Scott Burlingame

Minot businesses that build or remodel with the help of city money must install automatic doors, according to an ordinance given final approval by the Minot City Council Monday.

“This is, obviously, a step toward accessibility and improving accessibility here in our city,” council member Scott Burlingame said. “Automatic doors go above and beyond even the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act to make our city a little bit more accessible.”

He added that power doors are an improvement, but impediments such as lack of elevators remain hurdles for people with mobility impairments.

“Let’s find ways to make our buildings accessible, understanding the fact that is an extraordinarily expensive step for small businesses to make. But if we can leverage economic development funds to do that, I would like to see that done,” Burlingame said.

The ordinance provides that every building open to public use and that has received public funds from the city for building improvements or to construct a new building shall have an automatic door for at least one main entrance to the building. If the immediate interior of the building is only accessible through a vestibule, this requirement requires the installation of as many automatic doors as are necessary to allow passage through the vestibule.

The requirement excludes entities receiving unforgivable loans through the city.