Sept 27 Min

CITY OF TUCUMCARI

MINUTES
SEPTEMBER 27, 2007

The Tucumcari City Commission met for their regular meeting on Thursday, September 27, 2007, at 6:00 p.m. in the City Commission Chambers. Members present constituting a quorum were and Jim Witcher, Christopher Maestas, Jim Lafferty, and Antonio Apodaca.

City staff members present were John R. Sutherland, Jr., City Manager; Jeannette Maddaford, City Clerk/Assistant Finance Director; Clara Rey, Administrative Assistant; Doug Powers, Community Development Director; Mike Cherry, Fire Chief and Acting Public Safety Officer; and Suzann Mullenix, Senior Citizens Director.

Mayor Protem Antonio Apodaca called the meeting to order and Lendy Borden, Minister of the Abundant Life Church gave the invocation. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited by the group.

Consideration of Additions/ Deletions

None

Approval of Minutes

A motion was made by Commissioner Witcher and seconded by Commissioner Maestas to approve the minutes of the September 13, 2007 regular Commission meeting. Roll Call:

Lafferty Apodaca Witcher Maestas

Yes Yes Yes Yes

A motion was made by Commissioner Maestas and seconded by Commissioner Lafferty to approve the September 20, 2007 special Commission meeting minutes. Roll Call:

Apodaca Witcher Maestas Lafferty

Yes Yes Yes Yes

Approval of Vouchers

A motion was made by Commissioner Witcher and seconded by Commissioner Maestas to approve the vouchers. Roll Call:

Apodaca Witcher Maestas Lafferty

Yes Yes Yes Yes

Items from Citizens

Ruth Nelson, owner of the Pajarito Interiors, responded to a report given by the City Code Enforcement Officer at the September 13, 2007 Commission meeting. Based on documents requested and received from the City through the Inspection of Public Records Act, Nelson questioned why the Code Enforcement Officer read from a chronological list of actions since the fire at the Sands Dorsey building compiled by Economic Development Commission Secretary Danielle Gallegos rather than the Code Enforcement Officer. She quoted that Ms. Gallegos had been handling the issue for Tucumcari Main Street program until there was a lawsuit and had to stop. Nelson reported that Ms. Gallegos was never authorized by the MainStreet directors to take any action or seek any assistance for Sands Dorsey. She also inquired why the Code Enforcement Officer did not issue the citation until June 21, which was 13 days after the fire. Also she did not agree with the statement that the building owner was doing his best to comply with the engineers’ recommendations as a defense in complying with the City Code. In addition, she stated that the recommendations from the historic engineer were very specific and identified the dangers. The first item in the recommendation was to consult with a structural engineer to develop a plan to make the building secure as per the Code Enforcement report, but Nelson reported there was no evidence of a plan being developed nor implemented. She reported that the owner of the building has been performing some work without a permit with welding taking place September 13 on the northwest corner of the building which caused sparks to fly on Pajarito Interiors’ roof. She pointed out that if the ordinance had been enforced in May and June, the fire probably would not have happened. She also stated that the Code Enforcement Officer stated that the owner had contacted an engineer and contractor, but they didn’t show up. She noted that building owner has had over 90 days to hire a contractor. She reported she had examined the ordinances and does not find anywhere an extension could be obtained for dangerous buildings. She pointed out that a truck was illegally parked for at least 50 days until a citation was issued. Also there was no record of an official authorization to close the alley, street, or sidewalks at this building. She noted that the ordinance requires all entrances and windows to be boarded up, not just the ones damaged by fire. She stated that she did not find whether the City developed a safety plan or if the City just agreed with the action the owner took. She noted that the fire has affected their business and that of the surrounding businesses and it seems that the problem will drag on forever. She asked that the City enforce the city’s regulations.

Jerry Mares reported that they are trying to do angle parking on Aber Street, on the south side of the Tucumcari Lumber Company. He stated that he did not feel he was being treated fairly by the City. He noted that he had been asked to do a traffic study and this is not fair as he has done other projects with angle parking and they have not had to do a traffic study. It was noted that this topic would be heard later in the meeting as it is on the agenda.

Bob Hengstenberg, owner of the Sands Dorsey building, stated that he came with the spirit of cooperation and communication to work with the City. He stated a contractor came yesterday who is interested in doing the project and is currently contacting the structural engineer. He explained that his other contractors kept putting him off. He introduced his architect, Bennett Streham. Bennett Streham stated that he was with Streham and Associates of North Carolina, South Carolina, and New Mexico and his office is located at 321 East Ninth Street in Cimarron, New Mexico. He reviewed the building for Mr. Hengstenberg and came to the conclusion that Sands Dorsey is a very restorable building comparing it to the Buffalo Nickel, a building in Cimarron that had a portion destroyed by a tornado, which he restored. He implored the Commission to save the history and work with Mr. Hengstenberg, so he can restore a piece of Tucumcari’s history. He said that he was helping Mr. Hengstenberg pro bono because he believes in the building. Next Mr. Hengstenberg’s Attorney, George Abelo of Santa Fe and Pecos stated that Mr. Hengstenberg came to Tucumcari with dreams of revitalizing the downtown area. He stated that he did not start any fire and had no motive to start a fire, as the building was not insured. He reported, despite Hengstenberg’s best efforts, and having gone through two contractors that did not show up, he now has a contractor on board. He stated that the building is not in danger of falling down, but needs to be shored up. He explained that small towns are drying up and Mr. Hengstenberg wants to use his time and talents to restore this building. He asked the City to give the time needed to get this done. He stated that the building was not going to fall down, but there may be some things that need to be addressed which Mr. Hengstenberg is willing to do. He did not think it was necessary to file a lawsuit because conflicts that can be resolved should be settled at the lowest level. Also since they are being sued, the building will be an exhibit in the lawsuit. He stated that they were present to ask for a compromise.

Ordinances and Resolutions

RESOLUTION 2007-32 - A RESOLUTION BY THE CITY COMMISSION, THE GOVERNING BODY OF THE CITY OF TUCUMCARI, NEW MEXICO ACCEPTS PARTICIPATION IN THE 2007-2008 COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT PROGRAM PROJECT SP-4-08(913) AND ASSURES THAT SUFFICIENT LOCAL MATCHING FUNDS ARE AVAILABLE. Doug Powers reported the Resolution goes with the Cooperative Agreement to do three side streets between Adams and First Street. The three side streets will be determined by the quantities involved. Currently Aber and High Streets are falling into top priority. A motion was made by Commissioner Witcher and seconded by Commissioner Maestas to adopt Resolution 2007-32. Roll Call:

Witcher Maestas Lafferty Apodaca Yes Yes Yes Yes

RESOLUTION 2007-33 A RESOLUTION DETERMINING THAT CERTAIN STRUCTURES ARE RUINED, DAMAGED, AND DILAPIDATED WITHIN CITY LIMITS OF TUCUMCARI, NEW MEXICO SO AS TO BE A MENACE TO THE PUBLIC HEALTH, SAFETY, AND WELFARE OF THE MUNICIPALITY. City Manager Sutherland reported that the resolution was drafted in response to the condition of the Sands Dorsey building. The developments of the building have been followed over the past 90 days. In accordance to the City’s Ordinance, if the owner does not abate the situation within the 90 days, then it becomes the City’s responsibility to step in and take action, the same action the owner would take. Unfortunately, this is a non-budgeted expenditure, the best estimate would be $20,000 to proceed with this. He asked for the guidance of the Commissioners. Mayor Protem asked about an extension and Mr. Sutherland explained that an extension could have been requested within ten days after notice. He stated that in some cases in the past, it has been the desire of the Commissioners to allow some additional time. The Code Enforcement Officer came to the last meeting so the Commissioners could understand what had transpired so far to give the opportunity to understand an extension of time might be in order. He stated the Commissioners had options and could table the resolution and give the owner additional time to complete the work or the resolution could be adopted and direct the staff to abate the safety concerns. Commissioner Witcher stated that he was concerned with safety and it should be addressed tonight. Mayor Protem Apodaca asked why an extension was not requested in the first ten days. Mr. Hengstenberg said he thought it was only an application for an appeal and that he sent a letter for an extension within the 90 days. He said he is still working on the building, but could have the structural engineer do a re-evaluation of the building. He noted that the loose bricks have been removed from the south side, east side alleyway, and there were no loose bricks on the side of the “interior design” building. He stated two weeks ago last Thursday, they had placed a brace on the northwest corner of the building to reinforced that corner of the building when a stop work order was received and told they needed a building permit but the contractor stated that he did not believe they needed a building permit for shoring. Commissioner Lafferty asked if the structural engineer was the person the MainStreet group asked to come to Tucumcari and not a contracted firm. Mr. Hengstenberg agreed and stated that his contractor was Doug Reems, but he had also talked to everyone in the area to look at the shoring details and the work that needed to occur. Contractor Keith Bowen visited the site yesterday to look at the work and will be contacting Sonya Cooper. He will contract with him as soon as he receives a bid. Mayor Protem asked if he had documentation of where he had tried to contact the contractors and their response. He said he had contacted them by phone and then proceeded to read the list from his notebook. Commissioner Maestas said that the Commissioners should abide by the City’s ordinance or the Commissioners could be individually liable for anything that happened to that building. Mayor Protem asked if the Ordinance allowed for an extension and Mr. Sutherland responded that the Ordinance allows for an appeal within the first tens after the notice is delivered at which time a request for an extension of time could be requested. Commissioner Lafferty noted that the ordinances are not adopted with the idea that the Commissioners should pick and choose. They are adopted as a set of standards. Based on the letter from the City’s attorney, the Commissioners should follow the requirements of the ordinance. He noted that the Resolution states that the City will start the abatement process and does not specifically state what the process is, nor the timeframe. He stated that the process should be expedited for the adjacent property owners, as it is a safety issue and a traffic flow issue. A motion was made by Commissioner Lafferty and seconded by Commissioner Maestas to approve Resolution 2007-33. Roll call:

Witcher Maestas Lafferty Apodaca Yes Yes Yes Yes

City Manager’s Report

City Manager John R. Sutherland, Jr. asked Fire Chief Mike Cherry to bring the Commissioners up to date on the Fire and EMS August activities. He reported there had been 6 fires, 3 rescue & emergency medial service incidents, 1 service call, 1 good intent call, and 1 false alarm/false call. The ambulance had 118 runs for August which consisted of: 911 Emergencies-75; Funeral Home-4; Intercepts-4; Transfers-20; Vehicle Accidents-10; No Patient-4; and Standby, Public Assist-1. Chief Cherry responded to Mayor Protem’s question on the cost of a false alarm and stated it costs from $300 to $500 per call to run the equipment and pay personnel a stipend.

Cherry was recognized for being elected to be Vice President of the Fire Chief Board of Directors.

Mr. Sutherland reviewed some of his activities since the last meeting. He reported that he had meetings with workers compensation insurance representatives to discuss risk exposures for the City and ways to mitigate the exposures as well as a meeting with general liability insurance agents. On September 26 he attended the New Mexico First Town Hall meeting in Las Vegas where water issues and potential environmental changes affecting New Mexico’s water supply were discussed. On September 27 he attended the Northeastern Regional Project Organization in Cimarron with Doug Powers. Staff members met on September 27 with representatives from Qwest for a demonstration of a new state of the art telephone system. By utilizing the Library’s E-rate, the City should be able to acquire a new system for minimal cost. Sutherland stated that he had committed some time ago to changing both the voice and the data system. Also he participated in police interviews a week ago. In addition, he met with Dr. Barry and Dr. Gallatin of Mesalands Community College about the Memorandum of Understanding where the two entities could trade services effectively. On of the opportunity is to provide management training to department heads. Dan Lopez will begin his duties as Police Consultant on Monday, October 1, 2007. There will be no more tree limbs accepted at the Waste Water Treatment Facility, which has been advertised to the public. The tree limbs will be accepted at the old landfill. Recently Sutherland and Representative Brian Moore had a meeting to discuss the City’s legislative requests and other issues. While in Cimarron, Sutherland visited with Senator Hardin on the same issues.

Bids and Contracts

Doug Powers, Community Development Director, introduced a Grant Agreement with the Department of Finance and Administration for $1,007,561.98. He reported that the City had received $1,300,000 in 2005 for Capital Outlay to plan, design, construct improvements to the rail spur, including rail sidings and industrial areas in Tucumcari in Quay County. He stated this new agreement was changing the description to read plan, design, construct, acquire, upgrade, equip and furnish capital improvements, including utilities infrastructure, at the industrial park and vicinity in Tucumcari. He stated that this Grant Agreement was providing a broader range and has extended the expiration date to June 30, 2011. Commissioner Lafferty noted that legislative priorities had been set at the work session and asked if a ten-inch water line from the metro park to the Industrial Park could qualify for funding through this grant. Powers stated that this could be submitted for review. A motion was made by Commissioner Witcher and seconded by Commissioner Lafferty to approve the Grant Agreement with the Department of Finance and Administration, Local Government Division for $1,007,561.98. Roll Call:

Maestas Lafferty Apodaca Witcher

Yes Yes Yes Yes

Old Business

Mayor Protem Apodaca acknowledged the Library Board minutes of August 21, 2007, the Tucumcari Museum Board minutes of July 2, 2007, and the Tucumcari Senior Citizens’ Board minutes of June 18, 2007.

New Business

Next on the agenda was the Daniel Construction/Tucumcari Lumber Co.’s request for angle parking. City Manager Sutherland reported that he had posed the question to the City’s Attorney whether the City would pick up any added liability if the City does not follow the City’s ordinance, which is found in the Uniform Traffic Code that lays out the requirements for approving an angle parking request. Commissioner Lafferty gave background on the process Daniel Mares had encountered when an application was made to the Zoning staff, investigated, referred to the Planning and Zoning Board, Public Hearing conducted with no public or staff speaking against the application, and then the Planning and Zoning Board referred the application without a recommendation to the City Commission to make a decision due to prior inconsistencies in approving angle parking. Later the City Manager found the Uniform Traffic Code which stated that the City Manager would make the determination based on 12-6-6.13 which states that “any designation of angle parking shall be made on the basis of engineering and traffic study and investigation”. So a letter was sent to the applicant saying that he would make the decision based on the submission of the documents per ordinance. Commissioner Lafferty stated that since the City of Tucumcari has no guidelines or rules and regulations for angle parking how would the traffic study/engineering meet Tucumcari’s requirements. Therefore, Lafferty stated that the City has an obligation to develop a set of standards, so when an applicant applies for angle parking they know the requirements and apply the standards consistently. He stated he was in hopes an engineering and traffic study would be part of a grant that was applied for through the Main Street Project. City Manager Sutherland stated that he hated for the angle parking to go forward without the reports mentioned in the Ordinance. A motion was made by Commissioner Maestas and seconded by Commissioner Witcher to approve Daniel Mares’ request for angle parking on the south side of Tucumcari Lumber Co. and place a moratorium on all future angle parking requests until correct city policy on angle parking is adopted. Roll call:

Lafferty Apodaca Witcher Maestas Yes Yes Yes Yes

A motion was made by Commissioner Maestas and reluctantly seconded by Commissioner Witcher to accept the letter of resignation from Mayor Mary Mayfield. Roll Call:

Apodaca Witcher Maestas Lafferty

Yes Yes Yes Yes

Mayor Protem Apodaca thanked Mayor Mayfield for her commitment and positive ideas to bring solutions for the betterment of the City and its citizens.

Commissioner Lafferty noted that the statute allows for either an appointment or special election to name a replacement following a resignation. Since it costs for an election and it is only six months until the next election, it was recommended that a qualified, registered voter from City District 4 be appointed. A motion was made by Commissioner Lafferty and seconded by Commissioner Witcher to appoint Robert Lumpkin to fill Mary Mayfield’s position immediately. Commissioner Maestas expressed concern that other people should be allowed to express an interest in the position. Commissioner Witcher noted that Mr. Lumpkin has expressed a willingness to serve and the decision process could be drug out for six months and still not have a Commissioner in place. It was noted the importance of having representation from District 4 by a qualified person. Commissioner Lafferty withdrew his motion. A motion was made by Commissioner Witcher and seconded by Commissioner Maestas to give the citizens ten days to submit letters of interest for the City Commission District 4 position. Roll Call:

Witcher Maestas Lafferty Apodaca

Yes Yes No Yes

The next item of business was the appointment of three Senior Citizen Advisory Board members. A motion was made by Commissioner Lafferty and seconded by Commission Witcher to appoint Betty Boatman. Roll Call:

Witcher Maestas Lafferty Apodaca

Yes Yes Yes Yes

A motion was made by Commissioner Witcher and seconded by Commissioner Maestas to appoint Bea Laredo and Merle Bivens to the Senior Citizen Advisory Board. Roll Call:

Maestas Lafferty Apodaca Witcher

Yes Yes Yes Yes

Items from Commissioners

Commissioner Lafferty reported he attended an Interstate Stream Commission Ute Lake Advisory Board meeting in Tucumcari on September 26. He stated that the department head training being discussed with Mesalands Community College is a plus and encouraged it. He apologized to the City Manager, but believes the Board made the right decision on the angle parking and Sands Dorsey agenda items. In looking at the Commission’s reasoning, he stated that the Commissioners were hypocritical as Mr. Sutherland’s role in the angle parking was spelled out by ordinance and the Commissioners took that role away from him, but did not hesitate to stand firm on the other topic that was spelled out by ordinance. He noted that the Commissioners should take that home and think about it. Next he said good-bye to Mary Mayfield, even though she was not present. He acknowledged that she has been an asset to the Commission in her ability to meet the public. Also he appreciated Mr. Apodaca stepping up as Mayor Protem and noted that the Commission needs to decide whether to reorganize now or when the new commissioner is appointed. Concerning the Legislative proposals discussed during the work session, Commissioner Lafferty reported from his attendance at the last Infrastructure Conference that it was stressed that it needed to be submitted early in the process. Mr. Sutherland noted that it would happen within days. In the September 20 work session, a rough draft of the goals for the City Manager were discussed. As a Commission, he requested that a more finalized draft be prepared and then find an avenue as a Commission to address these goals and objectives to the entire city staff as some requirements that are being placed on the City Manager will affect all the employees. And in order to have a team buy in, he suggested having a staff meeting during work hours where department heads would have an opportunity to introduce their employees and the Commissioners would have an opportunity to introduce the goals and objectives plan. Since the goal and objective plan is not individual to the City Manager, but are things the Commission wants the Manager to accomplish with the City, he thought this would help in the achievement of them. In addition, he thought the goals should be publicized to the community as well.

Commissioner Witcher said good-bye to Mary and thanked her for everything she has done. Also he noted that she sat on several committees, so Witcher volunteered to attend those meetings in her place until the Commission is reorganized. In the interim time he thought it would be redundant to reorganize the Commission tonight and then again in two weeks, so suggested that it be left as it is until the new Commissioner is named.

Commissioner Maestas reported that the City Commission is suppose to have a police officer or Police Chief present for their meetings. Fire Chief Cherry said that he would take care of that, but an officer had not been present due to the fact the department was understaffed.

Mayor Protem Apodaca asked that a plaque be ordered for Mayor Mayfield to recognize her contributions for the betterment of the community. He asked that she be called to City Hall, so the plaque can be presented to her.

Adjournment

There being no further business, a motion to adjourn was made by Commissioner Witcher and seconded by Commissioner Maestas. Time noted 7:30 p.m. Roll Call:

Witcher Maestas Lafferty Apodaca

Yes Yes Yes Yes

______________________________
Antonio Apodaca, Mayor

ATTEST:

____________________________

Jeannette Maddaford, City Clerk