Officials approve resolution opposing rule change

Clovis City Commissioners approved a resolution during their Thursday meeting opposing an addition to the state's community development council rules that officials say could put future grant monies in jeopardy.

Clovis Community Development Director Claire Burroughes said the Community Development Council is proposing an amendment to its rules to authorize the council to loan money to private entities using Community Development Block Grant money as a guarantee.

Communities with populations of less than 50,000 people compete for these grants to fund infrastructure projects such as road repairs and improvements. The grant is provided by the Housing and Urban Development agency, which issues states a set amount of money each year, she said.

Burroughes said the amount the agency issues has decreased. She said the state usually receives about $14 million, last year it received $8 million. Over the past five years, the Clovis has received $1.5 million in grant funding from the council.

If an entity defaults on a loan, the proposal would allow the council to repay the loan. Burroughes said the council already has five loan applications totaling $32 million.

Burroughes said the communities including Texico, Portales, Santa Rosa and the New Mexico Municipal League have passed similar resolutions. The resolutions will be presented to the council in Aug. 10 in hopes to defeat the proposal.

"It's an extremely competitive process and with the funding depleting that we're receiving to add this as an extra consideration makes it much more difficult to fund infrastructure projects," she said.

Commissioners also approved an addition of $719,800 to the city?s projected expenditure budget of $52.89 million, which it passed in its last meeting.

The additions include new equipment for the fire department, the civic center, the municipal airport and the police department.

The expenditure budget includes projects funded by grants and ongoing projects, according to City Manager Joe Thomas.

In other business, commissioners:

• Heard a report from EPCOR District Manager Brian Daly about July water use. The city's water provider was averaging 75 percent capacity a day pumping an average of 8.5 million gallons of water a day.

He said the company's wells can produce 10 million gallons of water a day, which is down from last year's capacity at 11.3 million gallons of water.

• Heard a report for Eastern New Mexico Water Authority Chairperson Gayla Brumfield on a Senate hearing on a rural water bill that would fund water projects in six states including the Ute Water Project.

Brumfield said the hearing went favorably for the water projects and a version of the bill in the House of Representatives is being developed.

"This is huge," she said. "This (bill) funds the Ute Water Project over the next 20 years."

• Approved a request to allow Boy Scout Troop 226 to use Ned Houk Park and waive fees. Fees are minimal, according to city parks director Bill Bizzell and only pertain to shelter fees.
• Approved a request for a budget change to purchase a sign for the Hillcrest Splash Park. The sign will cost $1,400 from the $60,000 undesignated Parks Bond funding.
• Approved a request for a street closure from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday on Duckworth Street.
• Approved a request for the Desert Cruisers car club to host its annual car show at Hillcrest Park and waive fees for park rental, which costs $150 a day, according to Burroughes.
• Approved a request for a budget change for drainage improvements to the alley in the Moon Subdivision. The project would cost about $9,500 and will be taken from the city?s drainage fund.
• Approved an easement request regarding a lot between Apex Collision Center and Taco Villa west of Prince Street.

The lot was previously stipulated to only be used for overflow parking, but restaurant drive-thru improvements incorporated parts of the lot.

Commissioners approved the request in a 4-3 vote.

Chad Lydick of Lydick Engineers and Surveyors, which originally submitted the plans for the property, said additions for a drive-thru were made after the commissioners approved the original plan. But it appeared the revised plans were not submitted to the city. He said the oversight was a miscommunication and developers have paid the necessary fees and permits and had a new public hearing regarding the revised plans to clear up the issue.

Commissioner Len Vohs, who voted in favor of the request, said he was concerned that developers were trying to get forgiveness after the fact.

"I don't want this situation to happen again," he said.

• Heard a report from Clovis Municipal Airport director Gene Bieker about priorities listed by the Civil Aviation Board for the airport, which included establishing Transportation Security Administration screenings, acquiring a carrier with flights to the east and acquiring an air service with two engine pressurized aircraft.

These priorities were listed in the wake of Great Lake Aviation's request to terminate its service.