The Williams County Commission in Williston, North Dakota voted to adopt new guidelines putting restrictions on new or renewed applications for temporary housing as of August 1, 2015, as willistonherald reports. As the price of oil has fallen and the demand for oilfield workers has subsided, the commission is phasing out some of the temporary housing including modular crew camps, modular homes and recreational vehicles.

The city does not want to eliminate all the temporary housing for fear that will increase housing costs. Some owners of oilfield and trucking companies, who have requested conditional use permits (CUP) say rents are still too high. Some of the temporary facilities have already been phased out as more affordable permanent housing has been built.

Williams County currently has 18 temporary housing facilities with 4,179 beds but only about 2,000 are occupied. Three years ago there were almost 8,000 beds. Beginning May 1, 2016, temporary housing fees will rise 100 percent to $800 annually per bed.

MHProNews posted numerous stories about the build-up of modular housing as the need for housing for oil patch workers rose sharply within the last four years. ##

(Photo credit: theatlantic/Tom Haines–oil pumps in Watford City, North Dakota)

Article submitted by Matthew J. Silver to Daily Business News-MHProNews.