Morton County approves special assessment to overlay roads in Ensoll’s Second–Ninth subdivisions

The Morton County Commission voted June 24 to approve a special assessment district to pay for hot-mix bituminous overlay and patching on roads serving Ensoll’s Second through Ninth subdivisions.

Why it matters: Special assessments allocate construction costs for local road improvements to properties in the assessed area. County staff said the residents submitted the required petition signatures and the public notice and protest period met statutory requirements.

County staff reported two written protests representing approximately 1.7% of the district’s area; under state law protests must be under 50% of the area to proceed. The staff report said notice was published in the Mandan News at least 30 days before the hearing and courtesy letters were mailed to residents. Staff additionally told the commission that published quantities and cost estimates are used to develop the assessment amounts and that adjusting boundaries or project scope will change per-property estimates.

There was limited public comment; one remote commenter asked why the county was repaving rather than patching. County highway staff explained that measured patching quantities had roughly doubled compared with prior surveys and that patching alone was likely to require repeated follow-up work as patched areas continued to deteriorate.

The commission approved the project by roll-call vote after closing the hearing. Commissioners recorded “yes” votes and the motion carried. Staff said the project will be bid under project number 2586 and that the county will proceed with the assessment process consistent with North Dakota law.

Next steps: County staff will proceed to advertise for bids and return with final costs and assessment calculations; residents will be assessed their share per the approved process.