Mandan Magazine - Volume 1: Issue 2 Fall 2023

THE GARAGE ISSUE

PUBLISHER LETTER

With the amber hues of falling leaves and the refreshing bite of autumn air indicating a transformative season, we're excited to unveil the second installment of Mandan Magazine: “The Garage Issue.” Much like the natural shifts of the seasons, the vibrant spirit of Mandan evolves, adapts, and grows. In this edition, we highlight more than just autumnal changes. We delve into the resilience and innovation of our local garage entrepreneurs, embrace the start of a fresh school year, and welcome the new businesses that keep propelling our community onward.

The City of Mandan, with its rich tapestry of culture, community, and commerce, boasts a unique category of businesses that we don't always shine a light on: the locally-owned service garages. It’s high time we appreciate the work that goes on behind the hum of carefully tuned engines and honor the grease-stained hands that make our lives run smoothly. Our local garage entrepreneurs are the unsung heroes of our community. They ensure our vehicles run safely, they rescue us when we're stranded, they enhance the aesthetics of our cars, they provide locally supported jobs, and some even craft custom designs that reflect the innovation inherent in Mandan.

What makes these service centers stand out? It's the passion for their craft, the embrace of top-tier technology, and the knowledge that every customer is a neighbor. Our cars are more than just machines; they are the vessels of our daily lives, transporting us to work, school, and leisure. Thus, having local, trustworthy service centers is not a luxury, but a necessity. They ensure that our community remains connected, mobile, and always ready to take on the next challenge.

Diving deeper into growth, entrepreneurship, and community connection, this issue also takes you behind the scenes at the brand-new Lakewood Elementary School, a testament to Mandan Public Schools’ commitment to nurturing the future of our city. Our children represent the next generation of thinkers, leaders, and innovators, and it’s essential that they have innovative spaces that inspire learning and creativity. It’s a new place where dreams will be crafted, and futures will be molded.

Lastly, but certainly not least, we have insights from the City of Mandan Business Development Office, offering an enlightening perspective on the growing business community in our midst. Their piece delves into the hard work, collaboration, and foresight that is shaping the city's business landscape, ensuring that Mandan remains a vibrant hub for small businesses and entrepreneurship.

The Mandan Magazine has quickly become a cherished piece both for us and for the Mandan community. Each issue embodies our passion and dedication, capturing a moment in our constantly changing community and resonating with the very pulse of Mandan.

Happy Fall

Mandan Progress Organization Members

BNC Bank Mandan

BNI Coal

Bobcat of Mandan

Bravera Bank

Burian & Associates

Burning Desires

Butcher Block Meats

Capital Credit Union

Captain Jack's Liquor Land (Coborn's)

City of Mandan

Classic Rock Coffee

Cloverdale Foods

Comfort Inn & Suites

Copper Dog Cafe

Corral Sales RV Superstore

Curvy Flamingo Boutique

Dacotah Speedway

Dairy Queen

Dakota Caulking

Dakota Farms Restaurant

Dakota Kustomz, LLC

DaWise Perry Funeral Home

Doll's Studios

Edward Jones - Rick Kuhn

Edward Jones- Vanessa Martell

Every Eye

Express Yourself Salon

Eyecare Professionals

Family Wellness

Leingang Home Center.

Leroy’s MVP Store

Lewis & Clark Devel. Group

Liberty Tax Service

Little Caesars Pizza

Lords-n-Ladies

LPT Images

M&H Gas

M&W Beef Packers Inc.

Main Street Drive Thru Liquor

Mandan Aero Center

Mandan Auto Glass

Mandan Eagles

Mandan Moose Lodge

Mandan Parks & Rec.

Mandan Plumbing & Heating

Mandan Public School District.

Mandan Regional Airport

Mandan Road Races LLC

Mandan Tire Center

Mane Expressions

McDonald's

Metro Area Ambulance

Midway Lanes

MOJO 107.5/Big Rig 105.9

Montana Dakota Utilities

Moore Engineering

Moritz Sport and Marine

Morton County

Morton Mandan Public Library.

Legacy Level Member (Name)

Chevrolet of Mandan (Mandan Automotive)

Excellence Level Members

First International Bank and Trust

Pepsi America

National Day Calendar

Hellman Media

Entry Level Members

ABC Seamless

Action Motor Sports

Advanced Business Methods

AE2S

AID, Inc.

Al Fitterer Architect PC

Alpha-Lit Bismarck, LLC

American Family InsuranceTerry Kraft

AnyLeaks

Armstrong Sanitation

Bain Agency/Bridgemark

Insurance Solutions

Balancing Goat Coffee Co

Barney's Tesoro/ Red Trail

Basin Electric Power

Baymont Inn & Suites

BEK Communications

Bennigan’s

Big Stick Cigars

BisMan Eats LLC

Bismarck Larks

Bismarck Magazine

Bismarck-Mandan Chamber

Matt Schanandore Executive Director, Mandan Progress Organization

EDC

Bismarck-Mandan CVB

Farm Credit Services

Farmers Union Insurance-

Kary/Ressler/Wolfgram

Feil Orthodontics

Fettig Millwork

First Community Credit Union

Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park

Gate City Bank

Goodhardt & Associates

Grand Junction Subs

Gunscher's Auto Repair Plus

Gusaas Signs

Harlow's School Bus Service

Heritage Exteriors

Hirsch Floral & Gifts

Hopfauf Custom Builders.

Huck Financial

Huntington Books

Hyundai of Mandan/ Bismarck

Motor Company

Ideal Image Dentistry

iGear

Independent Land Survey and Engineering

Jerome Distributing

Johnson's Wrecking

Keller Insurance Services.

Kelsch, Ruff, Kranda, Nagle & Ludwig

Kids in Motion Pediatric Therapy

KLJ

L&H Branding Irons

Lakewood Marina LLC

Larson's Tattooing

Leingang Chiropractic & Wellness

Schlosser Excavating

Schwan Buick GMC Cadillac

Scotty's Drive-In

Security First Agency of North Dakota

Security First Bank

Shop Suzy B

Sign Pro

Signature Events

Simes Graphic Designs

Southside MVP

Spiffy Biffs

Stage Stop Saloon & Grill

Starion Bank

State Farm Insurance- Heather Fried

State Farm Insurance- Rod

Skytland

Sunset MVP

Superpumper #41

The Blackstone Hotel

The Golden Comb Day Spa & Salon

The Medicine Shoppe

The Paddle Trap

The Shoults Express LLC

The Skin Boutique & Hair Lounge

The Title Team

Titan Machinery

Musicians Association

NAPA Auto Parts

ND Assoc of Rural Electric

Coop.

ND Farmers Union Insurance

Newman Signs

Nightlife Entertainment

NISC

North Country Inn

North Dakota Teen Challenge

North Dakota Tourism

Northern Plains Plumbing,

Heating & Air

Northern Trophy

Northwest Tire Mandan

Ohm's Café

Old 10 Bar & Grill

Old Town Tavern/Scapegoat

Bar

Open Road Honda

Pahlke Steel, Inc.

Papa Murphy's Pizza

Pizza Ranch

Quality Home Furniture

Railway Credit Union

Red Carpet Mandan ARCO

Red Top Recovery

Revive Law Group

Riverwood RV & Auto

RJR Maintenance & Management

Rose James & Company, LLC

Roughrider Harley-Davidson

RuLissa Boutique & More

Safe Ship

Sanford Health

Schaff Estate & Life Planning Group

TP Motel

Tri Energy Cenex

United Printing

Venue Twenty5

Vision Source

Weigel Funeral Home

West Dakota FOX

Zander Body Shop

Friend of Mandan Individual Member

Matt Schanandore

Ellen Huber

Dennis Rohr

Lee Fleischer

Ann Kirchmeier

Kari Schmidt

Savannah Schmidt

Amy Schmidt

Bernice Hilfer

Mike Hanson

Andrew Stromme

Andrea Travnicek

James Clement

Loah Clement

Marlo Anderson

Todd Humphrey

Annette Behm-Caldwell

Karen Breiner

Del Wetsch

Barney's 2.1

Clay Ulrich is the fifth owner of the historic Barney’s 2.1 in Mandan which was started in the 1950s. Clay bought the business after years in the car industry. He explains, “I started in 1981 working in Bismarck for a station for 21 years and then quit for a few years, then bought this one and started it up.” To preserve the legacy of Barney’s 2.1, Clay rebuilt the physical space two or three years ago, giving it a new and improved look, ensuring the long-lasting business will continue to operate long into the future.

Barney’s 2.1 is more than just a gas station. “We are pretty much a one-stop-shop. We have

everything from a convenience store to gas to a car wash, shop, towing, pretty much everything you need,” says Clay. The store has become a staple in Mandan for anyone looking for high-quality service in one convenient location.

For Clay, the work he does on the cars and the people he serves go hand in hand. While he loves the mechanical work, he enjoys the cus tomer service aspect more. “My favorite part is dealing with people,” says Clay. Clay’s dedica tion to both his work and the people he serves has made Barney’s 2.1 a well-trusted business in Mandan.

Dakota kustomz

For Travis Feist, owner of Dakota Kustomz, building and creating in the automotive world has been a lifelong passion. In order to pursue his passion in the way he envisioned, Travis opened his own shop back in 1999, although under a slightly different name, Dakota Customs. After many location changes, partnership changes, and name changes, Dakota Customs became Dakota Kustomz and moved to its current location on the Strip in Mandan.

Dakota Kustomz is a motorcycle and hot rod customization and restoration garage. There is no job Travis and his team are not willing to take on, making Dakota Kustomz one of the most unique car garages in the state. “There’s shops

that do motorcycles, there’s shops that do au tobody, there’s shops that do accessory installs, and there’s shops that do restoration. Well, we do all that, and then some,” says Travis. “We build from scratch, we restore, we do a lot of custom side-by-sides, so we build road cages, and bumpers, and tuning on side-by-sides to cars, to trucks, to collision work.” No matter how unique the project is, Travis and his team will take it on and figure out a solution. “We get challenges here all the time. I will take on any thing,” says Travis.

While it may be hard to imagine how to complete some of these projects, for Travis, the process comes easily. “When people come to me with a project, as they’re talking, I already have it built in my head,” he explains. “If I could draw, which I can’t, and I really wish I could, I would be like those caricature people, like I could be looking at you and be like, I bet this is what you want.”

And for Travis, it is the pro cess of turning ideas into builds that makes his job so exciting. He describes, “Anything people bring me to do that I can build and create from their idea, I love it and that’s what makes me feel good.”

Gunscher's Auto Repair

Troy Gunsch opened his auto repair shop, Gunscher’s Auto Repair, in 2009, after spending time in the industry working for other businesses. “I worked for three different places in my life, and I got tired of watching people get taken advantage of,” Troy explains. With the drive to offer fair service, Troy opened his shop and began serving people on his personal property in a garage he built. The shop was located 10 miles out of town, but Troy was still finding himself swamped with work. After about three years, Troy hired his first full-time employee to help him keep up with the demand. However, soon even this was not enough to keep up. Troy describes, “I was getting to the point where I was three weeks booked out. I was noticing that my normal customers weren’t coming back because I

couldn’t get them in when they needed me to. They would bring me the stuff the other shops couldn’t fix, so they would go to them because they could get in, and then when they couldn’t fix it, they would bring it to me.” This prompted Troy to make the leap into a much larger busi ness. “I had a couple really good friends that bought into the business. Now, we have ten fulltime people,” says Troy.

The current Gunscher’s Auto Repair location opened three years ago. Since then, the business has only grown. Troy estimates there can be over 100 cars there daily. The secret to Troy’s success is very simple. “We bend over backwards for our customers,” he says. For Troy and his team, the focus of their business is not profit, but the people who come into their shop, and the difference is telling. “We do a little bit of advertising, but not a lot. Most of our business comes from word of mouth,” says Troy. On top of providing quality service, Troy strives to charge people a fair price, again valuing people over profit. “We don’t have to be the most expensive place in town,” he says. “My job is to be the best in town.”

Lincoln Repair

“The idea was to help people and fix cars, and it’s just grown with great people coming along on the journey with me.” These words from Josh Gendron, owner and founder of Lincoln Repair, perfectly encapsulate the passion behind his business and the reason for its success.

For Josh, automotive repair has been a lifelong passion. “I’ve been fixing cars since I started driving, and it just grew from there,” he explains. “I was in the industry, and I decided I wanted to help people. I left the shop I was at and opened up my own and got a lot of learning along the way and found a lot of great people that have the same goals in mind.” Josh opened Lincoln Repair five years ago, and since then his business has only grown. Josh went from one lift to twenty-four, from one location to two, and has twen-

ty-four employees, two sub-contractors, in addition to himself and his wife.

A large part of Josh’s success can be attributed to the culture he has cultivated at Lincoln Repair. “I knew if I was going to open a business, it wasn’t going to be the same as everyone else’s. I don’t want to compete for someone else’s market share, I wanted my own market share,” he explains. Josh emphasizes continu al education for his employees, as well as paying them for odds and ends jobs they do for customers.

Josh also has his mechanics do their own estimat ing, so the quoted price is as close as possible to the actual one. In doing so, Josh hopes to cultivate trust between his customers and his technicians. He explains fixing a car is not as simple or straightforward as one may assume: “There’s more wiring in your car than there is in your house, and your car is moving down the road and bouncing around all the time. It’s not like a plumber coming to your house, and this hose is leaking, so we will replace it. We have a thousand hoses all jammed in there, and we have to find out which one is bad, and which one is about to be bad, too... It’s a very complicated field to be in.”

However, despite the challenges, Josh loves his work, especially be ing able to help his customers with their car troubles. For Josh, the people he helps are the best part of his job. “It’s the biggest struggle some days, and the most reward ing part of it. I thought it would be the cars, but it’s the people.”

Mandan Auto Glass Inc.

Randy Berger has been in the glass business since 1978. In 1992, he started at Mandan Auto Glass Inc. where he was partners with Steve Nagel, owner at the time of Mandan Auto Glass. Steve opened Mandan Auto Glass in 1986 with his wife Karen. Together, they focused on growing their business and providing high-quality service for their customers. As of today, Mandan Auto Glass offers a variety of services, including windshield repair and replacement, residential screen repairs, and even residential glass services.

In 2013, Justin Berger, Randy’s son, joined the business. After Steve died in 2015, Justin took on a larger role in the company. Randy describes, “When Steve got cancer, and he passed away, I really didn’t know what I was going to do. I thought about

maybe switching careers. [Justin] approached it thinking he’d want to go into business with us. We tried it, and it’s been real good.”

For Justin, joining the family business was not what he originally intended to do as his career. “I remember graduating, and people would ask, are you going into the family business?” recalls Justin. “I was like, no way. So, it’s kind of cool that it’s what I ended up going into and being able to continue what my dad started.” Although not the original plan, both Justin and Randy are happy that they have been able to work together. “For the most part it’s been pretty good,” jokes Justin. “We have a lot of the same personality, so sometimes it gets a little tense… but we can always work it out.”

The two work well together, each with their own favorite aspects of the job. Justin loves working on the recalibration aspect of windshield replace ment, and as the business grows, hopes to be joined by his sons in the family business. For Randy, after 45 years in the industry, the hope is to begin cutting back. But, he does not plan on fully retiring. He plans to continue working part-time, mainly doing screen repairs, which are his favorite part of the job. Overall, as Randy reflects on his impressive career and what it’s meant to him, he puts it simply: “It’s been good. I’ve enjoyed it.”

Mandan Tire Center

Mandan Tire Center is one of the area’s oldest tire and auto service providers. “Mandan Tire Center has been around for over 65 years,” says owner Rachel Freidt. “We have been in the community for a long time, and it’s something that we’re very proud of. We’re excited that we see generations of families come through our store.”

Rachel is a third-generation owner, having bought the business from her father, who bought it from his. “[Back when Mandan Tire Center first opened,] across the street there was a car dealership. My grandfather owned that as well, and then we had the tire store here and the Bismarck store came a

few years later,” describes Rachel.

As their name implies, tires are what Mandan Tire Center specializes in. “We do a little of everything here, which is unique from our other store in Bismarck,” explains Rachel. “We do passenger and light truck business here, but we also do commercial vehicles… we pretty much do every tire here, all the way from a small lawn mower tire all the way up to the biggest piece of equipment out on a farm.” Mandan Tire Center has hundreds of different tires for just about anything you could possibly imagine.

However, Mandan Tire Center offers more than just

tires. They also do exhaust work, as well as all the usual auto repair work. Mandan Tire Center truly is a one-stop shop for any car issues you may be dealing with. On top of quality products, Mandan Tire Center also offers quality customer service. For Rachel, working with customers is the best part of her job. “These customers have become our family,” she says. “We know what’s happening in their lives, they know what’s happening in our lives, and they

are the reason we are here. Without them, we wouldn’t be here.” The other thing Rachel says she owes everything to is her staff. “I love my staff,” she says. “They are my family and everything I do is for them.”

red top recovery

Red Top Recovery and Towing provides roadside assistance, and light, medium, and heavy-duty towing for the greater central regions in North Dakota. Alex Pool started the business after a few years of working in the car industry. “I used to work as a mechanic at a shop. I was kind of fed up with being a mechanic and one of the guys dropped a semi off at the shop and said, ‘Hey you want a job?’ and I said, ‘Sure.’ I just thought it would be another job to get me out of my current one, and then I pretty much fell in love with it.”

years ago, his business has become known for the range of services they provide when it comes to towing. “The versatility is what sets us apart,” explains Alex. “We kind of do everything. A cou ple guys and I have scuba gear, and we’re scuba certified.” Being scuba certified allows Alex and his team to do underwater hookups for towing and recovery, one of the services they offer that sets them apart. “It’s kind of like a grown-up version of fetch,” jokes Alex. “That’s really the best way to put it in layman’s terms.”

Alex’s passion for his work can be seen in the rapid growth and continual success of his business. Since Alex started Red Top Recovery and Towing thirteen

By offering such a wide range of services, Alex has created a job where no two days look the same. The variety of jobs, the constantly changing schedule, and odd hours may not appeal to everyone, but Alex loves the irregularity of his work. “Every day is different. You never know where you’re going, what you’re doing, or who you’re going to meet. There’s no monotony at all,” Alex says. “I wouldn’t do anything else.”

The school district in Mandan has been growing and thriving, and the future of the education system is looking bright with a new high school scheduled to be open next fall, and a new elementary that opened this August.

Lakewood Elementary is a new elementary school that opened its doors this school year. Located at 2601 38th Ave SE, the elementary school will service a neighborhood in Mandan that has been in need of its own school for years. “I’ve been in Mandan starting my 14th year, and this neighborhood every year has said, 'We want a school, we need a school.' It’s been very inconvenient for them to get their kids to Fort Lincoln, to Lewis and Clark. Most of them go east for work as their kids go the other way. I think this is just going to be really nice for this section of town,” explains Mike Bitz, superintendent for the Mandan Public Schools System.

Having a school to call their own means a lot to the students attending this new school. “My third grader who lives down here will have a school that is hers... it’s just nice for these kids to have a home to go to,” explains Ryan Lagasse, business manager for the Mandan Public Schools System.

Lakewood Elementary

Story: Maria Fleck | Photography: NewAge Creative

The new elementary is being built to hold 300-350 students, and the current enrollment is estimated at about 300 students in grades kindergarten through 5th grade. The building was designed with expansion in mind with space left for a third wing to be built in the future when the need arises. For now, Lakewood has two wings with common areas including the usual

kitchen, bathrooms, playground, and more. The building was also designed with the growing need for educational interventions in mind. Private rooms for support services for learners with special needs have been built in centralized locations amidst classrooms to support unity among learners at all levels.

Technology at the new school will

also be state-of-the-art, in keeping with the standards at other Mandan Public Schools. Classrooms will be equipped with Apple TVs for teachers to project their material, and each kid will receive access to their own iPad throughout the school year. One of the more exciting choices for the school will be left up to its stu-

dents. The mascot will be voted on and chosen by the students of the elementary. The final decision, after being voted on, will be unveiled to the school and the public at large at a larger celebration. The choosing of the mascot is just one part of how the new Lakewood Elementary will establish its own traditions and culture. “I think it’s just exciting. A new culture

with new traditions is being started. The school is really a mixture of staff from across our district, some brand new, some veterans, so to be able to mix staff and students in a neighborhood that’s really been wanting that school for a long time and start that new tradition and that new life of Lakewood is exciting and fun to be a part of,” says Carly Retterath, assis-

tant superintendent of the Mandan Public Schools System.

CITY OF MANDAN

Investing in Mandan's Future

Driving through Mandan, one can see visible signs of change. The City of Mandan has taken an active approach to revitalizing their downtown and promoting economic growth in the business sector. Residents of Mandan have always had a fierce pride in their community, and their loyalty to their city has made this revitalization possible. “The community in Mandan is very helpful for business owners.

They have a lot of pride in Mandan. They want to shop local. They want to invest in Mandan. Instead of going over to Bismarck, they will do everything over here,” describes Madison Cermak, the business development and communications director for the City of Mandan.

For Madison, fostering economic growth and providing Mandan resi-

dents with the opportunity to invest in their city is the main focus of her work. “My job mostly entails business and development which means keeping the businesses we have and creating new businesses in town that can make new jobs and new growth and make the economy in Mandan better with our incentive program that we have here at the City of Mandan,” Madison explains.

STORY: MARIA FLECK

PHOTOGRAPHY: NEWAGE CREATIVE

These incentives are already making a clear difference in the city’s landscape. “We’re seeing businesses that were already here re-opening with new ownership or new management,” says Madison. “We think it’s a good thing that people aren’t closing the businesses, but instead transferring ownership and continuing the name, making them staples in the community.”

One of the ways Madison’s office fosters economic growth is through education. They put on various workshops and events in order to help entrepreneurs grow their ideas into businesses. “We have an economic opportunity prosperity committee which does these business working sessions. That’s where our business pitch challenge comes from, the business startup 101, the downtown tour, and we do other workshops throughout the year,” describes Kari Schmidt, communications specialist for the City of Mandan. “You see entrepreneurs come to these events, learn things, and now we’re seeing them actually opening and doing their business more than just at home, or a lot of them are really close to that stepping point. They’re learning what they need to learn there, they’re talking to other entrepreneurs, and getting connected with the small development centers in North Dakota.”

With the economic development happening in Mandan, the city is becoming more than just a quick one-stop trip destination. Rather, Mandan is becoming a popular place to go for a wide variety of retail, restaurants, and other businesses. “Over the years, the development of downtown, like the park and the library, has really spurred people’s attention and people wanting to be downtown. Now, it’s one of those destination spots for people to have a business because they know people are coming and it’s not just during the warm months any longer. People are coming in the winter with the Lights in the Park,” describes Kari. This new attitude can be seen in tangible ways too, in the opening of several new businesses like BuffaloGypsy, Rose James and Company, 1806 and Company, Larkspur Baby, and new restaurants like La Cantina and Buckin’ Bean Coffee. Even some old businesses are re-opening under new management, such as the Silver Dollar Bar.

It has never been a more exciting time to be a resident or business owner in Mandan. The future of Mandan looks bright, as the leaders of Mandan continue to push forward, drawing from the rich talents and resources of their city.