Officials get shooting range first look

CLOVIS - Parks, Recreation and Beautification Committee members got a first look Monday at a shooting range that is nowhere near completion but starting to take shape.

The committee met for about an hour just outside of the Joe C. Thomas Archery and Winged Shooting Training Center and discussed the range, potential new donation policies and hopes for various grants.

City Manager Justin Howalt provided a brief tour of the facility named for the former city manager, mostly by explaining what would be in each room that is currently limited to walls and concrete flooring.

The installation still does not have electricity, as Farmers Electric is still prepping to move a few power lines.

Howalt didn't immediately know the contractual completion date for the $3.7 million shooting range, but said it should be finished in the next month or so and definitely before 2021 closes. No events have been scheduled at the range so far.

When the range is complete, Howalt said the city is looking at a Thursday through Sunday operation schedule, but there will be a collaborative effort with a volunteer range management group and the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, which is footing about 90% of the facility's construction costs through excise taxes on firearms and ammunition.

"We'll probably ease our way into it," Howalt said. "In the winter months, being open four days a week might not make sense."

In other business at the meeting:

n Parks and Recreation Director Russell Hooper asked for committee direction as the Clovis chapter of the American Youth Soccer Organization has seemingly disbanded over the last two years, and "the dilemma is we don't know who to talk to." The state organization doesn't have any official board members, and city attempts to contact prior members have been unsuccessful. The city changed locks on the Clovis AYSO building at Hillcrest Park for an unrelated issue, so Hooper said whoever the board members are "don't even have access to their own building at this point."

Should the chapter reform, Hooper said, the city may simply insist it be part of the Clovis Youth Soccer Association.

Board member Lisa Pellegrino-Spear said she had a child in the AYSO a few years ago, and the play got repetitive because the age group only had four teams.

The committee advised city staff to send registered letters to the state AYSO to provide an opportunity to get its items from the locked building.

• Hooper gave committee members proposals for a parks donation policy that focuses on the city getting donations it can use rather than whatever somebody wants to donate.

Without a policy, Hooper said, "They could stick a bronze cow in our parks, and we'd have to take care of it."

Committee members asked about specific clauses that the city would not guarantee a memorial's permanency nor would it have the responsibility to replace stolen, vandalized or deteriorated memorials. Hooper said the department would handle standard upkeep, but that he doesn't want the city obligated to replacing something that simply deteriorates over decades or gets destroyed by a car accident.

The committee was advised by Howalt to read over the policy and bring questions and suggested edits to the next meeting.

• Hooper said the city was not successful in the "Bark for Your Park" contest that required online voting. The city garnered about 3,000 votes to get $5,000 toward the construction of a new dog park, and the winning city got 20,000 votes. Hooper said it won't hurt to apply in future years, and Howalt said the city now has an idea what kind of voting numbers they'll need.

• Assistant City Manager Claire Burroughes updated the committee on efforts to move the Pappy Thornton Museum to the Curry County Fairgrounds in the current extension office. The county is building a new extension office, and the former facility is a prime location with its proximity to the Oldest House in Curry County.

"The city would continue to own the artifacts," Burroughes said. "The county will still own the building. It will be a joint project."

Committee member Joyce Gates, who joined the committee largely to address disrepair at the museum's current location at Ned Houk Park, let Burroughes explain the details but added, "I think we've really got a good plan started."

• Hooper said the city is seeking a variety of different grants, including one to dredge the pond at the Hillcrest Park Zoo and another that would upgrade the walking trails at Goodwin Lake.

Should the city receive the grant for Goodwin Lake Walking Trails Park, Howalt said part of the work would move the entrance from the lot on Prince Street to Concord Road.

• The committee was advised of the retirement of Reuben Gonzales after 40 years of service. Hooper said the search for Gonzales' replacement would include a reassessment of the position and if it's best suited at the Roy Walker Recreation Center.

• Staff commented on how well attended the inaugural Wings and Wheels event was at the Clovis Regional Airport with 200 cars in the car show and 28 planes on display. Hooper said he planned to just swing by but ended up spending most of his Saturday there.

• Chair Fidel Madrid reminded the committee of the Oct. 9 Trek for Trash pickup event, and Burroughes said a group of volunteers had a painting project at O.G. Potter Park scheduled for the 8 a.m.-noon time slot.

• The next meeting is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Oct. 18, with a brief tour of Veterans Park followed by a meeting at a nearby city building - most likely Roy Walker.