Water line upgrades approved

Water line improvements designed to allow business expansion on Mountain Road near Interstate 40 received one of their final approvals Thursday from the Tucumcari City Commission.

The commission approved a $909,963 package of grants and loans from Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Fund of the New Mexico Finance Authority.

The finance package will buy new, higher-capacity water lines to replace deteriorating water lines under Mountain Road from Historic Route 66 to I-40, as well as new valves, fire hydrants and water meters.

Three-quarters of the funding, $682,472, is from a grant from the drinking water fund, with the remaining $227,491 comes from a low-interest loan that the city will pay off at a rate of $11,675.72 per year through the year 2040, using funds from an existing environmental services gross receipts tax.

The NMFA is expected to grant final approval to the project after the commission's approval, according to Ralph Lopez, a city community development department project manager.

The commission Thursday also approved updates to the emergency reponse plan for the city and county. The Quay County Commission approved the plan at a special meeting earlier in the day.

The plan addresses hazards like wildfire, drought, thunderstorms and wind, Kimberly Pirri, project manager for AECOM, the Los Angeles-based consulting firm that designed the site.

Daniel Zamora, the county's emergency response manager, said the plan covers hazards ranging from hazardous materials spills to active shooter situations.

Pirri said the plan makes the city and county eligible for grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

In addition, Pirri said, federal agencies like FEMA do not expect actions outlined in the plan to be completed within the five years before the next update, but mainly show progress.

District 1 Commissioner Ralph Moya asked whether there would be unplanned additional cost to the city.

Pirri said no.

On a chart Pirri provided to the commission, the city's highest-priority hazards are wildfire, drought, thunderstorms and high winds.

In other action, the commission:

• Renewed the city's contract to be a member of the Eastern Plains Association of Governments. The city pays $1,878 per year to be a member. The commission also appointed acting city manager Mark Martinez to represent the city at EPCOG, with Mayor Ruth Ann Litchfield as an alternate.

• Renewed the city's contract with Tucumcari MainStreet, agreeing to pay $45,000, an increase of $10,000, for the year starting May 1 and ending April 30, 2019. MainStreet focuses on improvements to downtown Tucumcari, including the Train Depot, and planned improvements to streets, sidewalks and facades.