Edgeley’s 503 Main Street Medical Center Building
Tanner and Kali Kiecker, left, and Kimberly and Jason Paulson joined forces to bring a new medical center to their small town, which co-locates a health care clinic, pharmacy, dentist, physical therapy and mental health counselor. Photos by DVEC/Pat Schaffer
What was once a vacant corner lot is now home to an impressive 6,000-square-foot building – a monument to what can be accomplished when people work together to solve the challenges facing people living in rural areas.
Like so many small towns across North Dakota, many of Edgeley’s main street businesses had closed, leaving a row of vacant lots and empty, often deteriorating, buildings.
The community had hosted the local medical clinic for many years through a joint agreement between the city of Edgeley and Sanford Health.
A deal was struck to keep the clinic in town, where its medical services would be available, not only to people living in town and nearby farms, but also to the elderly residents of Manor St. Joseph, a residential basic care facility that has served the Edgeley community for more than 100 years.
But the 1920s-era building which housed the clinic was deteriorating badly, and it was impossible to remodel the structure to meet modern electrical and plumbing requirements or to adequately fulfill the privacy needs of a modern medical facility.
There had been rumors for years, but now because of the building’s overall unsuitability, the clinic was in real danger of closing.
If that happened, health care services would be moved 40 miles north to Sanford’s medical clinic in Jamestown.
“Unfortunately, for many people, especially the elderly who can no longer drive or who aren’t comfortable driving in traffic, it’s easier to skip regular care than to travel an hour or more,” explains Cal Triepke, a longtime Edgeley resident and the town’s mayor.
Edgeley needed a better location – and soon.
Build it and they will come
Edgeley native Kali Kiecker is credited as the “spark” that ignited the effort resulting in Edgeley’s new medical center.
As a teenager, she dreamed about leaving town as soon as she graduated from high school, Kiecker confesses.
“I didn’t care where I went … just not here,” she says. “I’m not sure why.”
But after attending college, graduating as a dental hygienist and working for a few years, she wistfully recalls, “I realized it wasn’t the same as being home, with the people I grew up with.”
She knew other young professionals who grew up in the area felt the same way. If possible, they preferred to come home to small-town friends and relatives to build their careers and raise their families.
The planning began after a casual conversation with her employer, Dr. Carrie Orn of Jamestown’s Orn Family Dentistry.
She inquired if Orn would consider opening a satellite office in Edgeley, as many patients who were driving from Edgeley had asked Kiecker about the possibility.
Having served on the N.D. Dental Association board, Orn recognized the gap in access to care in rural areas and realized what a blessing this could be for people who have difficulty traveling.
She agreed to establish a satellite office in Edgeley, if they could find a suitable location.
Kali and her husband, Tanner, who farms southwest of Edgeley, quickly realized there was no suitable space available. The couple agreed if they wanted to make this work, they would need a new building.
They reached out to Kimberly and Jason Paulson, who own and operate Edge Nutrition and IP Insurance, businesses located next door on the same block.
The Paulsons, who had entertained the idea of a new Main Street building a few years prior, agreed to join the project, and KieckPaul LLC was born.
In visits with local health care providers, they learned Sanford Health Edgeley Clinic, Apex Physical Therapy and Wellness Center, Edgeley Pharmacy and Anna McLean of Better Days Therapy and Wellness were all interested in moving into a larger modern space.
They broke ground in June 2024, using all local contactors or businesses whose owners had ties to the community, including Madcke Construction, Direct Electric, Prairie Heating and Air, Red River Plumbing and Riverside Building Center.
“We felt this was important to keep the construction on schedule, as it would be easier to solve any issues that might come up during construction,” Jason says. “Plus, they all took pride in showing the community the good work they can do.”
In May, the 503 Main Street Medical Building opened to patients and medical care. A grand opening was held June 19.
In less than a year, Edgeley had its new medical center.
Community support critical to success
None of it would have been possible without community support and the assistance received in financing the project, the Kieckers and Paulsons relay.
They thank the city of Edgeley and its Job Development Authority, which cleaned up the lot, sold it at a reasonable price and approved a grant to help finance construction.
Tanner especially credits their primary lender, AgCountry Farm Credit Services of LaMoure, and Michelle Berry, who worked with them to secure a Dakota Valley Electric Cooperative (DVEC) economic development loan and financial assistance from the Rural Development Finance Corporation (RDFC), of which DVEC is a member.
Berry retired Aug. 14 after a 35-year career at DVEC, where she helped bring countless opportunities to local communities with DVEC’s revolving loan fund and RDFC’s financing tools. Out of all the projects she’s assisted, the Edgeley medical facility is her favorite.
“So many people helped in ways larger and small, and that all made a difference,” Kimberly says.
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Pat Schaffer has had bylines in North Dakota Living for nearly five decades. She started her co-op career in 1975 as a receptionist with Dakota Valley Electric Cooperative in Edgeley, where she still works today as communications manager.
Co-ops that care
Started in 1994 as a small, nonprofit development corporation, the Rural Development Finance Corporation (RDFC) was incorporated by a few North Dakota electric and telecommunications cooperatives with a desire to invest in rural communities. Each cooperative provided $2,000, plus a $34,000 grant became RDFC’s starting capital to establish this rural investment fund.
Today, this nearly $11.5 million revolving loan fund helps North Dakota communities with 10,000 or less people.
RDFC has become an important key lending partner – offering low-interest financing and taking on more risk than a traditional lender – for rural people and communities to improve the quality of life in rural North Dakota. It has been able to offer affordable, subordinated gap financing for small meat plants, food processing, grocery stores, child care facilities, community infrastructure, small rural businesses and transformational projects like the 503 Main Street Medical Center Building in Edgeley.
North Dakota electric and telecommunications cooperatives through RDFC have demonstrated the value of cooperation and how the cooperative model effectively serves rural places. By pooling modest capital, with innovation and cooperation, co-ops continue to help make life better in rural communities.
