Ballpark plan gets final approval

The Tucumcari Public Schools board last week gave unanimous final approval to a scaled-down ballpark redevelopment plan, set to begin construction next summer.

In short, two ball diamonds will be redeveloped instead of the previously planned three or four. TPS superintendent Aaron McKinney said he anticipates asking voters for another bond issue next year to redevelop the other two diamonds.

"I'm excited to get it moving," board member Jerry Lopez said during the vote.

The district initially sought to redevelop three or four existing baseball and softball diamonds on the city's west side after voters in February 2020 approved a $3 million bond issue for the project.

The project encountered delays because of the COVID-19 pandemic and complicated surveying issues that involved city and county land.

Escalating construction costs prompted McKinney and Greer Stafford Architecture to slim down the project, as the initial plan would have cost well over $4 million.

Greer Stafford President Steven Alano presented two options for the board during its Nov. 15 meeting. Both plans showed a new baseball and softball field on the north side of the complex, with the southernmost diamonds left alone for now.

Alano said both proposals would cost about $3.4 million if done by a contractor, which he said included a 20% contingency because of rising construction costs.

McKinney said those costs can be lowered if the district performs own demolition and buys buildings directly for the concession stand and dressing room.

Board members came to a consensus around the second option, which shows the new softball field on the northwest side and the new baseball field on the northeast. Matthew Pacheco said he favored that because "it has more of a park feeling."

A narrow pathway would run from the Tucumcari Convention Center parking lot to the middle of the complex. The changing room would be near that entrance, and a new concession stand would be centrally located.

The blueprint also shows areas for batting cages, new dugouts, new press boxes, pitchers' warmup areas and 25-foot-tall protective netting along the foul lines and the outfield's screened, chain-link outfield fences.

Construction would begin in May or June 2022, after the high school's baseball and softball seasons end.

Alano anticipated having those new fields ready for play by the 2023 season.

City Commissioner Ralph Moya, who attended the meeting, said he wanted a guarantee that child and adult ball leagues could continue to use the complex after the city deeds over the land to the district for the project.

McKinney responded the ballfield complex has a decades-old covenant that expressly states the diamonds must be made available to the community.

City Manager Mark Martinez suggested the district and city approve a joint resolution on each others' responsibilities for the complex. McKinney said he was receptive to that, and Martinez said he would email him a draft of the proposed agreement.

Board member Heather Gonzales, speaking by videoconference during the meeting, indicated she thought the district was taking on too much responsibility for the diamonds, and the city needs to take more of a role.

"They need to hold up their end like we need to hold up ours," she said.

At one point early in the meeting, Pacheco voiced disagreement with Lopez's contention the board was "in the dark" about parts of the project. Pacheco also noted the board has no power to pick the contractors or engineers for such an undertaking and that Alano had come to three or four meetings about the plan.

Gonzales seemed to side with Lopez, saying: "If we had more workshops, we wouldn't have this bickering."

In other business:

• McKinney and Alano said the district should begin getting quotes in early December to replace the elementary school's climate-control units. Alano said Wing A construction for the units should last 90 days, Wing B about 90 days and the gymnasium 30 days once contracts are awarded.

• The board approved a final reading on a policy change regarding bed bug infestations. The police states students with lice or bed bugs shall be excluded fro school until treatment begins and the student is symptom-free.

• During board comments, Wallace suggested more recognition for outstanding teachers and students by giving them certificates or gift baskets. McKinney pointed out the district usually holds an annual academic awards night, but said he would confer with principals on the idea.