Minot native wants to invest in home state

WILLISTON, N.D. (AP) — A contractor who left North Dakota more than 20 years ago wants to invest in his home state.

“North Dakota has treated me well, and now it’s time to bring some of that back,” Minot native Dean Myers said.

Myers is president of CSC General Contractors in the Atlanta suburb of Canton, Ga. The company bought 240 acres west of Williston, where it is building four commercial structures and three twin homes.

The commercial buildings should be finished in the spring, and oil-related companies are reported to be interested in leasing or buying the space. The twin homes are to be completed next year.

Myers said his company is considering investing as much as $40 million in Williston. Its Madison Ridge Subdivision can accommodate 61 residential lots.

“This is our first phase,” Myers said. “We believe we will be working in at least two or three of the other markets in North Dakota.”

Those markets might include Minot, Bismarck or other smaller communities in areas with energy development, he said.

Myers graduated from Minot High School in 1974. He worked for Bismarck-based Basin Electric Power Cooperative, and in construction on the coal gasification plant near Beulah, N.D. He was an original partner in the family’s NAPA Auto Parts stores. His brother, Darroll, owns the store in Williston, and his brother, Dale, runs the stores in Minot and Bismarck.

Myers followed the electrical and construction industries to various states and ended up with his own company, CSC General Contractors.

“This is when I made a recommitment to my God,” Myers said. “It was time for me to let go and decide there’s a better method than just my method.”

The CSC in the company name that used to represent business owners now stands for Christians Serving Christ. CSC General Contractors is one of a family of companies aiming to help Christian business people going through crises.

Myers, who owns a ranch in the Badlands, had been selling off some of the ranch property and was looking for a place to invest the proceeds. He said he brought his team of managers and superintendents to Williston and prayed over the decision, then went ahead with the investment.

The Williston project is similar to CSC developments in Georgia, where the company has built 13 industrial parks since 1996. It sold some and still leases other properties.

The Williston residential development is a newer venture for CSC. The company’s general manager in North Dakota is Todd Lance, who has a background in residential construction, Myers said.

“It made sense for us to do more residential because it’s right up his alley,” Myers said.

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