Block 9 is North Dakota tall
The new Block 9 building downtown is the second tallest building in North Dakota, according to the Forum. The building’s roof was poured on Nov. 14 setting the building’s official height at 235 feet high. The tallest building in North Dakota is the Capital at around 240 feet. In comparison, Minnesota’s tallest skyscraper, the IDS tower, is over 900 feet tall.
According to the Fargo Forum, the building is supposed to be completed as early as the fall of 2020. Block 9 will include a hotel, retail stores, office space and million-dollar top floor penthouse apartments.
Not-so-sweet harvest for sugar beets
The Star Tribune reported that Minnesota and parts of North Dakota are experiencing one of the worst sugar beet harvests in years. The farmers that provide the beets to American Crystal Sugar Co. will have to give the company $343 per unharvested acre according to the Grand Forks Herald.
The harvesting season had to be cut short because of freezing weather and much of the beets were not in good enough condition for Crystal Sugar, according to the Forum. The number of beets went from a typical 11.5 million pounds to just 7.5 million.
NDSU Dean dies at 101
Jim Sugihara, a retired dean of chemistry and physics, died Nov. 12 at the age of 101. He was a dean at NDSU for over three decades according to the Fargo Forum. According to an interview with Sugihara on his 100th birthday, Sugihara was fond of the area saying, “People here have been so warm, friendly and welcoming. I can’t say enough good things about NDSU and Fargo.”
Sugihara, who was a Japanese internment survivor, spoke about his time at the camps and spread his personal story of being interned. John Helgeland, a retired history professor, told the Forum that, “He was a dignified and gentle man.”
Kris Kristofferson made impromptu
Kris Kristofferson, a country star who has played with Johnny Cash and Willy Nelson, gave an impromptu performance to a crowd at Dempsey’s. He sang “Me and Bobby McGee,” one of his most famous songs with local band 32 Bellow, according to KVRR.
KVRR also reported that the Band 32 Bellow invited Kristofferson to play at the bar with them by tapping a note to his tour bus door. The band wrote on their Facebook that they “Played a legendary song with the legend who wrote it!”