Houser named MainStreet director

link Gail Houser

QCS Staff

Gail Houser is a believer in self-sufficiency, but he thinks that with the combined effort of a dedicated group of business leaders, Tucumcari can get back on its feet.

Houser, who lives near Las Vegas, has been named the new director of the Tucumcari MainStreet program, replacing Mark Lake, who retired from the position in April. Houser started the job on Monday, Aug. 11 (CONFIRM)

Houser’s home in Las Vegas is an “off-grid” ranch house, which means the home relies on energy resources independent of utility systems, preferring to use resources like solar and wind energy, as well as conservation techniques, for self-sufficiency.

He has demonstrated an ability to get people to work together, however, as a recruiter for the National Tooling and Machining Association and as an independent businessman and a manager for larger machine and tooling companies. He retired from that business and moved to Las Vegas about seven years ago, he said.

He said he was looking for another challenge when the Tucumcari MainStreet opportunity caught his eye.

“I talked to a lot of people,” he said, “and I have been overwhelmingly impressed with everybody’s willingness to make the downtown sector more economically viable,” he said.

The city, he said, needs MainStreet to help it flourish and he looks forward to working with the state’s MainStreet organization and the New Mexico Economic Development Department to help the downtown area improve.

GET STATEMENT FROM DAVID HALE AND MARK.