Minot is the North Dakota League of Cities’ 2018 City of the Year.

The award, given in a category for larger cities in the state, was announced at the NDLC’s annual conference this past weekend in Grand Forks.

“It truly is an honor to receive this recognition from the North Dakota League of Cities,” Minot Mayor Shaun Sipma said in a prepared statement. “We certainly thank them for this award and for recognizing some of our major past achievements, but we also know our great city has much work ahead as we continue to move forward in creating a more resilient community.”

Several accomplishments were key to Minot earning the recognition, according to NDLC Executive Director Blake Crosby, who presented the award. Those projects include:

– Completion of the three-year, $29 million downtown Minot infrastructure project that helped revitalize downtown and prepare it for future development.

– Ongoing work on the Northwest Area Water Supply project to provide a source of reliable drinking water for Minot and other cities in the region.

– The ongoing Mouse River Enhanced Flood Protection project that will ultimately protect the entire basin from future flooding.

– Completion of a flood wall to protect the Minot Water Treatment Plant from future flooding.

– The introduction of automated garbage collection.

The downtown infrastructure improvement project was a major accomplishment in providing an incentive for developers and businesses to consider downtown, said Roger Reich, president of the Downtown Business & Professional Association.

“That project will probably keep us going for another 100 years. It was a trying time,” he said of the three years of construction, “but the city did a great job of trying to keep ahead of it and keep business owners informed on what was happening and trying to keep everything on track. In the end, I think it’s a great deal.”

John MacMartin, president of the Minot Area Chamber of Commerce, said it can be difficult in the day-to-day of living and working in Minot to gain the broader perspective that enables a community to see how far it’s actually come. The NDLC award shows that other cities are seeing positive things happening when they look at Minot, he said.

“Awards that you get from your peers are some of the best,” he said. “To be recognized as City of the Year by our peers – meaning the cities in the state of North Dakota – is an extreme compliment.”

“Minot has been doing so many great things for years, and it’s really an honor that the NDLC has recognized us as a major municipal leader,” City Manager Tom Barry said in a news release from the city. “Bringing focus to our accomplishments has been one of my major goals since I started with the city less than two years ago. Expect more in the coming years.”

“Minot exemplifies the North Dakota spirit we are all so proud of,” Crosby said in the release. “When something bad happens, we don’t wallow in self-pity. We get up, dust ourselves off, check for scrapes and bruises, and get to work. The Magic City is alive and well.”

The City of the Year honor was established in 1984 to recognize North Dakota cities for the quality, number and progressiveness of activities undertaken in the community. This is the first time Minot has won the award.