Minot City Council Regular Meeting 10/5/26 at 5:30 p.m.

The City of Minot City Council’s regular meeting on October 5, 2026, included several procurement and funding matters. In discussion of a software licensing renewal for asset management, permitting, and code enforcement, council members raised concerns that annual costs would rise from about $118,000 to $179,000 over four years—a 53% increase—with projections discussed reaching more than $200,000 by 2030 and $250,000 within seven years. The system, now called Unity after Trimble acquired its vendor, is moving from city-hosted servers to cloud hosting. Staff said the city could issue a new RFP, but replacing the system would take about six months and require substantial implementation work. The transcript does not capture a final vote on the software renewal. Council unanimously approved the 2027 self-funded employee health plan renewal, with employees taking on a larger share of premiums; the plan’s cost increase was described as approximately 16.12%. The city’s benefits adviser, Brown & Brown, said a market bid process for administrative, pharmacy, and stop-loss services is planned for the following year, alongside exploration of direct contracting with Trinity and pooling purchasing leverage with other public entities.

On a proposed Magic Fund development agreement with Minot State University, council approved 5–2 an amendment making the city’s approval contingent on the North Dakota Higher Education Challenge Grant Fund Committee approving the project; the transcript does not clearly show the final vote on the underlying agreement. Council unanimously approved budget amendments for a library donation and a Chevron donation, the latter discussed in connection with fire equipment. Other discussion concerned budget priorities, cost controls, revenue options, and city operations; no additional contract awards or RFP approvals are clearly recorded in the transcript.