Commissioner says he won't wear mask

CLOVIS — The Curry County Commission was pretty much in consensus that the new adult detention center was money well spent and a step in the right direction.

As far as wearing face coverings during the COVID-19 pandemic, the debate was a little more contentious.

The commission discussed both items during commissioner reports near the conclusion of its Tuesday meeting, held virtually due to limitations on public gatherings.

The discussion of face coverings came up with Commissioner Seth Martin noting his thanks to area businesses for respecting his personal choices and not requiring he wear a face covering in their businesses.

Face coverings are required in New Mexico under a public health order issued last week that carries penalties of $100 for businesses and individuals. The New Mexico State Police is the only agency tasked with enforcement, and the department investigates if a call is received.

“I have yet to wear a mask, and I have no intention of wearing a mask,” Martin said. “If you’re fearful of it, I encourage you to wear your mask to protect yourself from me because I’m not going to protect you from myself. ... I do believe this is a personal choice, and I hope people do what they are comfortable with and stay healthy.”

Martin said he didn’t believe it was a political issue, noting both New Mexico and Texas require face coverings and their governors are in different political parties. Martin said he doesn’t plan to follow mask orders in Texas, either.

Chairman Ben McDaniel said he had no issue with face coverings, but chose not to get into an argument.

Commissioner Bobby Sandoval chose otherwise. He said regarding the pandemic, there are three different groups — people who take the pandemic seriously, politicians who are driven by politics above all and people who don’t give a damn.

Sandoval told commissioners his daughter works in healthcare, and puts on several layers of personal protective equipment every day.

“She wears her mask for 12 hours a day ... she keeps it on until she takes it off in the evening,” Sandoval said. “She doesn’t complain, why should we?

“Maybe one day you’ll get to meet her. She’ll take good care of you, maybe put you on a ventilator and console family members when the virus kills you.

“We’re community leaders,” Sandoval continued. “We need to take a different approach. We’re not in a battle with the virus, we’re in a battle with each other. The virus don’t care whether you’re a Democrat or a Republican or who you vote for, and the virus is winning.”

Regarding the June 24 jail tour, the four commissioners who took the tour — McDaniel, Sandoval, Chet Spear and Robert Thornton — generally praised the work and Administrator Mark Gallegos.

The $12.8 million renovation adds a 48-bed housing unit, two recreation yards and a 28,860 square foot medical unit. The renovated area houses female inmates, which commissioners said was preferable to transporting them across an alley to the former women’s detention area.

“I’m a ‘show me’ kind of guy,” Spear said. “We’ve seen what they’ve done. Now it’s up to Mark to show us it can be effective. It’s going to be money well spent. We know if we lose one lawsuit due to medical issues, it could cost us millions of dollars.”

McDaniel said the facility was impressive, but noted the current staff has played the biggest role in improved operations.

“The medical area is going to be very helpful, I think, for everything they have to do there,” Thornton said. “They’re in a closet right now. It’s also going to be nice to have the (female) population inside the building instead of the alleyway.”

In other business during the Tuesday meeting:

• The commission approved submission of a Community Development Block Grant application for Curry Road 11 improvements.

If awarded, the $650,242 job would cover three miles of drainage, caliche, chip seal, signage and striping between Curry Road N and NM 311. Community Services Administrator Nikki Lovett said the work will improve a route from Cannon Air Force Base to Plains Regional Medical Center and possibly alleviate traffic on U.S. 60/84.

Spear said the county tried to apply for the same work last year, and remembered state officials spoke against doing the project in one-mile phases. He said he was hopeful they remembered that conversation.

The job includes an $18,939 administrative fee to the Eastern Plains Council of Governments.

• After some back-and-forth, the commission approved retaining EPCOG services for $8,415 in the 2020-21 year.

Executive Director Sandy Chancey noted the council has helped the county with the Ute Water Commission, provided assistance with transportation planning and capital outlay requests and aided with the state department of transportation’s new funding program.

Spear asked if EPCOG could handle the same workload with Raymond Mondragon planning to go part-time. Chancey said that wouldn’t take place until January, and the council is planning to hire additional staff before then.

Martin moved to table the request, as he wanted to know if the county was only being charged for its unincorporated population. He noted all of the cities in the county have their own agreements with EPCOG and didn’t want the county paying a second time for the same citizens.

Chancey said she’d have to do some research, but noted fees are population-based and was inclined to believe only unincorporated portions were considered because the county pays less than the city of Clovis.

County Attorney Steve Doerr raised a concern about the just-approved block grant application, and Chancey noted CDBG services are only offered to EPCOG members.

Based on the block grant process and the information Chancey provided, Martin withdrew his motion to table and the original request was approved 5-0.

• County Manager Lance Pyle noted the county is at 49.2% completion on the U.S. Census, behind the state average of 51.2%. Response rates are 53.4% for Clovis, 44.1% for Grady, 40.1% for Texico and 27.9% for Melrose. The response deadline is Oct. 31. McDaniel noted he filled out his form online, and it took him less than two minutes.

• Martin asked if the county could do anything regarding BNSF Railways getting ready to increase train speeds at crossings in the county, and feared county liability for the increased risk of accidents. Doerr said he would look into it, but warned Martin state laws are generally favorable to railroads.

• Spear noted in the meeting that Events Center and Fairgrounds Manager Kadee Hande recently left the position, and wanted to point out on the record he regrets losing her and appreciated how she handled all she did during unpredictable pandemic circumstances.

• The commission will meet two more times this month — a regular meeting 9 a.m. July 21 and a special meeting 9 a.m. July 28 primarily for approval of the 2020-21 county budget.