With this summer’s repair work completed on the Third Street Northeast Bridge, attention has turned to future repairs needed to keep the bridge in service without restrictions until a replacement can be constructed, according to the City of Minot.

The Minot City Council on Monday, Oct. 20, approved proposals from the city’s Engineering Department and KLJ.

The city authorized a review of the existing bridge inspection reports to prioritize the repairs needed to keep the bridge serviceable for the next several years. The city has unspent funds for repair work on this year’s project to cover the estimated $26,380 review cost, the Engineering Department stated in a memo to the council.

A second proposal is to design and permit repairs to address significant findings on two of the piers. These would be the same type of repairs completed on two other piers this year. The cost is estimated at $181,055, of which some money is available in the current bridge repair budget. The council approved a budget amendment of $140,000 to complete the project.

Repairs are anticipated to occur in 2026 or 2027.

In other business, the council voted on first reading of an ordinance to increase the size of the Civil Service Commission from three members to five. The change is being made to ensure adequate participation or a quorum when a member or members cannot attend a meeting. Civil service commission members serve terms of five years.

In other action, the council:

– approved acceptance of $96,928 in state Back the Blue grant money. The funds will provide $3,000 retention bonuses for team commanders or leaders for the additional responsibility and liability they take on, with any remaining funds applied to retention bonuses for all sworn officers.

– adopted a bond resolution and approved the loan agreement for a $41 million loan from the state Infrastructure Revolving Loan Fund, which will cover the local cost-share for construction of phases MI-6 and MI-7 of the flood control project.

– accepted a donation of $5,500 from Minot Junior Golf and Ron and Carol Gefre toward Crimes Against Children training and task force development.

– accepted a $10,000 donation from the Holbach Family Irrevocable Trust for improvements at the Children’s Library.

– approved a budget amendment of $450,000 to aid in covering the city’s $485,716 share in a regional project for the storage of carbon dioxide. Food grade carbon dioxide is a pH stabilizer that is required for the production of safe drinking water. The proposed project would construct a shared facility in Bismarck to provide CO2 when regular plant production in Beulah is temporarily halted, avoiding higher costs of purchasing elsewhere or water restrictions due to limited supplies. The project received 60% funding from the state Department of Water Resources, and the remaining amount is being split between participants Bismarck, Minot and Jamestown, based on each city’s allocated storage amount.