Serving the High Plains

City may ban certain types of fireworks

Because of tinderbox conditions, Tucumcari City Commission likely will impose restrictions on the sale or use of certain types of fireworks during a special meeting at 1 p.m. June 16.

Most commissioners, however, indicated they weren’t willing to extend those restrictions to the annual Fourth of July fireworks display at the Elks Lodge 1172.

During a work session Thursday, City Manager Mark Martinez said the timeline demands a fireworks proclamation be passed within 20 days of the holiday. He said similar city proclamations during other dry spells banned the sale of missile-type and mortar fireworks due to fire danger.

In 2018, the city banned missile-type rockets, helicopters, aerial spinners and stick-type rockets, also due to drought conditions.

Martinez also noted interim fire chief Casey Mackey told him professional-grade fireworks are in low supply, and there was no guarantee Tucumcari could obtain as many as in previous years.

Commissioner Ralph Moya said for the sake of consistency, the forthcoming fireworks ban also should apply to the Elks display.

Commissioner Mike Cherry pushed back on that idea. He said those fireworks go high enough into the air that fire danger is much less. Cherry said enough members of the Tucumcari Fire and Rescue Department, which helps put on the display, are around to put out any fires that might occur.

Other commissioners noted if the annual show was canceled, it would motivate more residents to shoot off their own fireworks.

Cherry, a former fire chief, said after the work session he could not recall any time the city had banned the annual fireworks show. He also said Tucumcari had experienced worse drought conditions than the current one.

The city remains under a burn ban. The U.S. Drought Monitor map, as of Thursday, showed virtually of all eastern New Mexico in exceptional drought conditions, the worst grade listed.

Also during the work session, commissioners discussed possible solutions to deteriorating streets.

Moya said it was important to address crumbling streets soon.

“When infrastructure deteriorates, we have three times the problem later on,” he said.

Mayor Ruth Ann Litchfield said the Eastern Plains Council of Governments might be able to obtain federal infrastructure money. Moya said state Sen. Pete Campos (D-Las Vegas) has offered assistance.

Martinez said the New Mexico Department of Transportation helps with occasional projects, mostly recently in the Barnes Addition. But the agency tends to choose projects that avoid utility relocation, which can increase the cost to $1 million per block. He said federal Community Development Block Grants are available, but they’re restricted to high-poverty areas.

Martinez reiterated the importance of giving city employees sizable pay raises, noting the street department has just one worker.

“If we don’t have employees, that (street) equipment will just sit there,” he said.

Also, commissioners vocally agreed to have Martinez look for other options for a city attorney after the current one’s contract expires in late June.

Randall Van Vleck of New Mexico Local Government Law irked several commissioners when he apparently overlooked flaws in the city’s cannabis ordinance, including one section that made cannabis sales illegal. The city hired another lawyer from the New Mexico Municipal League to correct it.

Commissioners also discussed Moya’s wish to re-examine the city’s ordinance regarding the dismissal of department heads. Moya said if a department head isn’t doing the job, he or she should be fired.

Martinez said the commission has no oversight over personnel, and such decisions are left to the city manager. He said New Mexico is an at-will state regarding employment, but exceptions exist that ban the firing of employees who report immoral or illegal activity. Firing a department head might make the city vulnerable for a wrongful-termination lawsuit, he said.

Martinez also said contracts for department heads are not recommended because they’re bad for morale.

Comments

During the public comment part of the meeting, David Gonzales asked for action on motorists driving 65 to 70 mph on South Fourth Street.

He was the second resident in as many meetings to complain about speeding on that street.

Martinez discouraged Gonzales’ suggestion of stop signs on the street, saying that would require an expensive engineer’s study. He said he would look into installing more speed-limit signs on the street. The speed limit on city streets generally is 25 mph. Cherry also recommended more police patrols.

Gonzales mentioned semi-tractor trailer drivers are going down Second Street in downtown, looking for the cannabis dispensary there. He said that street had been recently resurfaced, and it wouldn’t take much punishment from the weight of big trucks. Martinez later said steps can be taken to restrict trucks in that area.

During a commissioner comments, Moya passed along a complaint about speeding motorists at Rock Island and Turner streets, noting that children live nearby.

• Annie McCauley, owner of Blanco Creek Boutique and Jackalope Coffee Haus in downtown, said motorists either are driving too fast on Second Street in that area or stopping near the Odeon Theatre, thinking the street’s decorative bricks signify a four-way stop. She said the combination of the two likely would lead to an accident.

• Matt Monahan, who created The Most Famous Artist art collective, said he was organizing a mural-painting festival at several Tucumcari businesses next month. He said several artists have been invited, and he would pay for the cost.

• Lisa Montoya thanked city officials for their discussions about the closing of Tucumcari City Pool and Martinez’s pledge to have it repaired and reopened next year. She recommended that residents reach out to commissioners with concerns instead of complaining on social media. “This is our city, and we have to take responsibility for it,” she said.

Montoya also wondered whether lodgers tax funds could be used to build a new splash pad.

• During his city manager’s report, Martinez said Parkhill engineers said the landfill’s cell is being used up faster than expected, and building a new cell would be costlier than anticipated. He said a firm estimate would be presented soon.

• Martinez and several commissioners praised Tucumcari/Quay County Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Scott Crotzer for organizing the recent Pinata Fiesta.

Action items

• Commissioners approved a capital appropriation project with the state Economic Development Department for the benefit of Tucumcari MainStreet. It involves $400,000 in capital appropriations to finish electrical work, landscaping and irrigation on a second block of Second Street downtown.

• Commissioners approved a loan and subsidy agreement for the 11th Street concrete water tank project. The state loan of $483,607 includes a principal forgiveness of $362,705, leaving $120,902 for the city to pay.

• Commissioners approved an invitation to bid for microbiological testing of the city’s water.

• Commissioners went into a closed executive session for 25 minutes to discuss Martinez’s contract as interim city manager. No action was taken when open session resumed.

 
 
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