Year in review: Curry sees farewells in 2021

CLOVIS - It was a year of gains and losses, and Curry County was certainly part of that condition in 2021.

James Ridling, the newest commissioner for the county, died Sept. 19 from complications with COVID-19, just over eight months after he succeeded term-limited Ben McDaniel in the District 2 seat.

"Some people are nice, but he was a really, really great individual," Commission Chairman Robert Thornton said of Ridling, who defeated J. Albin Smith in the primary and ran uncontested for his first elected office term. "He took care of business as much as he could on county matters. He was very refreshing."

Appointed in his spot was former Clovis City Commissioner Tom Martin. Martin, who owns the Clovis and Portales Taco Box franchises with his wife Gail, said he was conflicted because he was happy to serve but would have much rather watched Ridling serve out the term.

The county did say farewell to two other longtime familiar faces, under much more positive circumstances.

Carol Pipes retired in November after seven years as the county's finance director, and previously served six years as executive assistant to the county manager. Pipes was named the Curry County Employee of the Year in 2009 and was the county's first employee to complete certification as a chief procurement officer.

Longtime County Attorney Steve Doerr stepped aside after the final meeting of the year. He was replaced by Albuquerque attorney Dan Macke. Doerr has been active in the community, where he serves as president of the Eastern New Mexico University Foundation, and in the legal community, where he serves on the state's Code of Professional Conduct Committee.

The county will see various other transitions in 2022, with four positions up for election. District 3 Commissioner Chet Spear, Assessor Candace London, Sheriff Wesley Waller and Probate Judge Mark Lansford are all term-limited.

Other notable items on the county front in 2021 included:

• Courthouse construction: The commission awarded a contract to SDV Construction of Albuquerque and set a deadline of 14 months to complete the project, despite cost overruns pushing a $7.1 million project to $10 million in just a year's time.

• DOH warns commission: The Curry County Commission received a Sept. 30 warning from the New Mexico Department of Health for repeatedly failing to follow public health guidance on face masks at its meetings.

The Sept. 30 letter from Deputy Secretary and General Counsel Billy Jimenez noted video of recent commission meetings showed county commissioners, other county employees and citizens attending the meetings are frequently not wearing masks or wearing them incorrectly.

Commissioners have largely declined comment on the matter, with the exception of District 1 Commissioner Robert Sandoval. Just a few weeks prior to the letter, Sandoval began to attend meetings virtually because of other commissioners' reluctance to wear masks.

• The Curry County Fair had a 4% attendance drop from the last offering in 2019, but organizers were happy with the turnout and said two nights of rain possibly prevented the fair from record numbers.

Attendance was 24,570, compared to 25,582 in 2019. A daily comparison showed the two days the fair was hit with rain had a difference of nearly 5,800 in attendance. The 2020 fair was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

• The county decided to help out the city of Clovis in its efforts to continue the legacy of former Clovis city employee Ardale "Pappy" Thornton and the museum named in his honor.

County officials floated an idea about moving the contents of the museum at Ned Houk Park to a future county extension office at the Curry County Fairgrounds. In a meeting late in the year, County Manager Lance Pyle said construction cost increases could cause delays in moving that plan forward.

• Pete Hulder, a former county commissioner and longtime county employee, died June 7 at 84. Hulder, who served from 2001 to 2008, was an accountant for the city of Clovis and later became the Curry County director of community development and emergency preparedness.