Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
The Quay County Commission on Monday approved a $27,920 professional services contract with an Illinois company to improve the accuracy of certain property assessments in the county and provide training to the assessor’s office.
County manager Daniel Zamora recommended the contact with The Sidwell Co. of St. Charles, Illinois, to provide geographic information services for “problem areas” in about 1,000 tracts in Logan and in the Ute Lake area.
The company also will train county assessor employees on such data for future assessments.
Zamora said the more accurate data also would help investors and landowners.
County commissioner Jerri Rush initially was skeptical of the contract, noting GIS data already was available for agricultural land in the county. She also said she didn’t want foreign investors to buy land in the county.
Zamora responded Sidwell will help the county find buildings missing from assessments and improve their accuracy.
Apparently satisfied with Zamora’s explanation, Rush joined fellow commissioners Robert Lopez and Franklin McCasland in approving the pact.
In other business:
• Commissioners approved the usual $250,000 payments each for the third and fourth quarters from a mill levy and gross-receipts tax to Trigg Memorial Hospital.
Trigg administrator Vickie Gutierrez gave the first of what will be quarterly reports about the hospital. Reporting for calendar year 2021, Gutierrez said emergency-room visits were up by 750, mostly from COVID-19 infections.
The hospital administered more than 2,200 doses of COVID-19 vaccine, plus another 680 influenza shots. It performed 473 infusions, with more than half of monoclonal antibodies to COVID-19 patients.
Gutierrez said 12% of Trigg patients were transferred to other hospitals, compared to the national average of 10%. She said the hospital’s goal is to lessen such transfers.
• The approved a resolution requested by the United Way of Eastern New Mexico proclaiming February as 2-1-1 Month. Dialing 2-1-1 connects the caller to human services referrals he or she needs, including food pantries, rent or utility assistance, rape counseling, suicide prevention and domestic violence services. Erinn Burch of the United Way said the 2-1-1 service encompasses seven counties, and her office has taken 25,000 calls in the past 15 years.
• They approved applications for the Bard-Endee, Fire District 1, Forrest and Porter fire district volunteers to enroll in the state’s retirement system. Rush abstained from voting on Forrest because she is a firefighter there.
• They approved a resolution authorizing the county to submit an application to the New Mexico Department of Finance and Administration to participate in the local DWI grant and distribution program for fiscal year 2023, plus a statement of assurances and memorandum of understanding.
• They approved an amendment regarding Tucumcari Rawhide Days’ use of the fairgrounds on April 29 to May 2.
• They approved the appointment of Tonya Rigdon and Keith Bowen to the county’s protest board for property taxations. Vic Baum and Regina Duplantis are the alternates.
• They approved Lopez as the designee and Rush as an alternate to the Tucumcari Economic Development Board.
• They approved rescheduling its March 28 meeting to March 31 because the clerk and deputy clerk will be unavailable.
• They approved about $11,500 in claims in January and February submitted to the Indigent Claims Board.
• Jason Lamb of the Quay County Extension Office gave a quarterly report on its activities. He said the 4-H Rodeo last fall was its “biggest ever” and generated the most money for 4-H program.
• Road superintendent Larry Moore said construction of safety lanes for U.S. 54 at Quay Road AI, aka Airport Road, would begin in mid-September. Several serious accidents have occurred there over the years, partly because trucks sometimes use the road as a shortcut to Interstate 40. Moore said he was hopeful safety improvements could be added to the Mine Canyon Road intersection.
• Zamora observed a significant increase of gross receipts tax revenue in September, which he attributed to taxes from online purchases, such as Amazon.com, being funneled back to the county.