Two dormant commissions could be revived due to interest by the Minot City Council in preserving their functions.

The Minot Areawide Planning Commission was established in 1972 but has not functioned for many years. The Human Relations Commission was established in 1976 and also has not functioned for some time. City staff are researching records to determine when the groups last had activity.

The Minot City Council decided Monday to review the commissions’ functions and take up recommendations at a future meeting.

Council member Stephan Podrygula said the type of people who might have a stake in better human relations has widened.

“Many of the issues that were considered have not gone away. In fact, I think they’re more strongly implicated now in our success as a community. One of the issues the state is struggling with is workforce development, and it’s very hard to work even if you want to work and have the training to work if you don’t have a place to take care of your kids. That, again, has traditionally been labeled as a women’s issue or family issue, but I think it certainly has to do with the welfare of a significant portion of humanity,” he said.

Other recent concerns relate to gender and sexual issues and recognizing the contributions of indigenous peoples, he said.

“There are several groups now that would be more implicated, more impacted, by these kinds of issues, and I think it would be worth taking a good long look at that,” Podrygula said.

He added that reviving the Minot Areawide Planning Commission could serve to bring various governmental entities together to look at coordinating services, planning and working together.