The Mandan community and surrounding areas are getting a warm welcome to the new Mandan Public Works facility to learn all about the different divisions and how they impact our lives.

Mandan resident Stephen Snowden brought out the entire family to see what public works is all about.

“It’s very, very important that we understand what’s going on in our community and what our community can do to help us who are just stay-at-home dads who need help,” Snowden said.

Snowden and his family were greeted by a welcome and tour of the new facility. They were able to check out office spaces and equipment like trucks, loaders, and sweepers.

“It’s really good to get to meet the people that are doing all the service for us. I know they’re hiring too, and anybody can come and check this out and maybe see if this is a good career for them moving forward,” Snowden said.

People may not think about how the many divisions of public works are a part of our lives everywhere around the city.

“Your water running, your streetlights running, your traffic lights running, the road network itself running. Plowing snow in the winter, sweeping in the summer running the landfill forestry, cemetery,” Director of Mandan Public Works Mitch Bitz said.

Bitz shared how the hard work that the crews do daily benefits residents all day, everyday

“It’s done in the middle of the night when people are sleeping, they don’t even realize it’s happening. Every time they flush their toilet or turn on their drinking water, you never realize how nice those amenities are until they are not there anymore,” Bitz said.

Visitors were served refreshments after their tours. Mandan Public Works Department moved in last fall and it cost about six million dollars to build the new facility. This is the first open public house Mandan Public Works has done, and they say they plan to have more.