Liquor license crosses commission agenda

The Curry County Commission acknowledged a number of items of business in their regular meeting Tuesday morning. The future of a liquor license at the Curry County Events Center (CCEC) and fairgrounds, and opioid settlements within the county, to name a few.

General manager of the CCEC and fairgrounds, K.C. Messick stood in front of the commission to request action on doing away with one of the two liquor licenses they currently hold and expanding the remaining one.

Right now, there is one license for the event center and one for the Curry County Pavilion. Messick’s told commissioners his hope was to get permission to move forward with cutting it down to just the one license for the event center, and expanding the floor plan to include the pavilion and several outdoor areas.

“It will help the value of the property, so we can expand the event possibilities,” Messick explained.

He also added that cutting it down to one liquor license will be cost saving in the long run. “It will basically cut what we have to pay the state in half,” he said.

The Commission decided to move forward with the request, which means it will now go to the state for approval. The process will take some time however, so it’s unknown as to if or when it will take effect.

Messick said, “Hopefully it won’t take too long, so we can move forward.”

There was also a request for action in an executive session pertaining to authorization of Curry County Manager, Lance Pyle to execute participation and settlement agreements on behalf of Curry County in opioid settlements with Albertsons, CVS, Kroger, and Wal-Mart.

Pyle said in a written statement:

“This was a statewide settlement negotiated by the State of New Mexico. There is no way to measure how or whether any retailer impacted Curry County, including those that are situated here, but the impacts of the crisis do not have boundaries. We welcome participation in this historic agreement and we intend to use the funds received to benefit the residents of Curry County.”

Other business:

• Commissioners approved more renovations to the Curry County Courthouse. $69,482 to install exhaust fans, fire dampers, and access panels. New washers and dryers along with other appliances were discussed.

• Approved a new wall to separate the breakroom from the shop area at North Prince Road Barn in the amount of $43,492.

• Commissioners approved new roads in Cottonwood Estates to determine addresses for those residents.

For more information on these meetings, visit currycounty.org.