Jill Schramm/MDN A brass quintet performs on Main Street as part of the Minot Council of the Arts activity held during the Thursday Downtown event. The council is among community organizations that receive city tax dollars.

Anticipating cuts in next year’s city budget, the Minot City Council on Tuesday scaled back its support for requests from community organizations that traditionally receive a share of local tax dollars.

The council trimmed property-tax funded requests by 5% from the current funding levels and declined to add the first-time request of $36,000 for Project BEE. The Minot Commission on Aging would receive $146,300, Minot Area Council of the Arts, $38,000 and First District Health Unit $285,000.

The council was looking at more than $1 million in requests, including the Minot Area Chamber EDC, $510,000, and Souris Basin Planning Council, $15,000, which are sales tax-funded.

Council member Paul Pitner moved for the reductions.

“It’s not probably a popular motion. However, I think it’s one that has to be introduced. I think it’s one that has to be considered because, again, we’re going to ask everyone that works in this organization to do the same,” he said. “If our departments have to trim the fat, if we have to remove items that really do lend to the quality of life and public safety within our community, then I think some of our community partners can do the same.”

City Manager Harold Stewart said money allotted to community contributions affects the ability to address rising costs of employees, fuel and other budget areas.

“We are trying to avoid any position cuts, but with the increases in costs and increases in wages and those kinds of pressures on the budget, right now the current budget, as it stands, is $3.4 million in expenditures more than what the projected revenues are,” he said.

The proposed wage increase to remain competitive based on salary surveys accounts for about $1.1 million of those expenditures, he said.

The council voted 3-2 to support Pitner’s motion. Joining Pitner were Mayor Tom Ross and council member Lisa Olson. Voting against were Carrie Evans and Stephan Podrygula. Mark Jantzer was absent.

“We have a role to play in helping our community partners, but we have to be realistic and we have to be honest with ourselves what the cost of running this government is,” Pitner said.

The decision means the amounts will go into the draft budget, but the council will have at least a couple more opportunities to vote again before any community contributions are approved.

Stewart said he will not be recommending funding in 2023 for the Anne Street Bridge replacement and wayfinding signage.

“We just don’t have the money to do that,” he said. He added the budget prioritization sessions held by the council indicated some interest in an incremental increase in taxes and fees to ease the budget difficulties.

“But at the end of the day, we have to deal with the financial reality that we have in front of us and that is the cost of everything is getting higher, and the revenues aren’t growing as quickly as the cost of doing business,” Stewart said.