CIBOLA COUNTY, N.M. – The Cibola County Board of Commissioners held their most recent regular commission meeting on Thursday, September 23 at 5 p.m. All commissioners were present, and the agenda was approved as presented. Minutes from an August 26 regular commission meeting and September 9 special commission meeting were also approved.
The board heard a Local Economic Development Act (LEDA) presentation from Lorraine Ruggles, Region 1 Representative for the Economic Development Department. “Known as the Job Creation Fund, LEDA is funded through a legislative appropriation,” as was stated in the presentation. According to County Manager Kate Fletcher, LEDA is another source of economic assistance that can be used towards developments in land, building, or infrastructure. The presentation informed the commissioners of how there is the state LEDA and the local LEDA, what specific projects LEDA could be used for, the pur pose of LEDA, how projects are evaluated through LEDA, and what the award process looks like. According to Fletcher, this informational presentation was given then so that in future meetings, the board could reevaluate the county’s local LEDA ordinance and make any adjustments needed to align it with the state LEDA.
The Board of Commissioners then received a Budget and Finance Report from Manager Fletcher and County Finance Director Paul Ludi. According to Ludi, county finances are continuing to be in good shape and the county is reconciled in all of their accounts. At a September 8 Advisory Investment Committee meeting, the committee found that interest rates are dropping, but at the last meeting prior to the September 23 commission meeting, the board voted to leave their investments awhere they were. Ludi also said the NMFA is currently looking to see whether the county can use their County Gross Receipt 1/16th Local Option Tax towards a 10-year loan to replace the HVAC system. Ludi also introduced a “new GRT distribution” coming to New Mexico and Cibola County called the compensating tax. According to the report, “Compensating tax helps to protect New Mexico businesses from unfair competition from out-of-state businesses that are not subject to gross receipts tax.” The county has already received $12,517.79 as a result of the compensating tax.
Next, the board discussed plans for the Public Safety Building Renovation project. The armory building will be renovated for use as a public safety building, where all county emergency departments will be put together – Cibola County Sheriff’s Office, Cibola County Emergency Management, and 9/11 dispatch services. Each department met with architects for the project, discussed their needs, and now a plan has been put together and approved by the commission. Fletcher said construction for the project should start no later than January of 2022, and all parties are excited and on board. The county will be saving money through this project; consolidating the different departments into one building that will meet all of their needs opens opportunities for the county to decide what they would like to do with the buildings those departments currently reside in. Fletcher also pointed out that as of right now, the county’s emergency service departments go out of county for training, but with this plan in place, the county hopes to bring training to the county and the public safety building here in the future.
Then, the commission unanimously accepted the Salary Study Plan as presented by Vincent Yermal at the Sept. 9 special com mission meeting. Next, the board discussed Ordinance 2021-01 Cibola County Recreational and Medical Cannabis Regulations. In the ordinance – which specifically applies regulations to where people can sell cannabis – the board established that for Cibola County, the sale of cannabis cannot occur within 300 feet of schools or residencies. Therefore, anyone looking to establish a place of business selling recreational or medical marijuana must meet state regulations, as well as local regulations by setting up their location over 300 feet away from schools and residencies.
The board then approved floodplain development permits, passed a resolution creating additional precincts for voting, passed a resolution JPA between Cibola County and the Village of Milan for the Rockin’ 66 Express Public Transit Service to seek out extra funding, and passed a resolution regarding the approval of appointments to the DWI Council.
A consideration of a letter of support for reviving the country’s uranium industry was not approved, after Commissioner Christine Lowery requested a ‘no vote’, which was agreed upon by the majority in a 3-2 vote, establishing that the letter would not be signed by the commission. Finally, a consideration to approve two requisitions over $20,000 were approved; one was $88,661.03 for a video surveillance system for APIC Solutions in Bluewater Village, and the other was $52,960 for cattleguard equipment for Contech Construction and the Road Dept.
The board went into an executive session, but no decisions were made. The next regular commission meeting will be held on Thursday, October 28 at 5 p.m. in the Cibola County Commission chambers located on 700 East Roosevelt Avenue, Grants, New Mexico.