Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
CLOVIS — The Clovis city commission will be a group of seven when it meets Thursday, with District 4 Commissioner R.L. “Rube” Render’s resignation effective today. The meeting will determine just how the commission gets back to eight.
The meeting, which will be held virtually, is scheduled for 5:15 p.m. and will be livestreamed on the city of Clovis website and Facebook page and broadcast on Suddenlink Channel 10.
When a vacancy is created in the city commission, the city charter notes, “the remaining members of the Commission shall appoint a registered qualified elector to fill the vacancy within 30 days of the vacancy. Any registered qualified elector appointed to fill a vacancy shall serve until the next regular city election, at which time a registered qualified elector shall be elected to fill the remaining unexpired term, if any.”
The commission will have until Feb. 19 to fill the term with a registered voter who lives in District 4. No unexpired term will remain when the next regular municipal election occurs March 1, 2022, as Render was elected to the seat in 2018.
There is no outlined process for how the commission appoints the replacement, and the agenda item covering the commission vacancy includes no recommendation from City Manager Justin Howalt.
In 2016, Helen Casaus was selected from an applicant pool to fill the District 3 seat vacated by Bobby Sandoval, won election for the term’s final two years in 2018 and ran unopposed last March for her first elected term.
In 2019, the commission accepted a suggestion from Mayor David Lansford that David Robinson serve as a placeholder for the final eight months of Ladona Clayton’s District 1 term, and Leo Lovett won the open election in 2020.
Whoever does succeed Render will have a significant incumbency advantage, with nearly 14 months remaining in the term.
• Review of lodger’s tax fund disbursements as recommended by the advisory board on Jan. 12, totaling $88,315.
The recommendations included $55,000 for the Clovis/Curry County Chamber of Commerce’s branding initiative, up to $15,000 for the 2021 Smoke on the Water fireworks show, $11,000 for billboards celebrating Shad Mayfield’s world tie-down roping title and $7,315 for advertising in the 2021 Livability New Mexico Guide.
• A request to write off $402,669.30 in ambulance service the Clovis Fire Department is no longer legally allowed to pursue.
• A request from the human resources department to move 12 city positions from non-exempt (hourly) to exempt (salary).
