City Council

MINUTES OF CITY COUNCIL MEETING ARTESIA, NEW MEXICO MAY 13, 2025 IThe City Council of the City of Artesia, New Mexico met in the City Council Chambers at City Hall on Tuesday, May 13, 2025 at 5: 00 p.m. in regular session with Mayor Jonathan Henry presiding, and the following present to wit: Ignacio Mariscal George Mullen Jeff Youtsey Raul Rodriguez Richard Townley Also present: City Attorney Cas Tabor Fatima Salinas Deputy City Clerk Absent City Clerk/ Treasurer Summer Valverde Wade Nelson Jarod Moreau Michael Bunt It was determined that a quorum was present. The invocation was given by Councilor Rodriguez, all joined in the Pledge of Allegiance. New Requests for City Facilities: Mayor Henry present: I A. Ratification of Mayor Henry' s approval for Gaston Jacques to hold a City Star Circus at MLK Park on Thursday, May 8, 2025, thru Sunday, May 11, 2025. Councilor Rodriguez moved to approve. Seconded by Councilor Mullen and upon vote, the motion passed. B. " Brad Salsberry is requesting the use of MLK/ Roberts Park West Shelter and Restrooms for a Graduation Party on May 24, 2025, from 2: 00pm— 7: 00pm. Councilor Rodriguez moved to approve. Seconded by Mayor Pro tem Youtsey and upon vote, the motion passed. C. ' Amanda Palomarez is requesting the use of MLK/ Roberts Park East Shelter and Restrooms for a Graduation Party on May 24, 2025, from 11: 00am— 6: 00pm Councilor Rodriguez moved to approve. Seconded by Councilor Mariscal and upon vote, the motion passed. D. Ambra Vasquez- Guzman is requesting the use of Jaycee Park Restrooms and the North Shelter for a Family Gathering Graduation on June 7, 2025, from 11: OOam- 3: OOpm. Councilor Rodriguez moved to approve. Seconded by Councilor Mullen and upon vote, the motion passed. E. * Artesia MainStreet has requested permission to hold the following events( approval of street closure and contingent upon proof of insurance): 1. Memorial Day Flag Ceremony to be held Monday, May 26, 2025, from 10:00 am— 12: 00 pm, requesting street closures at 5th Street up to Alleyway on Texas Ave. Councilor Rodriguez moved to approve. Seconded by Councilor Mullen and upon vote, the motion passed. 2. Nonmotorized Children' s Parade to be held Saturday, June 14, 2025, from 9: 00 am— 10: 00 am, requesting street closure at First American Bank— Roselawn& Quay up to 61° Street ending at the Derrick Floor.  Minutes, May 13, 2025 Page 2 Councilor Rodriguez moved to approve. Seconded by Councilor Mullen and Councilor Mariscal and upon vote, the motion passed. City Departments and Employees None Special Reports A. ' Rosemary Braswell, Gifted Education Teacher, Artesia Intermediate School, requests a presentation from the 7r" Grade Students to the council Due to some technical difficulties the mayor recommended we move forward with the agenda and once the technical issues are resolved the kids can present their presentations. Period for Hearing Visitors Gaston Jacques with City Star Circus greeted mayor and council. Mr. Jacques requested to extend his show. Councilor Rodriguez asked how much longer. Mr. Jacques replied with from Thursday, May 15ih through 18' h. Mayor Henry stated they were unable to answer his request at this time, but someone would be in contact with him on his request after the meeting or next day. Mr. Jacques then thanked mayor and council. Dennis Wyler greeted mayor and council and stated his address and concerns about being denied a permit for a security fence and requested he would like to see some changes or correction on the ordinance that is denying his permit. Mayor Henry responded they would look into that and bring it to the Infrastructure Committee for discussion. Dennis Wyler then thanked the mayor and council. Consent Agenda Councilor Rodriguez moved to approve the consent as written. Councilor Mariscal seconded and upon vote, the motion passed. CONSENTAGENDA May 13, 2025 1. Approval of Minutes April 22, 2025 2. Consideration of Bids: 3. Contracts, Leases and Agreements: A. * Approval of Amendment 2023 Regional Recreation Centers/ Quality of Life Grant Subrecipient agreement between DFA and City of Artesia. 4. Appointments: A. Ratification of Mayor Henry' s approval of the reappointment of Jerry Terpening to the Woodbine Cemetery Board ( term to expire January 2026) B. Ratification of Mayor Henry' s approval of the reappointment of Sharon Snowden to the Woodbine Cemetery Board ( term to expire January 2026) C. Ratification of Mayor Henry' s approval of the reappointment of Lynn Atteberry to the Woodbine Cemetery Board ( tern to expire January 2026) D. Ratification of Mayor Henry' s approval of the reappointment of Jimmy Bustamante to the Woodbine Cemetery Board ( term to expire April 2027) E. Ratification of Mayor Henry's approval of the reappointment of Patrica Perez to the Woodbine Cemetery Board ( term to expire May 2027) F. Ratification of Mayor Henry' s approval of the appointment of Paul Bahkta( Spark Hotel) to the Lodgers Tax Advisory Board G. Ratification of Mayor Henry' s approval of the appointment of Chad Harcrow( Adobe Rose Inn) to the Lodgers Tax Advisory Board H. Approval of the appointment of Alicia Boettcher to the Commission on Aging Advisory Council term to expire June 2028)  Minutes, May 13, 2025 Page 3 I. Approval of the reappointment of Olympia Posey to the Commission on Aging Advisory Council ( term to expire June 2028) 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. Jovanna Velasquez Wastewater WW Lab Tech 2984. 80 p/ m Uncertified CA13 2. Hoyt Maciain Police Police Officer 4860. 27 p/ m Certified CAP7 B. Ratification: C. Promotion: 1. Israel Mariscal Garage Garage Foreman 3, 908. 66p/ m CA18 D. Demotion: E. Transfer: 1 F. Resignation: 1. Accept the resignation of Jacob Lopez, Building Inspector( Electrical), Planning, effective April 25, 2025 2. Accept the resignation of Luis M Calderon Equipment Operator, Streets, effective May 11, 2025. 3. Accept the resignation of Roberto Baeza, Lieutenant/ Paramedic, Fire, effective My 12, 2025. 6. Dates of Hearing: 7. Travel and Training: A. Police— Permission for one( 1) employee to attend a 2 Day NM Records Management Symposium Class in Portales, NM. B. Finance— Permission for two( 2) employees to attend a 2 Day NM Records Management Symposium Class in Portales, NM. C. Finance— Permission for one( 1) employee to attend a Finance Policies and Best Practices I D. E. class online. Fire— Permission for one( 1) employee to attend Rescue 3 SRTA( Advance Swiftwater and Flood Rescue Technician) in Durango, Colorado. Fire— Permission for one( 1) employee to attend EMT Paramedic Level I Clinical Week in Lubbock, TX. F. IT— Permission for( 4) employees to attend Cisco Training in San Diego, CA. 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 A. Consideration and approval for Artesia Clean and Beautiful to paint a mural on city property location) Ms. Linda Stevens greeted mayor and council and presented the Eagle Draw Community Mural. Mayor Henry asked if there can be something in the contract saying the city is release/ relieved should something happen to the wall. Mr. Landfair explained as long as it doesn' t show up as registered art and if the city chosen to relocate the mural or if it gets severely damaged the city  Minutes, May 13, 2025 Page 4 can do the repairs without having to locate the artist. Ms. Stevens was in agreement and asked when it is time to begin, if the city can please power wash the wall. All agreed. Mayor Pro tem Youtsey moved to approved with the caveat that releases the city from the liability/ responsibility from the artwork. Seconded by Councilor Rodriguez and upon vote, the motion passed. B. Lodgers Tax Update from Haley Klein Haley Klein was not present for updates Committee Reports A. Budget and Finance— Mayor announce there is an open meeting for the preliminary budget set on the 21 r at 5pm. B. Personnel— Councilor Mullen reported discussion was over an internship as we had in the past, a solution to lower workers comp and approved to take on a service they are providing for employees, safety pays and possibly giving$ 100 to each employee each month for no accidents during the quarterly and we approved and sent it to be review in finance and budget committee, looked at all administrative positions to read equally across the board throughout the departments and addition to that the recreation position of Jayde was discussed to be reviewed and increasing the pay one grade and approved to move forward with recommendation of moving forward with increasing. C. Police and Fire— None. D. Safety— Mayor Pro tem Youtsey reported on safety stats. E. Recreation— Councilor Rodriguez reported meeting was held on May 6 and discussion was over Jayde bring in flag football NFL program, properly disposing of tackle football equipment, and next meeting set July 24, 2025 at 6: 30 pm at Artesia Recreation Center. F. Infrastructure/ Planning( Streets, Garage, Cemetery, Parks, Water, Wastewater, Solid Waste, Facility Maintenance, Project Management, Code Enforcement, Permits and Inspections)— Meeting set for a couple of weeks. G. Government— None. Personnel None Public Safety A. Police Department: 1) Stats Commander Horrell, sitting in for Chief Roberts, greeted mayor and council presented stats. He then stood for questions. Councilor Mariscal asked that the PD please publicize on ATV' s, electric scooters, etc, how these will be dealt with through the police department. Commander Horrell responded with explanation on how things are being handled and dealt with. Discussion took place over handling and dealing with the situations. Mayor Henry stated that there was direction given while back to come up with an ordinance for the ATV' s for council to look at, now as for the motor bikes and mopeds they are never street legal, but the little tiny motorcycles should be pulled over and told they are not street bike. Councilor Rodriguez asked what action does the city take if they are pulled over by a police officer. Commander Horrell responded we put ourselves in a predicament should we pursue and they crash; we have to take into consideration in what the end goal in what the end goal in the pursuit to be. It kind of puts the city in a predicament should the individual get hit or killed. He stated some have been pulled over and issued citations along with the parent as well and we will continue to address them. Discussion continues. Commander Horrell introduced Officer Maciain. All welcomed him. Officer Maciain also thanked the mayor and council.  Minutes, May 13, 2025 Page 5 Commander Horrell gave a few updates. He also presented to mayor and council the bike patrol guys with the new e- bikes. Councilor Townley asked because if the community is not familiar with the e- bikes, if someone is being pulled over and they don' t stop what' s going to happen to that civilian in that case. Commander Horrell responded they will radio a mark unit, let the unit know what the violation is, and they will turn it over to the mark unit. They will ride in teams of two for safety. Discussion took place over bike patrol. There we no other questions. Mayor Henry handed the floor over to Ms. Rosemary Braswell. Ms. Braswell greeted mayor and council and introduced the students as they began to present there presentation. a. Katelynn Martin— A Comparison of Religions b. Hunter Safar— Concerts c. Urijah Luna— Training Cats B. Fire Department: 1) * Stats 2) Consideration and approval to adopt the International Fire Code 2021 Chief Hope greeted mayor and council presented stats. Chief Hope then presented the International Fire Code 2021 and explained there were a few sections with changes that were being adopted with the International Fire Code 2021. Fire Marshal gave an explanation of the updated Fire Code 2021. Councilor Rodriguez moved to approve. Seconded by Councilor Mullen upon vote, the motion passed. Infrastructure Infrastructure Director Byron Landfair greeted mayor and council and stood for questions for stats. Mayor Henry suggested to look into implementing a text number for any down signs, code enforcements, streets etc. 1) ' Discussion and Recommendation of NFL Football Program for Summer Recreation. Mr. Landfair turned it over to Jayde Burnell for the NFL Flag Football Program presentation. Mayor Henry asked if the kids can move forward and further in the program. Jayde responded with in the first year she would like to see how and where the program goes. Mayor Henry asked if this would run during the football season. Jayde responded with yes, registration will open up in the summer and begin in the fall. Discussion took place over the program. Councilor Rodriguez recommended to move forward with the program. Seconded by Councilor Mullen and upon vote, the motion passed Mr. Landfair reported on updates on projects around the city. City Attorney None City Clerk None. Mayor announced there were employee recognitions. IT Administrator Dwayne Ported recognize his staff Louis Vizcarrando, Josh Bechtel, and Cristina Salazar- Guerrero for their hard work and dedication they are doing.  Minutes, May 13, 2025 Page 6 Mayor Mayor Henry sought a motion to go into executive session in accordance with the State of New Mexico Open Meetings Act, Section 10- 15- 1-( H)( 2)( 7). Councilor Rodriguez moved. Seconded by Councilor Mullen and Councilor Mariscal and upon roll call, with the following votes recorded: Aye: Townley, Youtsey, Mullen, Rodriguez, Mariscal, Nay: None. The motion passed. Council recessed to executive session at 6: 48 p.m. Council reconvened at 7: 50 p. m. Councilor Rodriguez moved to reconvene from executive session limited personnel matters and threatening and pending litigation were discussed, no action taken. Seconded by Councilor Mullen and upon roll call, with the following votes recorded: Aye: Mariscal, Rodriguez, Mullen, Youtsey, Townley Nay: None The motion passed. Councilor Rodriguez moved to terminate employee in infrastructure under the cemetery department effective immediately. Seconded by Mayor Pro tem Youtsey and upon roll call vote, with he following votes recorded: Aye: Mullen, Youtsey, Townley, Mariscal, Rodriguez Nay: None. The motion passed. New or other business from Councilors Councilor Moreau commented how proud he was to the kids to do their presentation tonight because it is hard to do something like that. Mayor Henry thanked the Great Artesia Foundation for their donation. Adjournment There bei ig no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 7: 56 P. M. on May 13, 2025. i! M l , Jonathan' Mayor ATTEST:— Lk. 1475)2— Summer Valverde- City Clerk/ Treasurer ' is CJ .• Or AID TC Y,• i V r • SELL •: r Of: Y G ` FZV MEX, to