Meetings Watch — Clovis City Commission, April 21

The Clovis city commission met Thursday at the Clovis-Carver Public Library.

All commissioners and Mayor David Lansford attended. Lansford had to leave at 6 p.m .; Mayor Pro Tem Juan Garza ran the final 20 minutes of the meeting in his absence.

All action items passed on 8-0 votes.

• A planned discussion on the commission’s process of ballot voting for lower board appointments was delayed to the May 5 meeting. Commissioner Tom Martin noted Lansford had to leave early, and he felt the entire body should be present for the discussion.

• The commission agreed to submit a project request application and seek grants for improvements to the pre-treatment plant for Southwest Cheese. The plant, with $3 million in upgrades, would remove phosphorous from its wastewater and allow the city to receive an additional 1.2 million gallons of water per day for its effluent reuse system.

Garza said the project has been a desire of the city and the plant for years, and the opportunity at state funding seemed a wise pursuit. Commissioner Chris Bryant, who chairs the water policy advisory committee, said the additional wastewater would be a significant change.

• A project participation agreement was made with the New Mexico Economic Development Department for $100,000 to purchase digital equipment for the Lyceum Theater. As part of the agreement, the city would assure the department creation of one full-time or two part time jobs during the first year following execution of the agreement.

Commissioner Sandra Taylor-Sawyer asked how long the commitment to keep the employee would last. City Manager Larry Fry said the city would only be bound to certify the creation of the job and wouldn’t be tied to it years down the road.

“If we’re going to operate the theater,” Fry said, “this digital equipment is going to be an important component.”

• Mark Huerta, district manager for EPCOR Water, said the city demand was an average of 5.1 million gallons of water per day in March, 48 percent of output capacity, and so far the peak day of 2016 has been April 2 with 6.2 million gallons.

“It’s been a mild year,” Huerta said. “It was a mild summer in 2015.”

• A farm lease for property surrounding the city landfill was reassigned from Doug Harrison to his son, Mitchell Harrison, for the remaining three years. An additional request to extend the deal two more years was removed at the request of City Attorney David Richards, who said he may present the extension request at a later meeting.

• District 2 Commissioners Gary Elliott and Taylor-Sawyer said a town hall the two had planned for April 28 would be postponed. Elliott hoped the event could be held sometime in May.

• Parks and Recreation Director Mark Dayhoff gave a report on the April 9 Great American Cleanup and landfill usage during a corresponding waiving of fees at the landfill.

The trash pickup netted 461 bags, and the weekend haul to the landfill was 143 tons and 43 tires.

A special recognition was given to members of the 551st Special Operations Squadron of Cannon Air Force Base. The group picked up trash in the alleys with the help of city drivers, and picked up 4.12 tons of trash, which Lansford called, “a record that probably won’t be broken unless you guys break it.”

• The next meeting is scheduled for 5:15 p.m. May 5 at the North Annex of the Clovis-Carver Public Library.

— compiled by Managing Editor Kevin Wilson