City Council

MINUTES OF CITY COUNCIL MEETING 11 ARTESIA, NEW MEXICO APRIL 9, 2024 The City Council of the City of Artesia, New Mexico met in the City Council Chambers at City Hall on Tuesday, April 09, 2024 at 5: 00 p. m. in regular session with Mayor Jonathan Henry presiding, and the following present to wit: Mayor Pro Tem: City Council Members: Jeff Youtsey Ignacio Mariscal Jarrod Moreau Raul Rodriguez George Mullen Wade Nelson Michael Bunt Also present: City Clerk/ Treasurer Summer Valverde City Attorney Cass Tabor HR Director Jerry Conde Absent: Richard" Dickie" Townley It was determined that a quorum was present. The invocation was given by Councilor Rodriguez and all joining in the Pledge of Allegiance. A request was made by Mayor Henry to move up items 15 & 16 in the agenda for the sake of those traveling and allowing the new council nominee to be sworn in and begin his service. A motion was made by Councilor Rodriguez and was seconded by Councilor Moreau. Motion passed. Item 16C was brought forward and Michael Bunt was nominated by Mayor Hemy as the new councilman for district 4. No other names were put forward so after a rollcall vote Mr. Bunt was approved and sworn in. A new motion was made by Councilor Rodriguez and seconded by Councilor Moreau to bring up item 15. Motion passed. A report was given by Juan Garcia from Beasley, Mitchell& Associates who performed the yearly audit for the fiscal year ending in 2023. Overall, the report was favorable and the auditor is confident in the City' s handling of funds.  Minutes, April 9h, 2024 Page 2 New Requests for City Facilities: A. * Joe and Laura Tufano request permission to use Guadalupe Park Gazebo for a kid' s birthday party on April 13th from 1: 00pm to 3: 00pm. A motion to approve was made by Councilman Bunt and seconded by Councilor Mullen. Motion passed. B. * Artesia Chamber of Commerce & Artesia Mainstreet request permission to hold the Permian Basin Celebration— 100 Years of Oil & Gas on June 14& 15, 2024, downtown. Request approval of road closures as stated on application and waiver of fees. Contingent upon proof if insurance and fees) A motion to approve was made by Councilor Rodriguez and seconded by Councilor Moreau. Motion passed. C. * Artesia Main Street request permission to hold the following event— Oilfield Equipment Parade on Saturday, June 15, 2024, from 8: 30am to 10: 30am. Request approval of use of city services and road closure as stated on application and waiver of fees. The parade will gather at Bulldog Bowl Parking Lot, head east down Main St., and turn right at 2nd Contingent upon NM Department of Transportation approval of Parade Permit and proof of insurance and fees) A motion to approve was made by Councilor Rodriguez and seconded by Councilor Moreau. Motion passed. D. * CYFD request permission to hold the following event— Child Abuse Prevention Awareness Walk on April 19, 2024, from 10: 00am to 12: 00pm. Request approval of use of city services and road closures as stated on application. ( Contingent upon proof of insurance) A motion to approve was made by Councilor Rodriguez and seconded by Councilor Moreau. Motion passed. Before continuing Mayor Henry pointed out a contingency was missed when reading item 3B and called for a new vote. A motion to approve with the contingency was made by Councilor Rodrigues and seconded by Councilor Mariscal. Motion passed. City Departments and Employees None  Minutes, April 9th, 2024 Page 3 Special Reports 11 None Period for Hearing Visitors No visitors came forward, but since there were members of the Chamber of Commerce present Councilor Moreau asked about the turnout for the car show the previous weekend. The rep for the Chamber said they had a record 268 cars this year. Consent Agenda Councilor Rodriguez made a motion to approve the consent agenda as written, seconded by Councilor Mariscal and upon vote the motion passed. CONSENT AGENDA April 09, 2024 1. Approval of Minutes March 26, 2024 2. Consideration of Bids: 3. Contracts, Leases and Agreements: A. * Approval of agreement between the Department of Cultural Affairs, New Mexico State Library Division and City of Artesia. 4. Appointments: 5. Personnel Resignations, Hirings, Promotions, and Transfers: Upon recommendation of the Mayor, subject to successful completion of required pre- employment testing, permission to: A. * Hire: Name Department Position Rate of Pay 1. Allison Sanchez Infrastructure Senior Admin 3282. 44 p/ mo CA15 2. Luke Burns Executive Communication 5150. 08 p/ mo Coordinator B. Temporary Hire: Approval of List- subject to successful completion of required pre- employment testing. 1. School Program Positions 12. 00 p/ hr C. Ratification of Promotions: D. Demotions: E. Resignations: 11 1. Accept the resignation of June Fisk, Equipment Operator II, Solid Waste, effective April 5, 2024.  Minutes, April 9ih, 2024 Page 4 2. Accept the resignation of Amy Gallegos, Police Officer, Police, effective April 11, 2024. 3. Accept the retirement of Manuel Melendez, Equipment Operator II, Solid Waste, effective April 1, 2024. 4. Accept the retirement of Myra Barnum, Evidence Technician II, Police, effective September 13, 2024. 5. Accept the resignation of James Minter, Sergeant, Police, effective April 12, 2024. 6. Dates of Hearing: 7. * Travel and Training: A. Solid Waste— Permission for one( 1) employee to attend the Transfer Station Operator Certification Class in Santa Fe, NM. B. Police— Permission for one( 1) employee to attend the Advanced Supervisor Liability online. C. Police— Permission for two( 2) employees to attend the Heroes Hiring Heroes Job Fair in Albuquerque, NM. D. Police— Permission for two( 2) employees to attend the SNM Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect in Ruidoso, NM. E. Fire— Permission for one( 1) employee to attend the FDIC International Fire Conference in Indianapolis, IN. 8. Routine Requests for City Facilities: 9. Routine Resolutions ( to be assigned a number by staff): 10. Budgeted Items: 11. Quarterly Journal Entries: 12. Non- budgeted Items: 13. * Payment of Bills Public Hearings- including consideration of final passage of any ordinance as to which proper notice has been published. None Comments from Public Officials and Contracted Services None Committee Reports: A. Budget and Finance— Councilor Moreau said they have had several meetings lately and are working on a budget with Police and Fire.  Minutes, April 9'", 2024 Page 5 B. Personnel— None C. Police and Fire— None D. Planning( Project Management, Code Enforcement, Permits and Inspections)— Per Councilor Rodriguez the planning reports are now combined with infrastructure. E. Recreation— Councilor Rodriguez said the committee will be meeting April 15th. F. Infrastructure( Streets, Garage, Cemetery, Parks, Water, Wastewater, Solid Waste, Facility Maintenance)— Mayor Pro Tern Youtsey said they reviewed a few contested bills, capital requests, cost increases, and the upcoming utility rate increase. G. Government— None Personnel HR Director Jerry Conde went over the safety stats for the previous month and said they are getting close to having the new safety committee put together. The council also heard a request for a temporary over hire in the police department. A motion to approve was made by Mayor Pro Tem Youtsey, seconded by Councilor Mullen. After a unanimous vote the motion was approved. Public Safety A. Police Department: Police Chief Roberts presented the council with the stats report and stood for questions. Councilor Mullen asked if there was still a parvo problem at the animal shelter to which Chief Roberts said it is under control at this time. Councilor Mariscal had a question about a pole that had been knocked down but when Chief Roberts was unaware of it Councilor Nelson said it belonged to the company he works for and they had taken care of it. Mayor Pro Tem Youtsey wanted to point out that animal ordinances are being reviewed and updated. B. Fire Department: Fire Chief Hope presented the stats packet to the council and stood for questions. Councilor Mariscal asked whether the higher than usual number of fires was due to brush fires. Chief Hope agreed it is much higher than normal but said no most have been structure fires and the numbers are up about 14% this year.  Minutes, April 9` h, 2024 Page 6 Infrastructure A. Community Development Infrastructure Director Byron Landfair presented resolution 1853 to update the rules at the aquatic center to ban outside food& drinks in the pool area. He also introduced a plan to bring more items to the snack bar located at the center and pointed out they are being careful to keep prices at a competitive rate so people will not feel the need to bring things from the outside. The plan does include allowances for items such as baby food and water. The new rule will help eliminate having glass and other items that can cause problems from being brought in. A motion to approve was made by Councilor Rodriguez and seconded by Councilor Moreau. Motion passed. Mr. Landfair then presented a proposal of new hours for the pool. Because this is still under discussion it was determined that no approval is needed at this time. B. Infrastructure Permission to set a hearing for an ordinance for Case No. 23- 105: Zone Change from Single Family District" Rl- B" to Commercial Use Zone " C" on approximately 171, 713 sf. Location: 601 S Twenty- third St: Legal: Lots 2, 4, 5 & 6 Los Altos Subdivision NW1/ 4 of Section 18 Township 17S Range 26E; Owner: Beverly Still and Brad Knowlton Mr. Landfair presented the proposed zone change and requested to have a hearing set. A motion to set a hearing was made by Councilor Rodriguez and seconded by Councilor Mullen. Motion passed and the hearing was set to be held at the May 14th council meeting. Mr. Landfair then gave updates on the wastewater plant pond and watering schedule as well as the progress being made on the splashpad. City Attorney None  Minutes, April 9th, 2024 Page 7 City Clerk 11 Item 15 moved up to the beginning of the meeting. Mayor A. In accordance with Section 3- 11- 5 of NMSA 1978 I submit the following names of Appointive Officers for confirmation by the Artesia City Council: Byron Landfair— Infrastructure Director Kevin Hope— Fire Chief Kirk Roberts— Police Chief Summer Valverde— City Clerk/ Treasurer Jerry Conde— Human Resources Director Mayor Henry presented the names of those being appointed to office and asked if there was any discussion. Being there were no objections, a motion was made by Councilor Rodriguez to accept the appointments and was seconded by Councilor Mariscal. A rollcall vote was taken and by unanimous vote the motion passed. B. In accordance with Section 3- 11- 5 of NMSA 1978 I submit all current full time and part time regular employees as well as all probationary and as needed employees of the City of Artesia as of April 09, 2024, for confirmation by the Artesia City Council. Mayor Henry presented the employees of the City of Artesia for conformation by the Council. A motion for approval was made by Councilor Rodriguez and was seconded by Councilor Mullen. Motion passed. C. * Item moved up to the beginning of the meeting D. Appointment of Mayor Pro Tem. Mayor Henry called for volunteers to run as Mayor Pro Tern. Councilors Youtsey and Moreau both put their names in to be considered. Mayor Henry gave both a chance to speak and then called for a rollcall vote. With a vote of 6- 1 Councilor Youtsey was reappointed as the Mayor Pro Tem.  Minutes, April 9th, 2024 Page 8 New or other business from Councilors Mayor Pro Tern Youtsey thanked the council for their vote of confidence in reappointing him and welcomed Councilor Bunt to his new office. Councilors Mullen and Mariscal also welcomed Mr. Bunt and congratulated all those who were recently reelected. Councilor Bunt thanked everyone for his appointment and Councilor Rodriguez offered his congratulations as well and thanked all the employees of the city. Mayor Henry invited everyone to come out a see all the great work being done on the parks and also welcomed Councilor Bunt. Adjournment There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 6: 32pm April 9, 2024. Jonas an Mayor ATTEST: Summer Va City Clerk/ Treasurer iti a •C 0. • e - a• LEI n • in 1.' 6