Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
Sorted by date Results 1108 - 1132 of 1717
COVID-19 wasn’t on the agenda of Monday’s Quay County Commission meeting, but it took up much of the commissioners’ discussion time during an otherwise routine session. All county officers at the meeting wore masks for the first time since the pandemic began in early March. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced earlier this month she would aggressively enforce the state’s mask mandate, including $100 fines for those who don’t wear them in public. Commission Chairman Franklin McCasland said in light of a recent spike in coronavirus cases, he...
Though Tucumcari resident Levi Mericle had amassed hundreds of poems and short stories in 15 years of writing, he hadn't planned on self-publishing a book of his work. He didn't need to. A publishing company in India liked what it read and offered do it for him. The result is Mericle's first book, "The Autobiography of a Broken Kid," published in late June by Cyberwit.net. It's a collection of selected poems and flash fiction, which are short stories of 400 up to 800 words. Mericle also his...
New Mexico's high-school football season will be at least postponed, and other sports may face delays or shortened seasons because of coronavirus restrictions. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced Thursday there would be no full-contact sports such as football and soccer this fall because of rising cases of COVID-19. She acknowledged the planned opening of schools in August also was in jeopardy because of the pandemic. Wayne Ferguson, Tucumcari's football coach and athletic director, said the...
The operators of Tucumcari's historic Blue Swallow Motel announced Friday the Route 66 landmark's new owners are Rob and Dawn Federico of Crystal Lake, Illinois. The motel went under contract last month, and the deal closed June 30. The now-previous owners, Kevin and Nancy Mueller, had owned the property for nine years and put it on the market in August 2018. The Muellers announced the new owners Friday in a social media post. "Owning the Blue Swallow has been an amazing experience for the...
New Mexico’s governor said last week the state's mask mandate would be more aggressively enforced with fines of $100 and possibly jail time to blunt the spread of coronavirus. However, law enforcement agencies in Tucumcari, Logan and Quay County said they wouldn’t enforce it because they lack jurisdiction. They said state police would have to enforce the edict. People in New Mexico now must wear facial coverings in public places or face a possible fine. Businesses also are required to have all customers wear masks when they enter. Gov. Mic...
LOGAN - The Logan-Ute Lake Chamber of Commerce on June 25 announced the cancellation of the village's annual Fourth of July parade, citing Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's health order that bars public gatherings. On Saturday, dozens of Logan residents defied the order and held the parade anyway. About 30 entries - including horses, lawn mowers, golf carts, trucks, towed boats and tractors - were part of an nonsanctioned parade that wound down First and Second streets in the village that morning....
Teachers peppered state officials with questions during a virtual town hall last week about the Public Education Department’s reopening plan for schools amid the coronavirus pandemic. The PED the previous week issued guidelines to public schools that included recommendations for full in-person classes, a hybrid model of in-person and online classes or all virtual learning, depending how bad COVID-19 is in that region. A PED official said about 3,000 people logged in to the webinar June 30 via the Zoom videoconferencing platform. Among those p...
Last week, the old and oft-repaired promotions sign at the Tucumcari/Quay County Chamber of Commerce office was replaced with an LED sign that gives the chamber more flexibility to plug events and businesses. The new sign cost about $13,000, paid for with the help of a chamber fundraiser at last year's Quay County Fair, said chamber executive director Carmen Runyan. The county also gave $2,000 for the effort. Runyan said installation of the sign had been planned in late February, but the...
The Tucumcari Farmers Market will open for the season at Wailes Park on Saturday morning despite some restrictions due to the coronavirus. Market manager Sandra Groves said some of its usual activities will be curtailed when the opening bell is rung at 10 a.m. at the Route 66 park on the city's east side. But she said last week she'd already lined up seven vendors, with more likely to be added. Produce that would be in season by the opening includes lettuces, beets, onions, zucchini, yellow...
The Tucumcari Talking Tour officially debuts July 15 after being delayed for a couple of months by the coronavirus pandemic. The Tucumcari Talking Tour is a self-guided radio tour of the city's historic landmarks, motels, murals and other points of interest. Tucumcari resident Tracy Johnson, creator of the tour, said last week she is finishing the setup of the last AM radio transmitters at 16 sites in town that will broadcast short messages for up to a one-block radius. KTNM/KQAY radio in...
LOGAN - It wasn't easy, but Logan High School did hold a graduation Saturday morning. The school district announced venue changes twice in barely 12 hours, finally settling on a drive-up ceremony at the high-school gym's parking lot. First, the school's superintendent said the state's Department of Health threatened to fine the district up to $1.75 million if it allowed the estimated 350 people to attend the ceremony at Logan's football field, violating the state's public health order. Second,...
The Tucumcari and Logan school districts are looking at a hybrid model of in-person classes and online learning when the school year opens in August amid the coronavirus pandemic. San Jon, meanwhile, likely would go entirely with in-person instruction because its student body is small enough to meet the state’s 50% classroom occupancy requirement. The New Mexico Public Education Department last week released its guidance for all districts that include requirements for social distancing and face coverings for all students and staff. The plan is...
The New Mexico Department of Health reported the sixth confirmed coronavirus case Friday in Quay County since the pandemic began. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham also said during her health briefing Thursday she likely would delay Phase II of the state's economy reopening because of a recent rise in the COVID-19 spread rate and large surges of cases in Texas and Arizona. Texas on Friday ordered bars closed and restaurants to scale back to 50% occupancy because of the virus. The latest local coronavirus case is a person is a male in his teens,...
A Tucumcari man who faces two different criminal complaints of animal abuse was accused of drug dealing in five new felony counts in an amended complaint filed last week. Ralph Earlwayne Fletcher, 30, is charged with two counts of trafficking controlled substances (second offense), distribution of marijuana (second offense) and two counts of felony possession of a controlled substance. All of the new drug counts were felonies. The trafficking counts were the most serious — a second-degree felony that could lead up to nine years in prison and a...
The Wheels on Fire 100 bicycle race scheduled for Sept. 26 effectively was canceled after the New Mexico Department of Transportation denied it an event permit last week. Organizer Brandon Goldston announced the cancellation Wednesday on social media. "We cannot proceed with the 2020 Wheels on Fire event without this permit, no matter how much we want to!" he wrote. He said those who registered for the race would receive refunds. Goldston said in a phone interview Thursday that NMDOT sent an...
Tucumcari MainStreet announced Friday the cancellation of the 10th annual Fired Up festival set for Sept. 26 because of coronavirus concerns. It was the fifth major Tucumcari event felled by the pandemic this year. Tucumcari Rawhide Days, Rockin' Route 66, New Mexico Music Showcase and the Rattler Reunion announced their cancellations weeks ago. The Wheels on Fire 100 bicycle event based in Tucumcari, also set for Sept. 26 but not affiliated with Fired Up, remains on the schedule. Tucumcari...
The New Mexico Legislature trimmed about $600 million from a cash-strapped state budget during a special session last week, but a state senator and state representative whose districts include Quay County said the reductions weren’t big enough. State Sen. Pat Woods (R-Broadview), whose district includes much of Quay County, said he voted against the new budget bill despite it having deeper cuts than the $450 million reduction proposed by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. The bill passed in the Senate 30-12, and it was sent to the governor. The s...
A Tucumcari MainStreet official revealed Monday during a Quay County Commission meeting the nonprofit organization is negotiating to acquire the Tucumcari Railroad Museum in as soon as 30 days. Jessica Gonzales, a secretary for the Tucumcari MainStreet board of directors speaking on behalf of executive director Connie Loveland, officially was on the commission's agenda to request annual financial support for the organization and its Fired Up Festival, totaling $10,000. With this year's Fired Up...
If you go to the newly opened Sarah's Furniture store in downtown Tucumcari, don't be surprised if you don't readily find Sarah herself. That's because the store is named after the 14-year-old daughter of husband-and-wife co-owners Rodolfo and Luisa Vallejo of Tucumcari. The store at 113 S. Second St. is a family business, and the Vallejos acknowledged their two children, including 24-year-old sheriff's deputy Rudy, would help occasionally with sales, setting up computers and other duties....
The Mesalands Community College board of trustees approved a purchase requisition on an $81,000 lease on the Stampede Village student-housing complex but tabled future action on the property because of uncertainty from the coronavirus pandemic. The board approved a purchase requisition with Tillman Enterprises of Clovis for the property during its June 16 meeting. The meeting was held by video conferencing because of COVID-19 restrictions. Board Chairman Jim Streetman said he was hesitant to approve the requisition because ongoing...
The caretakers of the Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari expressed optimism the historic Route 66 property would have new owners by the end of the June despite another offer falling through earlier this year. Kevin and Nancy Mueller, Michigan natives who've owned the 1939 motel for nine years, announced on social media last week the property was under contact to an as-yet-unidentified couple. "We're excited; they're going to be good," Nancy said of the prospective new owners. "Their backgrounds...
Members of the Tucumcari Public Schools board last week talked about positive feedback about the district’s May 29 outdoor graduation ceremony that included fireworks and confetti cannons amid strict social distancing because of coronavirus. Board President Leif Gray said during the board’s short and otherwise routine June 15 meeting via teleconference the ceremony was “amazing,” noting his daughter was one of the graduates. Board member Heather Gonzales said she also heard good responses about graduation and encouraged “putting ourselves...
The Tucumcari Public Library reopened June 9 for the first time in almost three months after being shut down by the coronavirus. Those who showed up found a different-looking library inside. Library director Linda Gonzales noted the library's bookshelves in the adult section were moved to the north part of the facility, giving the appearance of more space for chairs and tables and more flexibility for future events. "If we need a program, all we have to do is move things this way," Gonzales said...
The San Jon Municipal Schools board of trustees set a graduation time of 6 p.m. July 11 at the high-school gym with a maximum of 25 people allowed for each of its three graduates to comply with an anticipated state public-gatherings limit of 100. Superintendent Janet Gladu said during the board’s June 8 meeting the district would enforce social distancing of six feet of space between chairs and in the bleachers during the ceremony. Protective masks also would be required. The school’s seniors had held out holding a graduation ceremony for wee...
A state senator whose district encompasses much of Quay County said spending cuts to address a state budget deficit won’t be too difficult during this week’s legislative special session, but he fears tax increases might be likely within the next two fiscal years to address that shortfall. State Sen. Pat Woods (R-Broadview) said he doesn’t expect too much acrimony from lawmakers when they meet Thursday at the Roundhouse in Santa Fe to tackle an estimated $2.4 billion loss of revenue over two years caused by plunging oil and gas prices, plus...