and cultures – BSC public and offering mostly two-year degrees, Mary a private Christian university – but key points of cooperation.

For example, “we have what’s called a 2+2 Seamless Transfer Program,” said Chip Hinton, director of undergraduate admissions at the University of Mary.

The program helps students work toward their bachelor’s degree from University of Mary while earning an associate’s degree from BSC.

“In fact, we even have an admissions representative who works parttime over there at BSC,” Hinton said.

“I have no worries about that in terms of trust because they are such good neighbors to us, and we certainly hope that we are good neighbors to them.”

Furthermore, “as much as we love the program, the students really love the fact that they can transfer from one school to the other without a lot of hassle.”

The schools also have cooperated on theater and other projects.

“I came here a year ago from the greater Atlanta area, and Atlanta is famous for southern hospitality,” Hinton said.

“So I definitely can judge when these kinds of partnerships are authentic and real. I’ve been impressed because here, they’re real.” PB