Mayor volunteers to be city's representative on land trust board

CLOVIS — Mayor Mike Morris volunteered to be the city’s potential representative on a steering committee for a land trust, and received a unanimous vote from the Clovis city commission during an hourlong meeting Thursday night.

The land trust is intended to help local entities navigate through a Readiness and Environmental Protection Initiative effort at Cannon Air Force Base. The REPI program, offered by the Department of Defense, would in this case use federal dollars to incentivize landowners to convert water rights for irrigation farming to municipal water rights, creating less demand on the Ogallala Aquifer.

The five-member committee approved by the county commission on Tuesday will include two county commissioners, a Central Curry Soil and Water Conservation District representative and two at-large representatives. County commissioners encouraged the city to put forth a selection, but did advise the nomination wouldn’t get automatic approval.

In other business during the Thursday meeting:

• Keaton Aucutt gave commissioners an update on irrigation system work at the Colonial Park Golf Course. He said the course is looking at aerification for its back nine holds later this month, and upon completion the front nine would receive aerification.

Planning aerification in middle of march for back nine. Not going to aerify front nine until back nine is open up.

• Police Chief Doug Ford introduced Roy Rice as the department’s deputy chief of police. Rice, who has more than 40 years experience in law enforcement, joined the department 18 months ago as a community resource officer.

• Morris said a bill that would allow Clovis and other municipalities of 35,000 or more to use economic development dollars for retail business, passed the Senate on a 36-4 vote and should come before the House this week.

• New District 4 Commissioner Megan Palla was welcomed aboard, and took three of predecessor R.L. “Rube” Render’s five lower board positions.

Morris said he was interested in serving on the civil aviation board and the senior services committee. Palla said she could take the local emergency planning committee, insurance committee and parks, recreation and beautification committee.

• Assistant City Manager Claire Burroughes reminded the commission it will need to have a charter review process this year. The charter committee, required at least once every 10 years, includes two commissioners and a citizen representative from each district.

District 1 Commissioner Juan Garza suggested the commissioners who serve be some of the newer ones, because the process can help familiarize them with the charter. Palla and District 2 Commissioner Lauren Rowley volunteered to serve.

The committee may either leave the charter as is or recommend changes that would require voter approval. The last charter review put forth a recommendation to bar city commissioners from holding county elected office, which passed overwhelmingly.

• Mark Lansford gave the commission a report on charity care provided over 2020 from Plains Regional Medical Center.

Lansford said the hospital provided $8.6 million in help to individuals without insurance, Medicare or Medicaid by writing off some or all of their bills.

• Morris said the mayor’s task force he belonged to on COVID-19 matters has changed its meeting times to Mondays instead of Thursdays to give the group a better chance of influencing state policy

Morris said the group is focused on keeping all businesses open, and wants to address the fact that not all state policies are working properly — as evidenced by the state’s higher death rate from COVID-19 compared to states that had fewer restrictions.

• The next meeting is scheduled for 5:15 p.m. March 18 at the North Annex of the Clovis-Carver Public Library.