Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
Tucumcari city commissioners on Monday approved a memorandum of understanding with the regional 911 emergency center, including the option of it purchasing a power generator.
The memo states the Tucumcari / Quay Regional Emergency Communications Center will pay monthly rent of $1,349 for space in the Tucumcari Police Department, 35% of the electric bill and 50% of the cost of a generator maintenance contract.
The city will pay 65% of all other bills, including water, gas, telephone, internet and insurance.
City manager Paula Chacon said the 911 center may purchase a new generator for $35,000 that the city could authorize under the MOU, which the commission allowed.
The center also is taking up more space at the police department, including an office for the director that doubles as a break room for employees.
The commission rescheduled its regular meeting to Monday morning from the evening of Sept. 28 because Commissioner Mike Cherry was going to be out of town that day, thus preventing a quorum.
In other business:
— Commissioners approved an amendment for $319,000 in capital outlay funds for street improvements to reflect the state’s new reporting requirements on such projects.
Project manager Ralph Lopez said the mandated reporting system hasn’t taken the city’s recent changes and “doesn’t appear to be working.”
Chacon said after the meeting she has not yet determined what streets to use that money.
— Commissioners instructed sewer superintendent Calvin Henson to request the purchase of a new pickup truck at the commission’s next meeting.
Chacon said the city has budgeted $60,000 for the truck. Henson said it would replace a 2002 Chevrolet pickup with a bad transmission that recently was sold at auction. Henson said the sewer department uses a 2007 Ford truck that will be assigned to another department. He said a crane on the truck strains the vehicle’s axle.
— In her manager’s report, Chacon said advertised openings on the lodgers tax advisory board and cemetery board will close on Oct. 6 and Oct. 13 respectively.
Chacon said the city will close its window on Oct. 18 for requests for proposals for the city tourism marketing position.
She also said the state’s Department of Health recently awarded the city ambulance service $8,893.
— In commissioner comments, Mayor Ralph Moya said he wants to allocate money to clean neglected vacant lots, then file a lien or foreclosure if the owner doesn’t pay the expense.
Moya said the city stopped cleaning weedy lots several years ago during budget problems. Now that the city’s budget has improved, he said it can devote more resources to nuisance properties.
— Moya told Chacon that commissioners came to a consensus to advertise to fill “as soon as possible” an opening for District 4 after Christopher Arias resigned his position earlier this month.
— Commissioners met in closed executive session for 10 minutes to discuss personnel and litigation. No action was taken when open session resumed.