Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Council defers $9.8 million supplemental appropriation for motor graders and data‑center move to Sept. 9
Summary
Councilors deferred a proposed supplemental appropriation that included $8 million to purchase motor graders and $1.8 million to move the city's primary data center; staff argued buying the fleet now would save long‑term lease costs but some councilors wanted the request considered with the full 2026 budget.
Sioux Falls — The City Council voted 6–2 to defer until Sept. 9 a supplemental appropriation that would have transferred $1.8 million to move the primary data center and $8 million to the fleet fund to acquire motor graders the city currently leases. Sean Pritchard, the city’s finance director, told council members the measures are intended as one‑time investments that would produce long‑term savings and improve financial stability. "We were really focusing on one‑time investments that would create cost savings for the City long term," Pritchard said, describing the request as a chance to accelerate a data‑center move and to start a buy‑rather‑than‑lease program for motor graders. Why it came up: Public works uses motor graders for snow removal on arterial and neighborhood streets; Pritchard told the council the city currently operates 44 motor graders (two per 22 snow districts), 34 of which are on leases that…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
