City of Minot Buys Building Flood Protection Does Not Need, Plans Demolition

At a Special City Council meeting on May 6th, the Minot City Council voted 7-0 to purchase the building at 100 3rd St. NE and the adjacent parking lot on 1st Ave. NE. These properties most recently housed the Nok Back Tavern.

A project memo from Utilities Director Jason Sorenson provided to City Council states:

(emphasis added) “It is not necessary for the construction of the flood control project, but the project consists of many improvements in order for the property to stay in place, including a new driveway, new approach aprons, upgrading water and sewer lines to service the structure, and some storm sewer piping. The work to keep the property in place was estimated to cost around $268,000. A purchase price of $310,000 was negotiated for the property.”

During the public discussion, Mr. Sorenson added, “It became quite obvious that we’re spending a lot of money to keep this property in place, and the property owner actually approached us about acquiring it. So we started comparing what an acquisition would cost versus what it would cost to put in the improvements to keep it there. It’s about $280,000 in improvements to keep it in place versus $310,000 to buy it. So, it makes a lot of sense. We don’t have to put in a bunch of infrastructure that we have to maintain for many years. So, we can just not build any of that infrastructure and, kind of, just clear this corner out.”

City Manager Harold Stewart added, “In the future, we’re also going to have a project regarding the alteration of the bridge that would affect this property. So, the numbers you gave on the $280,000 were just regarding flood control, not the potential future challenges and costs. Purchasing this at their request avoids both of those problems.”

While there was no mention of the future bridge project in the memo provided to the Council on May 6th, this past Monday’s City Council meeting included approval of the 2025-2029 Capital Improvement Plan, which includes a 3rd Street NE Bridge Rehabilitation project estimated at $2,350,000. The CIP further states, “The extent and timing of the improvements is not exactly known, but a detailed engineering analysis must be completed soon with construction soon after. 3rd Street south of the bridge is slated for reconstruction in 2027, so an opportunity exists to perform the bridge work while the rest of 3rd Street is closed.”

Regarding clarified intentions for the building, the City’s Public Information Officer, Jennifer Kleen, shared, “the intent is to demolish the Nok Back. Quotes will be collected soon, with an estimate between $30,000 and $50,000.” 

According to the City of Minot’s Assessor’s property record, the Nok Back Tavern building was built in 1910. In addition to housing first-floor commercial space, the second floor also has three efficiency housing units. The acquired properties generate approximately $4,200 annually in property taxes. The staff memo provided to the City Council prior to their decision does not include these details or the estimated cost of demolition.

A follow-up article on the existing utility infrastructure in the area will be part of future coverage on this acquisition. The memo provided by Mr. Sorenson to City Council is also included below.