10/06/26 Metropolitan Council Meeting

The October 6, 2026 Metropolitan Council meeting included several procurement and spending matters. The Council approved a cooperative purchasing master agreement with Motorola Solutions for public-safety software for Metro’s Emergency Communications Department, passing 26–7 with one abstention after a motion to defer failed. Members debated the contract’s scope and surveillance concerns, the lack of an easily accessible prior contract, and the risk of interrupting a system that could take 18–24 months to replace; Metro Legal stated that surveillance uses would require separate Council approval following a public hearing. The Council also approved a $250,000 contract with Focus Strategies for a permanent supportive housing strategic plan, despite a public commenter’s concerns about the consultant’s rates, team, and the contract’s lack of a firm cap. A grant of $110,000 to the Mary Parish Center was approved; a separate Fisk University grant was also approved, with its amount garbled in the transcript (reported as approximately $431,928).