Nome Schoolhouse: Renovation Brings More Than Learning Back to the School

The Nome Schoolhouse in Nome, North Dakota is currently being renovated by two local business owners with a dream.  They saw the schoolhouse as the perfect opportunity to combine their businesses, educate others on their business lines and provide a building for the community to use for education, events and socializing.

Who is Behind the Renovation

Chris Ambrust and Teresa Perleberg are North Dakota business owners in a unique industry. Their story is interesting on how together their businesses could build great things.

Chris is the owner, Dakota Fiber Mill, the only full-service fiber processing mill in the Dakotas. Dakota Fiber Mill processes raw fiber (wool, alpaca, bison, goat etc) into yarn and roving. Teresa Perleberg is the owner of Bear Creek Felting. Teresa is a master in the art of needle felting. She has an online academy which offers members access to online tutorial courses instructing how to needle felt various pieces of art. She also raises a large herd of sheep for the wool to use in her kits and supplies which she sells online as well. 

Chris has been processing the wool for Teresa for over 10 years. Over that time, they became friends and two years ago collaborated on a wool needle felting cushion. The demand was extremely high and in the spring of 2018 a lightbulb went off for the business partners. Chris had an extra acreage not being used and her mill was busting at the seams. She knew she needed to expand her current building or build new. At that point Teresa’s daughter had just returned from college seeking to become a chef and open a catering business. That is when the lightbulb turned on! The idea was to build a facility that would house not only the mill but guest rooms, classrooms and event space as well as food and beverage. Teresa was on board and Hence Shepard Industries was born.

Renovation Inspiration

The idea of building new was tossed around but both Chris and Teresa love old buildings which brought them to the idea of renovating one of the forgotten and deteriorating schoolhouses in the area. They “schoolshopped” and fell in love with the Nome Schoolhouse! It was decommissioned fully in 1970, purchased and used mainly for storage. For the past 10 years however, it has been sitting empty.

The business partners prayed for guidance and support. They found out the budget they had originally planned on was much lower than what it was going to take to make their dream a reality. “We became very anxious on the cost, as we were trying to demo all the debris and rotted areas and coordinating engineers ourselves, not having a clue on all the engineering it was going to take before rebuilding started. So many people told us we were crazy and will never be able to finish the project and that we were in way over our heads. All these comments just fueled our fire of determination,” Chris stated.

In the Spring of 2019, the decision to continue or back out had to be made. “We ‘threw out our fleece’, so to say, in the form of a kick starter campaign which is similar to a Go Fund Me campaign but for start-up businesses. You come up with an amount you are going for and if you meet that goal you get the funds, if you don’t meet the goal you do not,” Chris explained. The campaign earned more than they had anticipated. In addition, a successful Nome Alumni helped cosign the loan. The project was moving forward!

Renovation on Phase 1

As they quickly discovered, Chris and Teresa needed help coordinating the renovations. They hired Roers as the Construction Management company for the project. “We have been so pleased with everyone at Roers!  It was such a relief to have them take over everything. A big relief as well was how the superintendent on site is handling the actual demo and rebuild. We are saving as much of everything in the school as we can and the crew has been amazing at going out of their way to save wood, doors, molding, etc.  We believe they have grown to love the school as much as we do. We couldn’t imagine having a better team onboard with us,” Chris remarked.

Phase one, the gymnasium is now complete. Wood salvaged from an area of the school that had collapsed and needed to be demoed is being used for a bar, shelving and covering support beams. The fire escape steps are being used to access a mezzanine added above the bar, catering kitchen and restroom area which were built.

Phase 2 Making Progress

Phase 2 of the renovation will include the rebuild of the back area of the school. The area will be expanded and include renovations of the existing classrooms and the addition of the guest rooms.

The Roers crew completed the footings of the addition, with walls to follow. The goal of Phase 2 is for the front of the school to mimic the original front of the building. As you enter the school from the front and walk up the stairs, holding the gorgeous wood railing that so many students have done so before, and step into the main hall, it will look exactly like it did in 1916 with classrooms to the left and right. You will not see the large addition behind the school to the east. “We cannot wait to hear the memories that will flood the minds of those past students,” commented Chris. 

What the Future Entails

The gym currently houses fiber arts classes as well as the offices for Hence Shepard Industries. Small events are being held and regular open hours for food and beverage to be enjoyed. 

The completed schoolhouse will house several entities. The schoolhouse itself is a 501c3 non-profit. Hence Shepard Industries will rent space from the school. The old barn, just steps from the back of the school, will house an education herd of fiber animals. A variety of sheep, alpacas, llamas, camel, goats, rabbits and more will be onsite for groups to be able to view and be educated on where natural fibers come from.  Visitors will be able to view the fiber from the goats which create cashmere sweaters. The sweaters can be purchased at Macy’s. The bottom floor of the addition houses the processing mill and packaging area for the products made onsite. 

The facilities will offer a variety of classes on fiber arts and crafts, as well as all-inclusive retreats, scrapbooking and wellness events, among others.  The event center will be used for conferences, weddings, reunions and so much more. Each of the 13 guest rooms will have a unique décor with private bath. The guests will be treated to amazing food utilizing local produce, farm fresh eggs and grass-fed beef from the Perleberg Ranch, fresh roasted coffee from Valley City and other local delicacies! An onsite retail store will be open daily with tours provided. 

The businesses partners have been humbled to have alumni return and tell their memories and stories of their years at the school. The Nome school was influential with teaching students in the past. Now all who visit the renovated school will have the opportunity to learn something new. The future is bright for the Nome Schoolhouse!

Follow the story of this historic building at https://nomeschoolhouse.com/. More construction updates continue to be updated on roers.com.

Turnover 2020: Covid Style

August is a busy month for Roers Property Management. It’s when our team gears up for hundreds of move-outs and move-ins… all within a few days. We call it Turnover!

Our Turnover looked and functioned a little different this year. Due to the pandemic, we had to make some tweaks and adjustments to how we usually operate.

Nonetheless, it was just as successful, just as crazy, and just as fun for our team!

2020 TURNS

During this year’s Turnover, our team did a total of 449 turns! That is a lot of moving out and moving in. Keep in mind, this is across all of our North Side Properties, including our newest addition, U32 Phase II, which opened in August of 2019. 

The RPM Team spends months planning and scheduling every move-out, maintenance visit, painter appointment, cleaning session, and move-in for every unit being turned.

We are so proud of all the hard work done during this time.

VIP CHECKOUT

This year was the first year we were able to execute our VIP Checkout Experience! Moving out is never fun, so we had the thought to alleviate the stress for our residents and take care of everything that needs to be done for a checkout through the VIP Checkout Experience.

A COVID TURNOVER

Like we mentioned, we had to make some major changes to how we’re used to doing our typical Turnover. We made sure each and every team member were wearing masks throughout the entire day, we switched to contactless move-outs and move-ins, and we became best friends with sanitizer.

We unfortunately could no longer hold an in-person orientation, which is when we show a short video going through the

residents’ lease and basically providing them all the information they need before they officially move in. However, we were able to send our Orientation Video out via email – and we even included a secret code word at the end for our residents to text to be entered to win free pizza for a year! Check out our lucky winner, Claire at SGC!

All in all, it was a great month for our team and our properties. Thank you to everyone who helped out and thank you to our awesome residents for renting with Roers!

Check out the video we put together of Turnover 2020 here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKr8bhqL

Introducing Anne Kallhoff to Roers Real Estate

Introducing Anne Kallhoff

Roers is proud to announce and welcome Anne Kallhoff as a Real Estate Agent.  Anne will be leading the Roers Real Estate Team for both commercial and residential properties. With nearly 15 years of experience in real estate, she has grown to be a leader in the industry in the Fargo-Moorhead area. Anne’s drive and passion to find buyers and sellers the property they desire has developed strong relationships with clients.

Anne stays busy outside of work volunteering with the Moorhead Youth Hockey Association, Good Shepard Church and various United Way of Cass-Clay programs. You can also find her often watching her three kids playing hockey.

Roers Real Estate

Roers Real Estate has over 40 years of combined experience with the entire team. In addition to our expertise,  clients can count on us for our reliability, relationship building and excellent communication..  Between residential and commercial  our team can find the perfect property.  For commercial clients, Roers Real Estate can either help you purchase or lease a property. Anne and the team can assist residential clients on first time homes to that perfect retirement home.

For more information about Roers Real Estate or to view available properties, please visit our Real Estate page online

Go & Explore The Western Edge

Visiting North Dakota

From nature and recreation to history and family fun, Dickinson and the surrounding areas have it covered!  

Explore Nature

If you are interested in hiking, trailing and sight seeing, the Badlands and Theodore Roosevelt National Park are a must. The Theodore Roosevelt National Park located near Medora, ND is open year-round with campgrounds available and dining nearby. The hiking trails will take you to another world where you can expect to see wildlife and natures beautiful garden.

For a more relaxed approach, wildlife viewing is available from the comfort of your own vehicle. A wide variety of animals such as bison, mule and white-tailed deer, elk, longhorns, horses, prairie dogs, birds and snakes are exciting to see while in their natural habitat.  

Golf & More

The Heart River Golf Course located near Patterson Lake in Dickinson is a great way to get out with family or friends and enjoy the outdoors! With an 18-hole, 72 par layout and Lake Patterson as the view, you cannot go wrong! If golfing isn’t for you, you can still stop in for a delicious meal and a refreshing drink! 

Walk Through History with Dinosaurs

With triceratops skulls on display, fossils of bones and teeth, eggs and baby dinosaurs and hands-on science exhibits, Dickinson’s Badlands Dinosaur Museum is a place to explore and imagine. Exhibits offer background and research as well as the exploration process. Open year-round, Badlands Dinosaur Museum is open to seniors, adults and children. Want to take the whole family? Great news, groups of 10 or more may receive a discounted rate. 

Rest & Relaxation

Lake Sakakawea covering a wide area of north western and central North Dakota is a great day or weekend trip for fun with the whole family. With miles of shoreline there is opportunity to sun bathe, rock hunt, swim in the lake, shore fish and just explore! 

Take your boat, kayak or canoe and you’re able to explore the waves and find a fishing hole just right for you. Walleye, northern pike, catfish, bass and perch are just a few of the many fish you can expect to hook onto. At the end of the evening, pitch a tent, start a bonfire and cook up the catch of the day while you enjoy some rest and relaxation in nature.

Obviously, there are still social distancing measures which need to be practiced. Before taking off on your adventures around Dickinson, please visit the Dickinson Convention & Visitors Bureau for current travel updates. https://www.visitdickinson.com/.

Roers is proud to be a part of the Dickinson community. We have an office, construction crews, manage properties and raise families there. Dickinson and the surrounding areas are filled with sights to see, places to go and people to see – get out there and explore and enjoy all the fun family options nearby!

Its Moving Time!

Let’s face it moving is not the most fun thing to do. You never know how much stuff you really have until you have to pack it all up to bring it somewhere else. It seems your possessions multiply when you start getting ready to pack. We want to make sure you are geared up with some simple moving tips to help you.

If you are feeling slightly overwhelmed with an upcoming move, we are here to help. The Roers Property Management team are experts when it comes to helping people move in and move out. 

Here are some tips and tricks to get you on the move as stress free as possible.  

  • Boxes! You need so many boxes when you are packing up, and they’re expensive! Don’t go out and buy cardboard boxes. First try your local recycling drop off, you may find all of the moving boxes you need right there. Don’t forget to recycle them (again) when you are done. Some other great places you might find boxes would be, bookstores, liquor stores, and Craigslist, just to name a few!  
  • Heavy furniture? Moving heavy furniture is the hard work! Especially when it isn’t coming with to your new home. Instead of having to haul the heavy furniture yourself to the nearest land fill, call your local donation center. You can schedule a donation pick up with them, they will come and take all the items that you don’t want to move and bring them to donate for you. This will save you so much time and energy on your move plus you are giving back to your local community, way to go!  
  • Declutter as you pack. Packing is a great time to also throw out those odds and ends that you have kept forever but haven’t touched since you put them there. Ask yourself, do I need this in my new home? If the answer is no, don’t bring it! Only pack away what you want to bring, anything else you can donate or toss, that way you are saving time packing, hauling and unpacking!  
  • Organize your boxes! Pack your home one room at a time, this way you can unpack the easiest! Color code your boxes as you pack them, use different colored sticky notes and tape them down as you seal each box. For example, you finished packing your kitchen box, put a green sticky note on top of the box and tape it closed! That way you know green is for the kitchen! 

We are hopful these tips help you when you are busy packing and preparing for a move. We wish you all the best and for a stress-free move! A Roers Property Ambassador is available to help you with more details on additional moving tips, feel free to contact us today.

Rent With Roers

Often on our social media posts, swag items, and other fun stuff we put out into the community, you might see our slogan: “Rent with Roers”. But it’s important to know why we think you should rent with us!

Here are the top 10 reasons to Rent with Roers:

  1. Our Awesome Team – We have a team that goes above and beyond every week to make sure our residents are happy & satisfied. They work incredibly hard to make sure every list is checked and end is tied and they continue to want to learn more and more to become even better at what they do. We are so thankful for them. Roers Property Management wouldn’t be what it is today without the work they’ve done! 
  2. The Amenities – When you think of amenities, what comes to mind? In-unit laundry, fitness center, elevators, walk-in closets, personal bathroom, basketball court, pool table, swimming pool & hot tub, underground parking, free internet, garbage disposal, study rooms? That’s what we think of. That’s what our Roers properties offer our residents. It’s reason #2 to rent with Roers… because the amenities make all the difference.
  3. The Incentives – Residents have had the opportunity to receive $5,000 cash, a Roomba, a Google Home, a Bose Speaker, Airpods, prize packages, and gift cards to SCHEELS, Target, and tons more. We love getting to do this for our residents. It means a lot to us when they choose to live with us!
  4. Your Car will Thank You! – If you’re living in North Dakota, you know how cold it gets…. and you know how *not* fun it is in the morning on your way to work or school to scrape off your car or wait for it to heat up in -45 degree weather. Treat your car better than that! Each of our Roers properties offers either a heated underground parking garage or an attached garage so your car can stay nice and warm during the winter! This is a big reason to rent with Roers.
  5. Resident Events – Our team usually like to put on events for our residents every single month. We held over 300 total events for our residents in 2019! With the pandemic making it hard for us to gather and meet in person, our team has still stayed creative in ways to engage and interact with our residents. It’s one of our favorite parts of what we do.
  6. Living Close to NDSU – Because of our properties’ close proximity to NDSU and the Fargodome… many of our residents are students! It’s convenient to live somewhere that is so close to where you need to go every day. And that’s why it’s reason #6 to rent with Roers. Don’t spend that money on a parking pass when you can just walk instead!
  7. You’ll Make Friends – Sometimes our properties are like little mini communities. When we have our resident events or fun things going on in the building – you might become familiar with your fellow residents or neighbors. Many have made friends though that! 
  8. Ability to Pay Rent Online – Who even has a checkbook anymore, right? When you’re a Roers resident, you don’t really need one because we allow everything to be done online. And many of our properties are all-inclusive – which means you pay one single bill a month for everything. It’s such a nice perk!
  9. 24/7 Maintenance – Reason #9 is a huge one… our maintenance crew! We have a team of guys that are on call basically 24 hours and are there to fix just about anything. We truly couldn’t function without them! We understand things go wrong in units and we have the best team that knows what to do in a short amount of time. We love them!
  10. The Premier Service – The final reason why we think you should rent with Roers… the premier service. Roers strives to provide premier service to each and every resident. It’s part of our culture and who we are. It’s the 9 other reasons all combined. The team, the details, the above and beyond, the connection. All of it is our premier service to you.

If you would like to #rentwithroers then give us a call at 701-356-RENT and we would love to tell you more about what we do, the properties we manage, or set up a private tour! Check out all of our properties online now.

Career Opportunities at Roers

At Roers we work hard to Build Success. Roers is growing and with that comes much excitement including hiring new team members. Our construction crews currently have jobs going in progress in the Fargo-Moorhead, Dickinson and Bismarck areas and are searching for new team members to join our crews.  We know that there is a lot of talent out there but we don’t always wait for it to come to us. The Roers team takes a proactive approach in searching for team members with specialized skills in the construction industry as well as providing educational resources for students.

  • Roers partners with the Building Construction Technology (BCT) program at the North Dakota School of Science (NDSCS) in many programs.  Roers representatives are on campus throughout the school year visiting with students about opportunities with Roers.  We assist NDSCS in recruiting high school students to enroll in the BCT program at NDSCS.  Roers also attends career fairs and focuses on supporting continuing education in the trades.  Roers is a member of the BCT Advisory Board. 
  • Roers has a seat on the TrainND Advisory Board.  This group works with NDSCS to provide continuing education to employees, companies and the general public, mainly focused in trades and technical studies. 
  • Roers is a member of the Fargo/West Fargo Public Schools Career and Technical Education (CTE) Construction Advisory Board.  This group works to provide education and information to high school students regarding career options in the trades and technical fields. 
  • Roers is a founding member of the Herdina Trades Camp (facilitated by the Home Builders Association HBA) each summer.  It is a two week camp offering high school students an opportunity to experience many trades within a short time frame. 
  • Roers representative help students get prepared for the working world as they participate in mock interviewing, resume writing and class presentations at M State, MSUM, NDSCS and local high schools throughout the year.

So why choose to work on the construction team at Roers? As an employee of Roers, you are part of a family legacy spanning over years of building success and tradition. Each team members contributions have an impact on the project they are working on. Our construction crews work year round while other construction companies may lay off in the winter so there is peace of mind of having employment throughout the year. The variety of work Roers performs is a benefit to our employees by providing an opportunity for our employees to cross-train and grow within the team providing a win-win situation for all.  This variety also lends to employees working with a variety of supervisors, team members, subcontractors and building relationships.

We encourage those who are interested in finding out about the Opportunities at Roers and who believe that all possibilities are endless, visit the listings of available positions at  https://roers.hireclick.com/jobboard/jobboard.aspx.

Creating Partnerships is Key to Florida Project Staying on Task

The Roers Development team is extremely pleased with the progress of the Cape at Savona Point project. The construction crew is ahead of schedule! The goal is to have the first 40-plex completed in late Spring 2020. The construction process has been flawless.  The contractor understands the design build process and is excellent at value engineering. Developing strong partnerships has been key to this project running smoothly.

Matt Nygard, Project Manager with Roers Development, had this to say about working on a project over 1,900 miles away – “You realize how valuable “time”  and “trust” are.  There is no running down the street to verify something.  When I’m physically in Florida, the site walk through with the superintendent, architect, and project manager is the most important time of my month.   A beneficial strategy we have is a weekly conference call with the previously mentioned professionals.  These calls are important to keep the project moving forward.  If there are items that need a deep dive, we discuss those offline with the appropriate professional to keep the meeting moving forward.  We are learning things a long the way and with our integrated software program, our team of professionals is able to make quick decisions and keep track of them.”

Keep up to date on the progress of this project on roers.com.

Roers is Constructing CI Sports New Location

CI Sport will have a new home in South Fargo in 2020. Roers is working on remodeling the interior of the former Gander Mountain building just off of I-94 and 45th Street in Fargo. CI Sport designs and markets collegiate and corporate apparel on a national level. Currently located downtown in a four-level operation at 16 Broadway, the company said it plans to increase its employees from 83 to 98 when it would opens the new location. Construction progress is underway with the goal to open in April 2020. The Roers crew recently installed metal panel and framing interior walls in the mezzanine.

For project updates, visit https://www.roers.com/project/ci-sport/.

https://www.inforum.com/business/manufacturing/953114-Fargos-CI-Sport-plans-to-expand-into-Gander-Mountain-building

 

Building for Future Community Developers

Eighth grade students at Horizon Middle School in Moorhead had an opportunity to learn about city development – from the bare land to a prospering community on the grow. David Wood, Construction Exectutive at Roers, took part in the event along with Kristie Leshovsky, the City of Moorhead’s Community Development Director. David informed the students about this history of Roers and our core values. He went into depth of how the development and construction teams work together at Roers on opportunities. When the vision is initiated the development team works with architects, engineers and project owners to start get the project started and bring the vision into fruition until the construction begins. When the groundbreaking for a project is held, then the construction team takes on the next phase of the project with the development team still helping provide guidance along the way. Working with the students to understand the various processes, has been something Horizon Middle School has done for a few years. Its a great opportunity to enlighten students on the many career options in city development, land development, construction and commercial property management. We are pleased to be able to take part in activities such as this in the community. Our core values help define who we are and what we do. This is an excellent example of living our core value, expertise. Enteracting with students to share the Roers story and how we have excelled in the industry is just part of the message shared. David was able to explain how we are a full-service firm. We can take on a project from conception to completion with great success for everyone involved. To find out more about Roers and our core values, please us online.        

Roers Hosts Give Back Lunch for Cullen Children’s Foundation

Roers employees recently hosted their second Give Back lunch at the Roers main office location. This lunch proceeds from this quarterly lunch were given to the Cullen Children’s Foundation. Employees vote on a charity of  their choice for proceeds to be given to from the free will luncheon. “Being part of an organization that builds stronger communities by supporting charities such as the Cullen’s Children’s Foundation is a true blessing!  I enjoy being a part of Roers, not only because I enjoy my job, but also because they care about the communities where we live and work,” said Leslie Wegner, Roers team member. Employees come together once a quarter for this lunch which is a time for networking but more importantly to help give back to the community. The Cullen Children’s Foundation is very generous to children in this area dealing with healthcare issues. “Supporting Cullens Children’s Foundation is close to my heart as they donated funds to create a spectacular children’s play space in the new Sanford Hospital.  When my son was only 2 years old, we had a few hospital stays in the previous Sanford Hospital and we spent time in the much smaller children’s play space there.  It was a great space for my son to feel like a kid and play, even though he was in the hospital.  I can’t imagine how thankful the parents of children in the new hospital are for that new space where their kids can forget about being sick for a while,” commented Wegner. Roers is proud to give back often to community organizations in a variety of ways. For details on our Give & Grow Committee, visit https://www.roers.com/about/.

Construction is Officially Underway at Missouri Slope Lutheran Care Center

A groundbreaking ceremony took place on Wednesday, October 16, 2019, to commemorate the launch of the construction of the Missouri Slope North Campus. Local city officials including Bismarck Mayor Steve Bakken, Brian Ritter, President of Bismarck Mandan Chamber EDC, Pastor Larry Giese, Missouri Slope’s Board of Directors, proud residents and care givers of Missouri Slope, Roers and Pope Architects team members, along with numerous community members were all in attendance for the event.

Roers Construction and Development teams will work collaboratively with Pope Architects for Missouri Slope Lutheran Care Center on the initial phase of the project which will feature the Skilled Nursing Facility and Town Center. “The Roers team is looking forward to starting work on this project for Missouri Slope, the largest and only locally owned and operated non-profit long term care organization in the Bismarck/Mandan community,” commented Larry Nygard, President of Roers Development Inc. Missouri Slope’s current facility which has served the community for 52 years, is imperative to help fill the unmet needs of senior living options in the area.

“The journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step, our journey to build the most advanced long term care facility in the region begins with the first shovel” says Reier Thompson, President/CEO of Missouri Slope.  Phase I is anticipated to be completed by October 1, 2021. Phase 2 will consist of Base Care including 130 basic nursing beds and Phase 3 will add 60 apartments for Independent Living options.