Hayoz hired as next city manager

Tucumcari's assistant city manager received a promotion.

The Tucumcari City Commission on Thursday voted 4-1 to hire Renee Hayoz, a former District 4 commissioner and an assistant city manager since September, as city manager in January.

Hayoz will replace Paula Chacon, who is retiring in December after a little more than two years at the helm.

After about a 45-minute closed executive session, Commissioner Jonathan Brito moved to hire Hayoz pending an agreement. Commissioner CJ Oglesby seconded.

Mayor Pro Tem Jerry Lopez cast the only dissenting vote against the hire.

Commissioners conducted interviews with Hayoz and two other candidates on Tuesday.

The commission late last year appointed Hayoz to fill the rest of Christopher Arias' District 4 term through 2025. Arias was elected to a four-year term in 2021, but he resigned for personal reasons in September 2023.

Hayoz resigned from the commission in July after she applied for the assistant city manager position.

The commission recently appointed Clayton Thorne as District 4 commissioner to replace Hayoz.

Hayoz previously was the administrator of the Quay County Family Health Center in Tucumcari since 2017.

Hayoz also was the clerk for the villages of Roy and Mosquero in neighboring Harding County and held other positions at the Pueblo of Sandia, Bernalillo County's Department of Substance Abuse Programs and New Mexico State Police.

The other candidates for city manager were Johnny DeSha, public works director of Portales, and Jeffery Pederson, city administrator of Baldwin, Wisconsin, according to documents the Quay County Sun obtained from the city.

A fourth candidate dropped out before interviews were conducted.

Action items

-- The commission tabled action on a lease proposal for a loader at the landfill until it receives more information.

Tomas Gallegos and Johnny Marshall presented a quote from 4Rivers Equipment in Albuquerque of a lease of $3,905.75 a month. The other option was buying the loader for about $259,000.

Gallegos recommended the lease because the current loader is 24 years old and near the end of its life. He said leasing is a better option because 4Rivers would repair it or provide a loaner in case of a breakdown.

He said the landfill has spent $31,000 the last four months on equipment repairs. Because of poorly operating equipment, including a compactor, he said the previous cell at the landfill filled up in half of its expected 15-year lifespan.

Gallegos said if the landfill shuts down due to problems, Tucumcari will have to haul its trash to Clovis at considerably more expense.

Thorne said he wanted to receive more maintenance records on equipment before making a decision.

Lopez expressed concerns over the uncertainty of city finances, but added that resolving problems at the landfill was a high priority.

"If we have a compactor not doing the job, we need to take steps," he said.

Gallegos said the landfill's bulldozer also is down due to electronic problems. He said he wanted to lease a bulldozer instead but alluded to previous mayor Ralph Moya persuading other commissioners in March 2023 to a lease buyout, claiming it was a model that would "last forever."

-- Commissioners approved a $63,117.44 professional services contract from Parkhill engineering for the second phase of a state permit renewal for the landfill.

Other items

-- Police Chief Patti Lopez said Chacon and Hayoz recently shepherded a one-year, free partnership with Best Friends Animal Society to transfer all dogs from the city kennel.

She said the Shelter Alliance also is helping provide low-cost vaccines for animals at the pound.

-- During commissioner comments, Lopez said the commission needs to consider a spending freeze – including hiring and promotions – because of the city's uncertain finances.

"We need to understand where we're at financially," he said.

He also asked for vegetation trimming at Main and Choctaw streets because of a blind spot there.

-- Thorne said the city needs to restore water access to Wailes Park, which is used for the summer Tucumcari Farmers Market.

He also said Dunn Park "looks terrible" due to full trashcans and battered facilities.

-- During public comments, Haley Place praised the flag-football program for 6- to 10-year-olds. Several Tucumcari High School football players provided instruction to the children.

Place also said crime is down in the city in the past six months, crediting the police chief and new District Judge Tim Rose.

Work session

Commissioners talked about possible revisions to the 2025 employee calendar and a draft of a dress code.

Oglesby said city employees ought to be given different clothing options due to weather conditions.

Commissioners also talked about a draft of the city's first-ever social-media policy for employees. Hayoz said the city attorney also is examining the draft.

Commissioners talked extensively about how different Facebook pages – including the police department and animal control division -- are moderated. Commissioners seemed inclined to let the city manager or department heads approve social-media posts.