Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
The Quay County Commission on Monday voted to vacate a section of land in the border town of Glenrio so a developer could build a recreational marijuana dispensary and other projects there.
Gabrielle Tuschak, managing partner of Amarillo-based Glenrio Properties, requested during a videoconference that the county vacate land on the village’s First Street and an alley because her company was struggling to obtain permits for infrastructure work.
Tuschak said her company wants to set up a dispensary. It would be just feet from the Texas border where recreational marijuana remains illegal. According to state records, Glenrio Properties already has obtained a cannabis license.
She also said she wanted to set up a food-truck park and, later, a tiny homes development.
The development received some pushback from local landowner Frank Gibson, who voiced his concerns to commissioners before the meeting. Commissioners agreed Gibson that other possible plans for Glenrio would affect his property.
Gibson said if his concerns weren’t addressed to his satisfaction, he no longer would cooperate with the county on other projects.
Commission Chairman Franklin McCasland said the county wouldn’t take any more action without consulting Gibson first.
“We want to do right and no step on anybody’s rights,” McCasland said.
Glenrio Properties last year purchased the land in the sparsely populated far eastern Quay County community and in February began razing or removing the roofs from long-abandoned buildings along old Route 66. It would be the first development in Glenrio in at least 40 years.
Once a small but busy Route 66 town with gas stations, a motel and restaurants along the New Mexico-Texas border, the town withered with the opening of Interstate 40 during the 1970s.
In other business:
• Commissioners approved a resolution to vacate 0.78 miles of Quay Road AZ after a brief public hearing. McCasland said the commission received no responses on the proposed closing of the road. Landowner Phil Bidegain requested the road’s closing.
• Commissioners approved the DWI Program’s first-quarter report from July through September. Program coordinator Andrea Shafer reported just four driving-while-intoxicated offenses during the period, with no accidents or fatalities. She said 98% of the DWIs in the county are by non-local offenders coming off Interstate 40 or U.S. 54.
• Commissioners approved a resolution to accept Eddy County’s donation of a decommissioned 2016 Ford F-250 vehicle to the sheriff’s department. Sheriff Russell Shafer said the vehicle has 106,000 miles and has four-wheel drive.
• Commissioners approved the purchase of a $380,312 tanker truck from Steele Fire Apparatus of Haskell, Texas, for the Bard-Endee Fire District. County fire marshal Lucas Bugg said a $300,000 state grant will cover much of the expense, with the rest in cash held by the district. Bugg said delivery of the truck is expected in two years.
• Commissioners approved an annual Department of Homeland Security and Emergency grant of $28,011.50 that will cover half of the salary and benefits of the county’s emergency manager, Paul Lucero. Commissioners also approved a resolution that updates the county’s emergency operations plan.
• Commissioners approved budget increases for the Tucumcari-Quay Regional Emergency Communications Center that includes higher internet technology costs, new software and vehicle fuel for out-of-town training. The budget hike also accounts for more gross-receipts tax revenue and decreased other entities’ revenue to conform with a new joint agreement.
• Commissioners approved a resolution for budget increases of $73,788 and $19,280 for the Rural II and Quay IV fire districts. Simpson said the budgets reflect state grants received during the previous fiscal year.
• Commissioners passed two resolutions requesting a one-year extension to use fiscal-year 2022 Co-op Project and school-bus road funds due to materials and employee shortages.
• Road superintendent Larry Moore said the contractor for a new low-water bridge on Old Route 66 between San Jon and Endee would begin pouring concrete walls this week. He also said a contractor would begin laying asphalt this week for safety improvements at U.S. 54 and Airport Road.
• County Assessor Janie Hoffman gave a report of a recent New Mexico Counties board meeting. She said the board set priorities for the New Mexico Legislature’s 2023 session that included detention center expense reimbursements, more public safety funding, more courthouse funding and how to deal with extensive open-records requests regarding elections. Commissioners discussed the difficulty of EMS workers gaining certification, especially in rural areas.
• During public comment, Greater Tucumcari Economic Development Corp. director Patrick Vanderpool gave a report on possible LEDA funds for retail and job training. He said there also was the possibility of programs for seasonal workers, which would benefit agricultural and Route 66 tourism sectors.