[Music]
You are now live.
Well, good afternoon everyone and
welcome to the city council meeting.
Today is Monday, July 7th, 2025. It's
approximately 100 p.m. I'm Mayor Eric
Enriquez. Before we start, I want to
mention that we have the ASL American
Sign Language interpreters available.
And we will start with a moment of
silence for the brave men and women of
the United States Armed Forces as they
protect our interests around the globe
as well as our courageous men and women
of the Los Cruus Police and Los Cru's
Fire Department.
Council Karen, if you lead us in the
pledge
to the flag of the United States of
America and to the republic for it
stands, one nation under God,
indivisible, with liberty and justice
for all.
Okay, we'll start with presentations
and we have anyone from the Sons of the
American Revolution.
See,
seeing none, um, do you think I should
read it or should we save this for
another week? Feels timely.
Maybe we wait.
Yeah, we can we can go ahead and wait
and when they're present.
Okay,
sounds good.
Then that's it.
That's all we had. Okay, thank you. Next
is job of the weeks, Sarah Rainey.
Hello, Sarah.
Hello, sir. Thank you.
Good afternoon everyone. My name is
Sarah Rainey. I'm the onetop coordinator
for the Southwest region of America's
job center New Mexico. We have the jobs
of the week for this week. Excuse me. We
have an engineering technician for the
city of Los Cruious Cruises starting at
22.85 an hour right now. That one is a
continuous posting. We have a consu
customer service representative too for
the city as well. um starting at 1740 an
hour and that one post that one closes
next week. We have a court compliance
secretary lead for Donana County. That
one starts at 1673 an hour and closes on
the 15th. That's next week as well. We
have multiple positions for the families
and youth in incorporated. Various pay
rates, various closings. They have quite
a bit on their website and on our
website.
For NMSU, there's a lab technician for
155 1545 an hour and that position is
open until filled. We also have a junior
farm management farm manager at
Stammen's um the Desert Grove location.
And then for our events, we've got quite
a bit going on here in July. Um this
week alone, we have Mountain Shadows
that will be at our office on Alamita on
Wednesday. They're going to be at our
office actually monthly. They will be
doing on the spot interviews and giving
out information about their
opportunities and services. Also on the
9th at the DACC workforce center on no
on Nevada, we're going to have an
employer round table. That one is
actually hosted by the state. Our state
secretary will be there to hear from
employers. all of our local employers,
business owners, everyone is welcome to
go and talk with everyone with the
workforce to let us know your challenges
and needs and everything that's
impacting business. Um, and you know
what we can do to we can show you what
we can do to help and then the state can
hear what we need to do to to change
basically and get bit better services
out there. We also have of course our
monthly job hope community of hope job
readiness. I can't talk today. um on the
16th. And that one of course is um for
anybody that's needing extra job
opportunities and employment services.
As always, come over to the Alama office
at 226 Alamita and you can find us on
any of our social medias and employm.
Thank you.
Thank you, Sarah. Next is pets of the
week with Carol
Good afternoon. I am Carol Nelson,
digital content specialist with the
Animal Services Center of the Messia
Valley. Just as a reminder, dog and cat
of the week, when they are promoted,
they have no adoption fee associated for
the week of promotion. This week, we
have Fessa uh 80931 as our dog of the
week. I'm a delightful pup on the hunt
for my forever home. I've been a star at
several off-site events where I showcase
my exceptional behavior and love for
adventure. I adore exploring the great
outdoors on a leash, sniffing out new
scents, and checking in with my human
sidekick. I'm a pro at minimal pulling.
I like I take treats like a lady and
know how to sit and shake, making
training a breeze. I'm affectionate and
curious with people I meet, but I prefer
a cat-free home to truly thrive. If
you're searching for a loving companion
who's ready to sprinkle joy into your
life, I might just be the one for you.
In this week's cat of the week, we have
Ham 92655.
I'm one of the young cats here at the
center. I've grown up in this place, so
I'm still learning how to socialize with
humans. I'm a curious little explorer,
always wandering around and checking out
new things. I love to have fun with my
siblings. We're always getting into
playful antics together. While I might
be a bit unsure about affection at
first, I do enjoy it when I give it a
chance. I do prefer to be on the move
rather than being held for too long. If
you're looking for a curious companion
who loves to explore and play, I might
just be the perfect match for you. Uh we
also want to highlight some of our
long-term residents who have been with
us 3 months or more. Um they are always
25 um if they have been at the center
for 3 months or more. So Peppa is
currently our longest resident for 337
days. She's been both at the shelter and
with a foster. So, she's a pretty good
one to adopt because she's been getting
more training. Mchiato has been with us
249 days. Rolley 234
and Eley 229. So, they're also really
good options if our pets of the week get
adopted. Uh this weekend we are going to
be at PetSmart on Friday. That should
say Friday July 11th um from 9 to 12.
And then we will be at the farmers
market on Saturday the 12th.
And as always, feel free to follow us on
social media or you can visit our
website for more information. Thank you.
All right. Thank you, Carol. Next is a
conflict of interest. Does any member of
city council, city manager, or any
member of the city staff have any known
conflict of interest with any item on
the agenda?
None. Flores.
None.
Okay, next we'll move to public
participation. We'll start here on the
left side in the front row. Uh allow up
to three minutes no pending litigation
or items that are on the non-consent
and Trina will usher you up to the
podium.
[Music]
Mayor, council, all the folks here today
and those watching online. I'm Lynn
Moore. Los Cusus utilities activities
regarding the lead and copper rule
continue to worsen. The city has now
manipulated and disappeared key records.
It's like cooking the books. EPA says an
online inventory is supposed to increase
the public's confidence in and
cooperation with the water system in
finding and replacing lead pipes. The
city's actions are having the opposite
effect. A key problem with the city's
online inventory has been its false
characterization of pipes as non-LED,
saying an installation date is after the
lead ban when the installation date was
actually prior to the lead ban in 1986.
That has been an obvious falsehood on
the online record for many properties in
Los Cusus. Rather than correcting the
record, Los Cusus Utilities has now
manipulated it so that problematic
information has been disappeared. The
online inventory now no longer shows the
service line installation date.
Additional information has also been
disappeared. the basis of the material
classification, whether it's a sensitive
population, whether it's a disadvantaged
neighborhood, and whether the service
line material was fieldverified. All
that's gone. Now, you can see in handout
one what the record for a property on
Fairway Drive showed on March 22nd, on
June 9th, and on June 17th. This is a
property whose system owned line the
city said was non-LED based on an
installation date after the lead ban
when the record shows the service line
was installed in 1972 14 years before
the lead ban. This property is on the
list of deficiencies I provided you on
May 19th. Sometime between June 9th and
June 17th the city dealt with a problem
by just disappearing the installation
date and the basis of material
classification. Every property similarly
situated with an originally false
characterization now no longer has an
installation date in the record. All
these obvious problems have been
manipulated away. Also, for this
property on Fairway Drive, the
characterization of the systemowned
portion of the service line has been
mysteriously changed from non-LED other
on June 9th to non-LED plastic on June
17th
with no basis provided. Handout two
contains the record for a property on
Mondale Loop captured on four different
dates. On March 15th, the record
indicates that both lines were non-LED
plastic based on a field inspection. On
March 18th, 3 days later, the record
indicated the lines were non-LED plastic
without stating any basis and also
stating that the service line material
was not fieldverified. The record on
April 21st again states there was no
field verification. Finally, the record
on June 17th, which reflects the
disappearing of the five categories of
information, now says nothing at all
about field verification. If you were
considering buying this house, but kept
being confronted online with changing or
disappearing information regarding lead
pipes, you likely would consider this to
be a fraud by the city against Los Cus's
taxpayers. One cannot reasonably argue
that these are honest mistakes. This is
intentional manipulation. This is
dishonest. An independent engineer is
needed because this is dishonest.
This is dishonest.
And your time is up. Thank you.
Thank you for this opportunity to speak.
This is not a small matter. Thank you
very much for your consideration.
[Applause]
[Music]
Mayor, city council, I'm Liz Rodriguez
Johnson. EPA says that service line
inventories required by the lead and
copper rule are the foundation from
which water systems take action to
address lead service lines. They are key
to getting lead lines replaced and
protecting public health. I'm disturbed
by what appears to be Lasus's utilities
manipulation of records for properties
in the online inventory. Handout A
indicates manipulation of dates other
than statements
for a property on Hillsdale Street. On
March 22nd, the record declared both
lines to be non-lab plastic but provided
no basis. It also said that the service
line material had not been
fieldverified. By contrast, the record
on June 9 said that a visual inspection
took place at the water meter meter pit
on December 19th, three months prior to
the March 22nd record, which declared
that no field verification had occurred.
Then a record on June 17th for this
property says, by contrast, that a
visual inspection took place at the
meter pit on December 18th, a day prior
to the date stated in the June 9th
record. All these records can't be
correct. So which record is to be
believed? None of them. Handout B shows
what appears to be manipulation of the
online record for a property on Joy
Lane. On March 22nd, the record stated
that the entire service line was
unknown. This is despite the fact that
it also declared that both the system
and the customerown lines are non-led
without providing any basis. Then on
June 9th, the record changed and and
stated that the entire service line was
non-LED, no longer being unknown. No
basis is provided for this change. Then
on June 17th, the record changed back
and again stated that the entire service
line is unknown. All this apparent
manipulation wack confidence in the
Lasurus' utilities integrity. This seems
to be intentional disregard for the
rules requirements. This also appears to
be intentional disregard for the people
of Lascuruses, including all the folks
with low income, the folks who live in
the oldest parts of the city where lead
pipes are the most likely to be, and all
the folks who don't understand what's
going on and what's at stake. Handout C
shows 11 neighborhoods out of many that
have been left out of the city's
inventory. They don't appear to have any
water hookups. Water hookups are
designated with a green dot for non-led,
a yellow triangle for unknown, or a
purple square for galvanage requiring
replacement. If they don't show up on
the map, these folks have been ignored
by the city or forgotten, and this is
just unacceptable. I do not understand
the logic behind spending time and money
to obscure an issue rather than to fix
it. Especially when the health of Lasusa
citizens is at stake here, particularly
the health of citizens in the older
parts of town where citizens do not or
cannot afford to adequately stock
drinkable water. Resolving this issue
must start with the correct preparation
and maintenance of this inventory. Thank
you.
[Applause]
Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. My
name is John Bernichek. I am a um reside
in district 2. Mr. Matis, how are you
today, sir? Um, my comments are directed
mainly towards uh my representative and
also also
Sir, excuse could could you raise the
microphone up and speak directly in
there? So,
no problem. Thank you.
Thank you.
All right. Um, my comments, sir, are for
you my representative and also um for
you our please chief sir. Um, I'm just
making you aware of our situation. First
of all, uh, Mr. story. I want to
compliment you on your officers are very
professional. I I do appreciate that
about them. The pride that you guys have
alongside your cars, they do exemplify
that and thank you for that. Sir, uh Mr.
Matise, I'm letting um yourself and our
uh police chief um be aware of a
situation. I live in the area between uh
Espino and Salano and Missouri area and
Round University and um there has been a
problem since I very first moved here
since uh 2012 of um some vandalism. I
just recently had my uh house
vandalized, my car vandalized. It was
keyed or my truck it was keyed. um
attempted breakins
um not only of my house but of my
vehicles around me. My next door
neighbor was broken into. The neighbor
across the street caddy corner to me was
also broken into. Uh you can find all
this sir if you take a look in your
records. Um and what I would like sir is
something to be done about this. Okay.
Um there's also a lot of uh vagrancy. Uh
there's um
kids between the a uh and between the
ages of between 14 and 19. All right.
That have been going around the area a
lot. And now I got a little, you know, I
tend to just ignore things unless I'm
seeing somebody walking around in that
area and they have a hoodie on. In this
kind of weather, you don't wear a
hoodie. Okay. Um and uh it's just been
getting bad. We've I've had my pets
stolen also. Um
there's um a lot of uh about between 8
uh or 2000 and um 2,300. There are
vehicles that just zoom right up and
down my street right there on Gardener.
Okay. They are not doing no 25 miles an
hour. They're doing a lot faster, sir.
Um there's disturbances in the middle of
the night now. Yes, I do. I'm a little
more aware of uh, you know, things that
happen at night, you know, considering I
served six years in United States Marine
Corps and a combat veteran that served
my country with pride. Thank you, sir,
for your time. Thank you, Mr. Mayor.
Have a good day.
Hello, city council, mayor, community of
Los Cusus. My name is Liz Bennett.
Chances are that the food you ate this
weekend was planted, picked,
transported, cooked, and served by the
immigrant community. Chances are your
home and office was constructed and
maintained by the immigrant community.
Chances are that the entertainment and
hospitality you enjoyed while traveling
was provided by the immigrant community.
Chances are that some of the most
precious in your neighborhood, children
and the elderly are cared for by the
immigrant community. This community pay
up to a hundred billion dollars in taxes
each year, are less likely to commit
crimes and contribute to vast talent,
heritage, innovation, and grit in our
society.
What we are witnessing by the federal
government are acts of greed, hubris,
and supremacy on a national scale. Talk
of border invasions and dangerous
criminals is meant to stoke fear and
manufacture consent for the design and
implementation of systems of subjugation
that serve to produce forced labor for
the ruling class. If you want to peak
into one of the possible futures of this
plan being enacted, you have to look no
further than Florida's Alligator
Alcatraz, a concentration camp built in
eight days by private companies who are
paid millions in FEMA dollars. Located
in the Everglades National Park, people
are currently being held hostage in
hurricane prone marshes among alligator
and python infested waters. Under
Florida's 287g program, led by ICE,
local law enforcement are allowed to
interrogate individuals and detain them
at this facility. The bloated, bigoted
budget signed into law this weekend
allocates $45 billion for building new
detention centers. This is a 265%
increase in the ICE detention budget.
Additionally, the budget includes $30
billion for ICE enforcement and
deportation operations. The federal
government is doubling down on
investments in discrimination,
incarceration, and slave labor. Is it
enough to be carinos friendly and
welcoming in the face of kidnapping,
detention, torture, and death?
We are here to call on all of our
community to protect those we hold dear,
those we depend on, and those that we
value and cherish within our community.
It's time to strengthen our city
ordinances, commit our local law
enforcement to protecting human rights,
and fight for a statewide action like
new New Mexico House Bill 9, the
immigrant safety act. I want to implore
all members of this council to take your
role seriously in this moment to act now
and act courageously. Thank you.
Good afternoon, council. My name is
Lindley Hornsby. She her pronouns,
resident of district 4. Um, Immigration
and Customs Enforcement along with the
Department of Homeland Security continue
to terrorize communities across the US.
Um, in addition to uh Alligator
Alcatraz, we have the Marines headed to
Florida to assist um ICE and Department
of Homeland Security in um disappearing
community members.
You know, I'm just thinking about what
it might be like to be in your shoes
right now when our federal government is
reigning terror on our country. and um
yeah, how how it could feel powerless
right now being a municipal leader. Um
however, our community is trusting you
to protect us and we believe that you
can do it um and that you can use your
power and privilege um within the
positions that you have to continue to
support our immigrant community. Um,
here in New Mexico, dozens of community
members have been disappeared by ICE.
And I'm proud to say that here in the
city of Los Cusus, um, we have
resolutions to support our immigrant
community. Um, resolution 18-075,
um, a resolution reaffirming the city of
Los Cru's commitment to creating
equality of place to live and work
through non-discrimination in all areas
of city government and declaring the
city a welcoming city. Um, I really
appreciate the the non-discrimination
clauses here in this resolution. Um, and
in addition, we have resolution uh
22059,
which is in support of a pathway to
citizenship um for New Mexico's
immigrant families. Um, so I really
appreciate in advance um the city of Los
Cusus uh continuing to work hard to not
only uphold these resolutions but also
um to strengthen them and look at our
practices um and ensuring that we are um
abiding by them um especially during
times of um severe persecution uh led by
our federal government. Um, and as you
all continue to fight back um against
the the threats of fascism, knowing that
your community is fighting alongside you
and that the community may continue to
practice civil disobedience um resisting
the threats of fascism that we're seeing
right now. And I really want to
encourage the council to um continue to
honor um civil disobedience and not
intimidate um organizers in the
community away from pushing for the
change that we so desperately need right
now.
To be continued. Thank you.
[Applause]
Good afternoon, city council mayor. My
name is Heron Cave. I live in district
2. I'm here to ask this council to
approve city resolution 18075, which was
just mentioned, and general order 166.
The last time our immigrant relatives,
friends, and neighbors were under as
profound an attack as they are today,
the city council took action. In
December of 2017, the city council
passed a resolution presented by the Los
Cruus' police chief, Haime Mononttoya
and city attorney Jennifer Bee Brown to,
as it was stated, um, com reaffirm
Lasus' commitment to non-discrimination
in all areas of city government and
declaring us a welcoming community. The
resolution affirmed the city's human
rights ordinances and policies of the
police department which include general
order 165 requiring equitable and fair
treatment of all individuals and general
order 166 which says that the Los Cuses
Police Department is not authorized to
detain or arrest any person based on
their nationality or ethnicity and
prohibits LCPD from inquiring or seeking
proof of a person's immigration status.
The resolution also affirms that the
city manager shall enact or bring
forward for consideration any policy
that furthers the purposes and intent of
this resolution and upholds the city of
Los Cruus as a welcoming community for
immigrants. To that end, we ask that the
city take the following steps. Amend
General Order 166 to not allow for
exceptions to city employees asking
about a person's immigration status.
Amend 166 to close loopholes for
detaining a person based on suspicion
alone. LCPD policy should instead be
that no employee of the city shall
arrest, detain, or prolong the detention
of an individual for purposes of
enforcing any federal immigration um any
immigration violation and amend or
affirm GO166 to to add that no city
employee will aid or support ICE
operations in the city. The Denver mayor
has promised to take ICE to court if it
targets people in sensitive locations
such as schools, churches, and
hospitals. Mayor Enriquez can do the
same. Proactively pass a resolution
forbidding the use of section 287 G
agreements which deputize local officers
to work with ICE. Ban ICE agents from
wearing masks, wearing plain clothes,
and using unmarked cars. These are
tactics of terror and uh tactics of an
authoritarian police state that hides
from accountability. This needs to end
in the next legislative session. The
city of Los Cruus can support with its
lobbying resources critical human rights
bills like 2025's HB9, known as the
Immigrant Safety Act. And finally, we
should adopt a full sanctuary city
status. For those who are willing to bow
down to the grotesque, racist Trump
administration threats to cut off
federal funding from sanctuary cities,
I'll remind you that increased terror
and kidnapping people off our streets is
what disrupts businesses and local
economies. Also instructive here is that
the 10th amendment to our constitution
prevents the federal government from
using these threats. Any co coercive
threats to force a local government into
adopting federal programs or enforcing
federal laws is prohibited under the
10th amendment. Namely, any of these
evershifting, always racist policies of
the current president. Thank you.
[Applause]
Hello, city council. I'm Lucas H.
Hearnen, resident of District 2. As we
stand here today, the shadows of fear
and uncertainty loom large over many of
our neighborhoods, friends, and family
members due to the aggressive actions of
ICE and the militarization of police
across our nation. It is in this context
that we must re-evaluate our city's
stance on protecting the most vulnerable
among us. While our existing resolution
reaffirms reaffirming our commitment to
non-discrimination and welcoming
immigrants has been a beacon of hope,
the current climate demands that we go
further. The Los Cusus Police
Department's General Order 166 enacted
on August 16th, 2011 was a significant
step towards ensuring that our law
enforcement practices respect the rights
of all individuals regardless of their
immigration status. However, a closer
examination reveals that it still
permits the disclosure of an
individual's immigration status to ICE
under certain circumstances. This
loophole undermines the very essence of
our commitment to be a welcoming comm
community. It is imperative that we
address this gap and ensure that our
policies are robust and unequivocal in
their protection of all residents. To
truly be a sanctuary for those seeking
safety and a better life, we must adopt
a new resolution that categorically
prohibits our local police from
collaborating with ICE or any other
federal immigration agency under any
circumstances. The trust between our
community and law enforcement is fragile
to say the least. It is no secret that
many people including myself don't trust
the police. Even as people born in this
country with relatives dating back
before New Mexico was a state, New
Mexico remains the most violent and
dangerous state for citizens when it
comes to being killed by police. Given
this mistrust, it is clear that more
must be done to make the Los Cusus
community at large feel safer in regards
to police overreach and power. The new
resolution we propose must be clear and
unwavering. Under no circumstances
should our local police be involved in
federal immigration enforcement. This
means not only not sharing information,
not detaining individuals based on
immigration status, and not
participating in ICE operations, but
expanding the resolution to remove the
word may from general order 166.01
line C and replace it with shall not.
Furthermore, the new resolution should
reinforce and expand upon the principles
outlining outlined in our existing
policies. It should ensure that city
employees are prohibited from inquiring
about immigration status, that personal
identifying information is safeguarded,
and that access to non-public city areas
by federal immigration agents is
strictly limited. By adopting this new
resolution, we will be sending a
powerful message that Los Cusus is
committed to being a safe haven for
everyone, regardless of their
immigration status. We will be
reaffirming our values of justice,
equality, and compassion. We will be
protecting the dignity and rights of our
residents and ensuring that our
community remains a place where everyone
can live without fear of persecution or
discrimination. I urge you council, take
this critical step, draft and support a
new resolution that goes further than
our current one. Let us make it
unequivocally clear that Los Cusus
stands in solidarity with its
undocumented community members. Let us
ensure that our policies are a beacon of
hope and safety for those who need it
most. Together, we can make a difference
and uphold the principles that make our
community strong and resilient.
[Applause]
Good afternoon, Mayor, City Council. My
name is Axel Hail for the record. Um, I
have lived in Las Cusus my entire life.
Born here, continue to live here. And
to have lived in this community, is to
see the impact the immigrants have had
in our community. We live in Los Cusus,
the city of the crosses.
Um I don't consider myself to be
particularly religious but if you look
at the scripture it is you know is
fundamentally said to love thy neighbor
to care and protect our immigrants is to
love thy neighbor. I currently reside um
over off El Camino Royale uh out near
the fields and the orchards and I see
every day people in the fields who work
harder than some people I know working
an entire year in that single morning
to see that to see the culture that we
have here in Los Cusus you know our the
historic Messia district these things
that have fundamentally been created by
Hispanic culture we can't have these
things and
embrace them as part of our community
without also acknowledging the fact of
where they came from, the people who
established them, the culture behind
them and the importance of that. I also
I work for a church that church that has
historically
um acted as a refuge center for
immigrants.
And to see that to see this community
and the way that immigrants have taken
care of me personally and so many other
people I know and I I just I call upon
you and further implore the importance
of what they are saying
that our immigrant community members
need to be protected. And when the
federal government is doing the exact
opposite of that, when they are actively
attacking these the most vulnerable
people, it falls to you, our local and
state governments, to put these
protections in place, to say, "No, we
are not going to allow that here.
You guys have the power to do this."
And I implore you to use it to make sure
that these things are upheld here and
furthered
to keep our entire community safe in the
name of what Los Cusus really stands
for. Thank you.
[Applause]
Good afternoon. Uh, my name is Zach
Egan. Um, I am a resident in district 6
and uh, I just want to thank you all for
the opportunity to speak. I want to uh
begin by expressing my gratitude for the
city council's leadership in adopting
different resolutions which help to
support and protect um our community as
an inclusive um place to live.
Um
one of the things that uh resolution
1875 has done is it helped to ensure
that our local law enforcement remains
focused on fair and unbiased policing.
Policies like this help to build trust
in our community and ensure that Los
Cusus continues to be inclusive and
fair.
But we are currently at a pivotal moment
in our nation's history. As federal
pressures rise, there's increasing
concern that police departments may be
asked to assist with civil immigration
enforcement, uh, which erodess community
trust and makes everyone less safe.
People who fear deportation are less
likely to report crimes or cooperate
with law enforcement. And this is why
I'm asking that the council expand the
current resolution um or uh past
resolutions or add new resolutions or
add amendments um that make clear that
Los Cusus police will not support ICE
operations.
This expanded policy would strengthen
public safety, protect vulnerable
residents, and reaffirm our city's
values. It would also include provisions
such as barring ICE from sensitive
locations like schools and hospitals,
protecting confidentiality in city
systems, and requiring public reporting
on ICE related activity. These are
common sense protections that keep Los
Cusus safe and united. Thank you for
your continued leadership, and I urge
you to support next steps in keeping us
safe.
[Applause]
Hi there. My name is Rebecca Egan. Um,
and I'm a special education teacher at
Herosa Heights. Um, I work with a ton of
students and families. And one of the
things that I love most about Los Cusus,
um, is when I can see that culture of
support and trust within our community.
Um, one example of that is our walking
school bus that our school hosts where
um, staff will join students and
volunteers to walk those students to
school. And that's where I kn know you,
Mayor Enriquez, and that's such a
beautiful thing to see. Um, it's just so
meaningful to see members of our
political community involved with kind
of the boots on the ground community.
Um, so I'd like to speak today on behalf
of the students that I work with. Many
of my students are immigrants or they
come from immigrant households.
Um to give a little bit of context to
where a lot of the parents come from in
these situations, the information that
they're reading and contextualizing our
schools within. Um the LA Times reported
that Plain Close Homeland Security
Investigation ICE officers went to two
different schools in the Los Angeles
area. Um they were reluctant to show
their IDs. They lied about having
parental authority to speak to these
first graders, these second graders.
um they did not present the school with
court orders or documents and thankfully
the schools denied them entry and did
not allow them access
to um those vulnerable students.
Um to also contextualize what Homeland
Security and investigation or Homeland
Security Investigation usually does,
they're usually conducting criminal
probes into smuggling operations, drug
trafficking, and other major
transnational crimes. and I really don't
see what place they have in the schools.
And these are the ICE officers who are
coming to our community and creating
this culture of fear and threat among
our student population.
Um, if you think that immigrant parents
don't fear something like this within
our community, again, you're wrong.
Like, I'm not even an immigrant and it's
something in my mind like what'll I do
whenever ICE, if ICE shows up at the
school, asks to speak to one of my kids.
Um, sorry. Uh without action by the
city, we are in peril of trading our
supportive community for one that is
prioritizing fear and mistrust.
Uh schools should not be places of fear.
Homes should not be places of fear. The
impacts that reckless ICE actions,
sorry,
are going to have um they ripple in the
school systems, they ripple into
families, they ripple into communities.
From the angles that I can see,
attendance is going to drop. And we're
going to be setting up the next
generation of thinkers and leaders, not
only with a lack of education, but also
with an expectation of fear and
mistrust. This is not just about the
students from immigrant households, as
any damage to a student population is
not an isolated event. It affects the
entire student body. This is a quant
for the next generation. Do we want ones
who trust others and believe in the
goodness of others or ones who frame the
world as a place of fear?
Thank you very much. I can see that you
all love and care about your community.
Thank you for attending walking schools.
I know I don't get a chance to talk to
you, but have a lovely day and thank you
for providing this platform.
[Applause]
Mayor Council Juan Garcia, White Rabbit
is an iconic song of the 60s acid era
uses imagery from Alice in Wonderland to
illustrate the surreal effects of taking
hallucinogenic drugs. And I quote, "One
pill makes you larger and one pill makes
you small. And the ones that mother
gives you don't do anything at all. So
go ask Alice when she's 10 feet tall.
End of quote. When I first heard this
song, it made no sense. The song
critiques adults prioritize logic over
imagination and urges questioning
authority and societal norms. Fast
forward to 2025 and instead of hearing
the lyrics of a classic song, I'm
bombarded by phrases like, and I quote,
"Militarized border, democracy is dying,
no kings, we live in a fascist nation,
people will die in the streets after the
reconciliation bill passes. We're in a
constitutional crisis. Kidnaps are
taking place in our streets. And of
course, our favorite, concentration
camps are being built for children.
People even say it feels wrong to
celebrate Independence Day. And I see
the American flag flown upside down
throughout the community. The whole
atmosphere just feels surreal. Just like
in the song, there are efforts to
normalize illegal, and I stress illegal
entry into this country. While
anarchists riot, destroy property and
attack law enforcement under the guise
of quote mostly peaceful protests. Some
come to this podium and use madeup drama
about rifles being pointed at seniors
and kids.
Even though LCPD, in my opinion, simply
had observers during the demonstrations
at Johnson Park. I listened to our
progressive friends call our local
police murderers. They say it like these
officers leave home not to protect
people but to hunt down someone because
of the color of their skin. This is a
morbid attempt to undermine what law
enforcement we have left setting the
stage for a community that ultimately
embraces quote defund the police. A bus
tour is celebrating women in sports.
Title N was vandalized in Albuquerque in
broad daylight as an attempt to silence
through violence and intimidation. None
of it makes sense to me because most
progressives see nothing good in our
nation today. Today, it's not about
drugs fogging up people's minds. It's
darker anger, but mostly it's a raw
boiling hatred for one man and for
anyone who dares to push back against
the march towards a future that is
hellbent on tearing this great country
apart piece by piece. And I continue
when logic and proportion have fallen
sloppy dead and the white knight is
talking backwards
and the red queen's off with her head.
Remember what the door mouse said. Feed
your head. Thank you.
Mayor Council Steve Kleti. Just a couple
of weeks ago, I had the pleasure of
standing in Constitutional Hall, the
very room where that great document was
debated and signed. I marveled what had
happened there and the greatness of the
men who had been there. Flawed men who
disagreed on a lot of points. Many did
not like many of the others in the room,
but all had the best interest of the
American people at heart, albeit with
some flaws in their logic tainted by the
times that they lived in. The most
obvious being the issue of slavery, but
all wanting to improve the way men were
governed. And they wrote a document that
allowed continued improvement. You
Democrats were awfully upset when we
took your slaves away. While in
Philadelphia, I heard a comparison that
I found quite interesting. The
difference between good leaders and
wannabe tyrants. The good leaders
present solutions that allow the govern
to accept or not of their own free will.
The wannabe tyrants say, "The apocalypse
is coming and we're allowed to do
anything to forestall it, including
control you." I'm here today to respond
to the absolutely absurd comments made
by from the dis regards our attempt to
have realized Los Cusus placed on the
ballot.
Some really absurd things came out of
your mouths. I don't have time to
address most of them, but I will address
the most grievous. Inclusion has never
been an American value, and it never
will be. While certain a utop utopian
charm that appeals to those on the left,
those people haven't thought it all the
way through. Inclusion is an
impossibility.
What has made America great for all
these years is that we are big enough,
bold enough, and I dare say great enough
to house differing valuing systems and
different idea systems under the
American umbrella while keeping our
different values intact. The bottom line
is certain value systems will never mix.
Inclusion is merely a word used by the
progressive power elite, which means
we're going to force our ideas on
society by determining which values we
deem acceptable and thereby included and
then by default which value systems will
be excluded. We on the right are not
impressed with your goal of being
inclusive. We believe in live and let
live, but we're not going to give up our
values to ponder pander to someone
else's feelings because they can't
achieve their goals on their own. So,
no, I'm not interested in being
inclusive. You may say that makes me a
segregationist. Then that is a badge
that I will proudly wear because I stand
on my values.
Thank you.
Uh, my name is Sylvia Yansy.
I wasn't planning on speaking today and
everything I can say I believe has been
said better by my friends here today. I
moved to Cru's in 2020 and I've grown to
love it here. I have found strong
community, great friends that I can rely
on and who can rely on me. I'm terrified
of what's happening in America today. We
see people being kidnapped off the
streets, away from their families and
away from their communities. I'm
terrified for my friends and even for
myself and my family.
Please continue to protect our community
and do not give in to the threats made
by the current Trump administration. I
want to see your community thrive and
I'm sure you all do too. Thank you.
[Applause]
very tall.
Hello, council. I'm Roy Gi Dil, a drag
artist, also a local of Los Cusus from
District 2. I wanted to echo what a few
of my peers are requesting from you and
the council um in regards to
strengthening the existing policies,
namely resolution 22059,
which is in support of a pathway to
citizenship for New Mexico uh families
as well as resolution 18075
where it states that uh the city of Los
Cusus is a diverse welcoming community
and the city to all im immigrants. Um,
namely, I just hope that we are
considering the values of what makes the
city of Los Cusus um, as hospitable as
we try to portray
um, especially um, our community and
country being structured on the backs of
immigrants. I want to ensure we protect
those who are fighting to keep their
rights and voices in this time like
this. Um, being an immigrant is not a
criminal offense on stolen land.
Thank you so much.
[Applause]
Good afternoon. Diane Starbucks for the
record. I'm speaking with animal
advocates for change today. Um I would
like to thank the city council and the
mayor once again for passing the new
animal ordinance. It is much
appreciated. Now that breeding without a
license is illegal. The city needs to
inform the public of rules and
regulations of the new ordinance.
Education was one of the acknowledged
necessities of having a new ordinance
and illegal breeding continues to be an
issue. It is blatant on Facebook pages,
specifically animals of Los Cruus.
People on this site have been told
they're breaking the law and they don't
seem to care very much. Please uphold
the intent of the new ordinance with
education of the public and appropriate
enforcement. Thank you.
[Applause]
Uh good afternoon. My name is Jim Hurst.
Uh,
I like diversity and inclusion. I think
that's what they meant. Our founders
meant by the phrase e pluribus unum
though many won.
Um, on June 14th of this year in
Minnesota, John Hoffman and Melissa
Hortman were attacked by an asalent with
an inflated hatred for Democrats. The
asalent shot John Hoffman seven times
and his wife eight times. Fortunately,
John Huffman and his wife survived the
attack. On the same day, Melissa Hortman
and her husband were attacked by the
same asalent. He murdered them both. Two
legislators, two spouses, and two
murders.
This was only three weeks ago. There's
so much news these days that many events
that deserve our attention fade into
forgetfulness despite their
significance. We recognize the
sacrifices and ris risks taken by law
enforcement and first responders. We
also need to recognize our elected
officials for their bravery it takes for
the bravery it takes to be an elected
public servant these days. I don't think
our elected representatives deser desire
agilation but they do deserve respect.
We must be conscientious of their
privacy and security, particularly
concerning their children and spouses.
It is inappropriate to discuss where
elected officials live on social
networks.
Even if you don't give their address,
it's wrong to give general information
that could be useful to an attacker. It
is wrong to discuss their children or
provide any information that might aid
an asalant. We must be united in our v
our vigilance to protect them and their
families. We must be careful what we
post on social networks. The golden rule
applies here. If you were an elected
official, would you want
this information posted about you and
your family?
If we uh I know we can't agree on many
things but we must agree on this if we
wish to have any kind of a democratic
government.
I also want to say a word about
immigration.
It is not illegal to seek asylum in the
United States.
Donald Trump has made asylum a dirty
word by associating it with nuts. Asylum
is a perfectly legitimate word for a
country that has as as one of its
mottos, give me your huddled masses,
yearning to breathe free. That is what
America stands for, what it stood for,
and why there are 320 million people who
want to live here. Thank you very much.
Good afternoon, Mayor, City Council,
Chief of Police. Tim Jenkins here. I
come to you today as a citizen of Los
Cruus. You know me. You know who I am. I
don't have to cover my face with a mask
to hide my identity as others do. It's
outrageous to me to hear the disgusting
rhetoric from certain individuals about
our police department. Let's set the
record straight here. There were no
rifles or snipers ever being pointed at
elderly people or children. That is only
a tactic used by a certain demographic
of people to spread fear and hate
against our police department.
The exact same individuals that came
before you all screaming and yelling
that the police department didn't do
their job in a timely manner at the
Young Park shooting are now the exact
same people here mad and offended at the
police department for being there to
protect them from any trouble. You don't
get to have it both ways. Our police
force is in no way militarized as some
suggest. And I want to thank our police
department for being actively present
and at Friday's protest to keep the
community safe despite what some may
say. The Los Cruus Police Department has
done an outstanding job this year to
gather the community to bring together
to encourage and to comfort and to
support this city in every effort to
make it safer for all. As for me and my
family, we stand with them. We support
them. We back them and we fight right
alongside them.
And it is highly offensive for certain
individuals to come up here and actively
degrade our police department to their
faces. Our police department doesn't
just doesn't just order people. They are
here to protect and to serve the
community for the safety of all. And I
personally have firsthand experience of
this every single day with our police
department. God bless and protect our
officers and bring them home safely to
their families and their loved ones.
[Applause]
Hi, my name is Dana Hopkins and I live
in district 4. And I wasn't planning to
speak today. I came to observe, but I've
now heard two people say that there were
no police officers with rifles aimed at
a crowd that was protesting and I was
there and yes, there were. And I'm a
community elder and I was standing with
children. So, yes, there were rifles
aimed at us. I could see them. I don't
have this by anecdote or somebody else
told me so. I could see them. I saw
officers with rifles entering the
library and later saw them on the
balcony.
Beyond that, thank you for your labor.
My apologies for my phone going off and
whatever that guy's t-shirt is behind
me. My pray flag has a rainbow on it.
Thank you.
[Applause]
Next is the acceptance of agenda.
Move to approve. Second by Flores.
This is on the motion to accept the
agenda as presented. Councelor Mccclur.
Yes.
Councelor Matise.
Yes.
Councelor Graham is absent. Councelor
Karan,
yes.
Councelor Fletus,
yes.
Councelor Ben Como is absent. And mayor,
yes.
Okay, we'll start with resolutions and
ordinance for discussion. 7.1 is a
public hearing resolution number 26S004,
a resolution approving the request for a
restaurant, a beer and wine license on
the premises of consumption at Jim Bob's
Barbecue
located at 8960 Z Boulevard.
Move to approve. Oh, wait. Is this the
public comment? Sorry. Sorry. Take it
back. Put it on.
Yeah. Let me let me read the So, this is
a public hearing is now open. The time
is
2:00 p.m.
Is there anyone here for or against the
issuance of this liquor license?
Seeing none, the public hearing is now
closed. It's 2 p.m.
Move to approve.
Second by Flutus.
Okay, go ahead, Adam.
Thank you, Mayor Adam Community
Development. For the record, uh, what we
have before you is a proposed Zer
license for Jim Bob's Barbecq LLC
located at 8960 Zia Boulevard, or better
yet, the airport, if y'all yall know
where that is. Uh, the application is
for a restaurant, a type A beer and wine
liquor license with on premise
consumption only. Uh, the alcoholic
beverage control uh, division of the
state did send preliminary approval uh,
to the city on May 2nd of this year. Uh
we did request an extension for the
hearing in order to hold the the public
hearing today. All reviewing staff uh
saw no issues with the application.
Give a better idea. Here is the airport.
There is Zia Boulevard there. And Jim
Bobs is right here in what is sweet A of
a 8960 uh Zia.
So your options one to vote yes and uh
vote to approve the proposed liquor
license and two to vote no or and deny.
uh the alcoholic pep control uh agency
will be notified of the vote and I will
continue the application process. Uh
that is the conclusion of my
presentation and I stand for questions.
Thank you Adam. Any questions by
councel?
Seeing none Christine.
This is on the motion to approve
resolution 26-004.
Councelor McClur.
Yes.
Councelor Matise.
Councelor Graham is absent. Councelor
Karan,
yes. Councelor Fletus,
yes.
Councelor Ben Como,
yes.
Mayor,
yes.
Next is resolution number 26 uh-005
uh resolution approving amendments of
the collect and bargaining bargaining
agreement between the city of Los Cusus
and the Los Cusus Police Officers
Association.
Move to approve. Second by Flores.
All right. I'll say
right. Good afternoon, mayor, city
council members. My name is Jose Vargas.
I'm the assistant director of human
resources here at the city of Oscars.
And today I'll be presenting to you the
resolution for the police collective
bargaining agreement reopener. So before
we get into the resolution itself, give
you guys a couple of bullets for
background. Um, city council approved
the collective bargaining agreement back
on October 3rd, 2022. And the current
agreement runs through October 3rd,
2025.
Section 16 of this agreement allows for
either party to come forward with a
non-economic section and an economic
section to renegotiate. And the union
did come forward with that.
So negotiations began on October 3rd,
2024, and negotiations concluded on May
6th, 2025. The two sections that were
selected for reopening was section 36
professional standards for the
non-economic and section 22 holidays for
the economic.
So section 36 professional standards the
verbiage that was added was essentially
to clarify who could participate in
these types of investigations.
So the verbiage that was added reads,
"Investigation shall be conducted by
LCPD internal affairs investigators or
designated supervisor. Outside observers
during the interrogations may include
Los Cusus Police Officer Association,
Fraternal Order Police Representatives,
or others allowed by the New Mexico
Peace Officers Employer Employee
Relations 29-14-4
or as revised
for the economic section 22 holidays. Uh
the changes that were made to that
section was employees would receive 20
hours of personal leave per calendar
year. As it currently stands, uh
represented individuals receive 16 hours
of personal leave per calendar year.
Couple of other changes would be
employees could cash in any remaining
personal leave balances at the end of
the year. That'll be paid with the last
pay period of the year up to 80 hours at
a ratio of 40 or 4:1, sorry.
Um, and the same would apply for
employees who retire completing at least
50 50% or more of the year. They would
also have the option to cash in any
remaining personal leave balances at the
same ratio of 4:1.
So, with that said, I give you your
council options, but I do have to leave
you with a disclaimer. Um, there does
mean an amendment need to be made to the
resolution. There is a current typo as
it stands. Um the typo is there's 40
hours of personal leave written in the
resolution and it should be 80 hours.
Okay. And with that said, I'll stand for
any questions.
Any questions by council
floation?
Um, so why would you have 40 hours when
Well, anyway, so we'll just accept it
verbally from you and you all know it's
uh it it covers the 80 hours. No. Well,
is
where's our uh Oh, city clerk. How do we
I mean, if there's a mistake, there's a
mistake, a typo, we have to do an
amendment.
So we'll do it when how
is it for me to propose?
I have a question. So
Oh, you have a question? Well, after she
has her qu No, no. Uh so we need an
amendment on that.
Correct.
But I just want to say that um yeah,
because the 40 hours leave is is
insufficient uh for members of of the
rally uh LCPD. I uh shared this before
uh where I attended a um symposium for
lack of a better word for all um county
local uh police enforcement and um and
it was a over a period of a day or two
or maybe three days but um and I sat
through that and uh heard uh the author
of a book whose name I don't remember
and I remember the book. I'm sorry. But
um but my point here isn't for you all
to go out and buy that book and read it.
But my point is, believe me when I tell
you that um police officers um don't
have it easy at all. And I've met some
police officers, I uh
not not necessarily here, who uh one one
of them is a nephew of mine who was a
police officer. LCP, LAPD, and he left.
He said, "I'll I'll never become a
police officer again." And he went to
law school.
But I just want to say that um I want to
I want to thank the LCPD
um for their efforts, for their work. Um
they were when my mother died they to my
she died at home so they were in the
house and you know cuz it was I don't
know a crime scene or under
investigation
but um and then the other person who
stood there the whole night was Chief
Enriquez
because Shannon Reynolds called him. At
any rate, um I I know that, you know, I
grew up in the 60s and um and the 70s
and everything was anti- cops. You know,
we called them pigs and and my father
was um my father was appalled. So, but
I, you know, I I I just have to say that
in spite of everything, in spite of
everything, when something happens in
your home or to one of your children or
something at school, you know, who do
you call? The person who was, you know,
the person who was perhaps demonstrating
against something.
No, you call the police officer or the
police department.
So, thank you for your presentation.
Thank you, Mayor.
Thank you, Mayor Pro Tim.
Thank you. Hi.
Hi.
Thank you.
I don't think I'd met you before. Nice
to meet you.
No, I don't think we've met you.
Is this your first presentation?
It is actually. Yes.
Okay. Wonderful.
Um just on the So, um we obviously have
three um collective bargaining uh
agreements, right? With correct police,
fire, and the blue collar union. On the
issue of holiday uh pay and things like
that, how do we maintain like uniformity
across
you know the city structure is sort of
everyone has to negotiate um themselves
and then what happens for non
correct
um represented members of the city.
Right. So for negotiated contracts
that's part of the negotiation process.
Each one would have their own
negotiating procedures to determine what
it is they want to negotiate and how
they want to go about that. Um and then
for unrepresented it would be city
management that would make that
determination.
Okay. Thank you.
Yeah.
And oh sorry I my question is sort of in
followup to that and just sort of
clarifying um
there are three different types of
leave. Correct.
Correct. There
and this is one type that is not
vacation or sick leave. Right.
Correct. Yes. This is a this is a third
type person.
I just wanted to clarify. It sounded
like uh that's not
councelor Flores just to just so you
know they have other leave as well. So
this isn't the only leave that they're
No, no, I I I don't disagree. I just
wanted to say like there are other types
of leave that were not have that are not
part of this conversation right now. Um
and I think the city unrepresented folks
at 16 hours. So this is a change from
that to that.
Correct.
Um
so I just wanted to clarify to make sure
that I understood which type of leave it
is. And then um for clarification, we
have to change both the preamble to the
resolution and the actual resolution.
Are there two edits that we have to make
or can we just change it on the actual
resolution document?
Um if I say I move to to to
change both the resolution 26005 and the
um action form to reflect 80 rather than
40. Uh, can I say that? I move that and
you can massage it into whatever it
looks like.
Councelor Karan, we can just change the
body of the resolution itself since
that's what you're approving. And then
the other would just be an
administrative.
Yeah, I just I just want to hold off so
we can see if there's any members of the
union that want to speak or members of
the public uh or counselors. Anyone
else? Uh, council,
just a quick question on page four. Can
just for clarification um there was um
let me just look at it again if you can
go back to it.
Um so what are the others allowed by New
Mexico peace officers in point? Can you
give me a couple of examples? I don't
know if OIR falls into that or anything
like that. I'm just curious what that
maybe this is a chief story question.
Whoever would like to answer that.
Yeah, I'll actually defer that question
over to the chief.
to say chocolate too. Mayor, councelor
mccclure, the peace officer employer
employee relations act is obviously
state statute and it just it sets kind
of the parameters where you can
interrogate an officer, what times, how
many people can be present, for how long
and so it doesn't necessarily restrict
um who can be in there, although it does
restrict the number of people that can
be in the room, things like that. So,
I don't know if that answers your
question, but that statute would give
you more information on everything
that's contained in that stat.
That's helpful. Thank you.
Okay. Um, any members of the union that
would like to speak?
Come on up.
Uh good afternoon, mayor, council
members. I'm David Uto. I'm the current
union president for LCPD. Uh with this
we looked into it because of the mental
health aspect for officers. A lot of
agencies around the state are doing
similar um mental health things to help
officers keep them in this kind of
situations like Bernal Leo County is
actually giving officers every day two
hours for mental health or physical
fitness something to keep them going.
Um, we looked at this as a beneficial
for officers that they could have the
two weeks off to just recuperate and get
their mind back um from the struggles
that we go through. And uh this is what
we looked at for now for this small
negotiations cuz we actually have the
big negotiation coming up for the big
contract that we'll be coming up with
that um I would like to get with all of
you guys um if you guys ever have a
chance to from here till then so that we
could discuss uh some of the other
changes that we're looking into
especially for the beneficial of
officers. I grew up in this city. I'm
from this city. Um I grew up in the bad
parts of the city. U changed the way I
was. I could say that I'm uh the
juvenile that we want, the one that got
the second chance. I got the second
chance. I decided to serve my country.
After I served my country, I came back
to give back to my city. They gave me
that second chance. And with everything
that we're looking at with our city, I
want to give back to our department. And
this is why I took this position is
because we're struggling to keep
officers here. And there's not really
anything now that is drawing people to
our city to become law enforcement
officers. And that's what I would like
to change to give them that benefit and
give them an opportunity to come to our
city so that we can thrive together. Uh
not just the police department, but our
city as one. All right. Uh everything
that's gone on in the past or this year
alone is showing us that we're going in
the wrong direction. And I think that if
we were to come together for this next
negotiation, we could draw more officers
to our city and we could prosper better
in that situation.
All right. Thank you. Appreciate you.
Go ahead.
Thank you. just um because officer
brought up the sort of big negotiations,
can you remind us when those will begin
and sort some of the parameters around
that?
Yeah, so for the full contract itself,
we're now in the time period where
either party can request to open up
those negotiations um because the
contract does expire on October 3rd of
this year. So, we're now within that
time period to begin that.
Okay. Thank you. And just I just wanted
to remind all of us that once those are
open, we're not um able to talk to union
representatives about the contract.
That is correct.
Yes. Thank you.
Any members of the public that would
like to speak? I'll give you two
minutes. Come on up.
Thank you, Mayor. Thank you, city
council. My name is Lucas Hearnen. For
the record, this is from the city of Los
Cusus'US website, specifically on
Elevate Los Cusus. The city's
comprehensive plan is an overarching
policy document serving as guide for the
future growth and development of our
community. The current comprehensive
plan, Elevate Los Cusus, was unanimously
approved by city council on February
18th, 2020. The Elevate Las Cruis's
comprehensive plan is our community's
unified policy guide and action plan for
enhancing Lasusen's longtime prosperity
and happiness by building a city that is
environmentally, fiscally, and socially
sustainable.
Um, from today's uh agenda item that
you're addressing, um, under support
information, committee board review,
does this amend the budget? Does this
action amend capital improvement? Uh
there is a section that says does this
action align with elevate loss cusus? I
would like the record to reflect that
the box is marked no it does not
for a motion.
Yeah, if we could have the amendment and
a motion.
I move to amend the resolution to
change 40 hours per to 80 hours and
which is in line. I had it now I lost
it.
Uh where it is in that document. Thank
you.
Second.
This is on the motion to amend
resolution 26-005
to change the 40 hours to 80 hours.
Councelor McClur,
yes.
Councelor Matise,
yes.
Councelor Graham is absent. Councelor
Cran,
yes.
Councelor Flores,
yes.
Councelor Beno,
yes.
Mayor,
yes.
And then this is on the motion to
approve resolution 26-005
as amended. Councelor Mccclure.
Yes. Councelor Matise,
yes.
Councelor Graham is absent. Councelor
Karan,
yes.
Councelor Fletes,
yes.
Councelor Bencoml,
yes.
Mayor,
yes.
Thank you. Thank you, Josea.
Next is 7.3 resolution number 26-006,
a resolution authorizing the city of Los
Cusus to accept grant awards for various
departments.
Bring it forward.
Move to move to approve.
Second.
Okay, go ahead. Thank you, mayor,
counselors, city staff, community
members. My name is Gabriella Prattz.
I'm the city's grant manager, and I
bring before you today three uh grants
awarded to the police department.
The funds were uh the funds that are
provided by these three grants
support personnel time, benefits, and
materials to accomplish the department's
mission to provide community focused
public safety and law enforcement to
area residents, businesses, and visitors
so that they can live and thrive in a
safe, peaceful environment.
The first award is
uh from the office of national drug
policy
in partnership with New Mexico Haida.
Haida stands for highintensity drug
trafficking area which our region is.
The award is uh of approximately
$87,000.
And this particular one modifies
um
the uh the award for last fiscal year in
25. It adds $24,117
to cover expenses incurred by the city
to support Haida operations in the
region. So, this modifies and will close
last year's um last year's award. The
next one
is this year's award. It's federal
fiscal year 2025
uh grant award from the office of
national drug control policy. It is in
the amount of $683,637.
It funds staff salaries and benefits,
facilities, rental, equipment, supplies,
and administrative costs to support
Haida initiatives in our region.
The third grant is something that the
police department does every year in
conjunction with New Mexico State
University, Las Cruis's public schools,
and its students. They provide youth
leadership academy sessions and this is
designed to foster and maintain these
lasting relationships between the police
department and MSU Las Cruis's public
schools and its students.
Here are your standard council options
and I stand for questions.
Thank you Gabby. Any questions?
Seeing none, Christine,
this is on the motion to approve
resolution 26-006.
Councelor McClur,
yes.
Councelor Matise,
yes.
Councelor Graham is absent. Councelor
Craran,
yes.
Councelor Fletes,
yes.
Councelor Bencoml,
yes.
Mayor,
yes.
Next is 7.4 Four, resolution number
26-007,
resolution amending the capital
improvement program.
Move to approve. Second.
Okay. Cynthia.
Good afternoon, mayor, city council. My
name is Cynthia Lami, CIP manager. And
to today, I have a couple of CIP
amendments for you.
We have three type of amendments. First,
we have those projects that recently
received grants that were approved at
the uh June city council meeting. We
have a project that's receiving funding
and a newly funded project.
First, at the last June city council
meeting, uh, three grants were accepted
for the university multi-use trail loop,
the bike park, and the east Mesa road
and drainage. I want to point out that
the university multi multi-use trail
loop, the grant itself was for $412,000,
but we have an internal adjustment of
$68,000. That's why we're reflecting it
in this um PowerPoint presentation. But
the net balance for that project goes to
the 987,000.
Bike Park has 2 million and East Mesa
roads and drainage 4,369,000.
These are three projects that are
receiving additional funding and they're
all from the roof program. So we have
Mersite, Municipal Court and Railroad.
Mershite and Municipal Court. The
projects are underway and we are
adjusting the pro the funding that they
have available as we have received the
quotes and we know how much the project
will be. The railroad museum museum
re-roof the project has been completing
completed and we have just added
additional funds of 9,000 just to
complete the payments of that project.
So we see the net balance for those
three roof projects.
Lastly, this is our newly funded project
which means that this is a new project
for the CAP which is the fire station
for remodel and we're giving funds for
uh the project in itself. I would like
to pass on to DCI so he can give us more
details on this newly funded project.
Good afternoon, Mayor Council. Um, so
this is funding for a bathroom remodel.
Um, so you can kind of see here the the
bathroom's taken down mostly to the
studs. Um, we got here by finding a leak
in one of the showers a few months ago.
Um, the leak was too big for facilities
to handle. was one of those that turned
into kind of a small project and we
hired a construction company to come fix
that uh what what they deemed was a
shower pan leak in the men's bathroom.
Um once they started to demolish and and
open up that shower pan, they found mold
probably within an hour of opening it
up. Um they stopped work, called an
abatement company and did a mold test.
Um, so they confirmed mold and then they
started to abate that mold and that's
how we got here.
Um, they I mean it was a small little
shower pan that were found mold and once
they started pulling the walls out,
that's how far they got. They got all
the way into the women's bathroom. Um,
the women's bathroom is the one on my
left. It's pretty much completely taken
apart. Um, the men's bathroom, the
entire shower is removed. There was
three showers in there on the right hand
side. So, we're looking to get this
bathroom um remodeled and get everything
kind of up to code right now. We're not
in ADA compliance with this bathroom. Um
so, we're working with architects and
the construction company to um get a
floor plan that's going to be ADA
compliant and kind of bring this
bathroom into into this century
basically. So, that's so that's what
we're doing. Um you have any questions?
Go ahead, Council Pro. Thank you, mayor,
and thank you. Um, so does the
remodeling the amount now will probably
go up once you get someone in there to
do the ADA U adjustments.
Will you be needing Yeah.
Um, is it projected to cover?
We're we're anticipating this will cover
it.
Um, that's the anticipation. We have a
design that was just sent over this
morning. Um, we getting the fire chief
to look at it and see if everybody's
good with it. And then we'll get a a
quote from the construction company on
kind of how much they would cost to to
get this work done
and with the the money allocated at this
point will take care of that or that's
your belief.
That's the anticipation. Yes.
Or are you praying for that? Thank you.
Thank you, Mayor.
Thanks Cor.
Thank you. Thanks for the presentation.
I I just want to sort of mention that we
have an upcoming conversation about what
what we're going to spend our capital
infrastructure money on and I would
really like us to be proactive and make
sure that our fire stations are
better than livable. I mean obviously
mold means not livable I think. So this
is this is an example of this. But I
think we've seen roof, we've seen
cooling,
we've seen a horror show of pictures,
frankly. Not that not that I'm holding
you to account to that. I think I'm
holding us to account and I'm asking
that part of our I hope part of our
conversation about the infrastructure
can be about capital investments in and
fire station living quarters. Um because
I I really don't want to see these uh
pictures and he hear tales of mold andor
I don't know tetanus whatever else uh I
think you guys have been facing. I would
like us to prioritize that in that
conversation that we have coming up in
August. So I just want to speak to that
again. please come and ask like make
sure we would like to make sure that
things are happening. So if you have
more pictures bring them I guess but but
I would like us to not have these
pictures moving forward if we can if we
can really be proactive in that way I
would appreciate it. Thanks.
Thank you. Go ahead pro.
Thank you. Thank you councelor Corin. I
couldn't agree more. Um I'm obviously
glad you're here BC again to talk about
this. I think it's really important. I
couldn't agree with you more about the
GRT conversation and the you know when
we talk about public safety that has to
include the living quarters for one or
public safety agencies, right? Um you
know we've obviously seen this I've seen
leaky roofs during the rainy days we've
had recently like that's just really and
I don't know specifically at what
station. to my understanding that during
this renovation folks are using um maybe
some portable
they have yeah it's an external um
shower
things
that's unacceptable right when we talk
about mental health and when we talk
about caring for our folks I think this
the infrastructure has to be a priority
and um you know I hate to ask this
question but I'm wondering if you are
now nervous finding mold at station 4
that there's a potential for other
stations to have similar issues shoes.
Some of the older ones anyway.
Um maybe, but the other stations have
had some remodels done that are are not
that old.
Um this one is one that
um I don't want to say slipped through
the cracks, but this is probably our
worst station. So, I
I wouldn't be I'm not thinking we're
going to find it at the other stations
to the extent that we found it here. It
doesn't look like it.
Yeah. Thank you. Obviously, you know,
one of the big priorities has been um
new fire stations, especially ones to
serve u members of the public that
haven't had that service quite yet,
right? And to ensure that like our
response times stay um good and all of
that. And I just think yes, you know,
new stations are important, but we must
take care of our current infrastructure
for sure.
Thank you. Mhm. Um, and while I'm up
here, I would like to say that that
public works and facilities has been
great since we've been finding these
problems and working through them. It's
been it's been moving along very fast
with their help. So,
any more questions?
Any other All right. Thank you. Thank
you, Christine.
This is on the motion to approve.
I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Wait.
No, you weren't finished. There's Yeah,
I'm sorry,
but you're on the right track.
You know, I'd like I appreciate
everybody seeing it. I actually lived
it, so I know I don't have to make
comments like just vote yes. I mean, I
can't say that, but Okay, finish the
presentation. Thank you.
Yes. Yes. Uh to thank you to uh Busy
Saly. as we have been doing in the past,
we're trying to bring in more
departments to showcase our projects so
we can have a better understanding of
the city's capital investments. So, with
that, mayor and city council, we have
your uh council options for this
amendment.
Go ahead, Chrissy.
This is on the motion to approve
resolution 26-007.
Councelor McClur,
yes. Councelor Matise,
yes.
Councelor Graham is absent. Councelor
Karan,
yes.
Councelor Fletes,
yes.
Councelor Bencoml,
yes.
Mayor,
yes.
Thank you, Cynthia. Next is uh 7.5
resolution number 26-008
resolution amending the boundary of the
Elpasale and South Solano
um MRA.
Can can we consider these two things
together?
Yes.
Yes. But we need a motion first for for
this one and then we'll do a motion to
suspend the rules.
Okay. Move to approve.
Second.
Okay. Now we need a motion uh
to suspend the rules to discuss both
resolutions concurrently
which is resolution 26-09
a resolution approving the Elvis and
South Solano MAS as well.
So moved at Lotus second.
So this is on the motion to suspend the
rules to listen to both resolutions
concurrently. Councelor Mccclure,
yes.
Councelor Matise,
yes.
Councelor Graham is absent. Councelor
Karan,
yes.
Councelor Flores,
yes.
Councelor Beno,
yes.
Mayor,
yes.
Okay.
Good afternoon, Mayor and City Council.
For the record, I'm Blair Flores with
economic development department. Joining
me today is Ally Casy um from Site
Southwest, who will be presenting
virtually. We're here to revisit the El
Paso and Sal Solano MRA plan which we
had previously presented during the June
23rd city council work session. I'd like
to provide a brief recap of the plan's
key components.
These are the original boundaries of the
Alpo and Salano um MRA which were
established in the MRA designation
report back in March of 2023.
One of the recommendations in the plan
is to expand the MA MRA boundary to
include parcels north of University
Avenue to support the design consistency
and align with the overall vision. This
proposed extension requires a separate
resolution
and um that will be in included in
today's vote. Please note that the
outcome of the boundary extension vote
will directly impact the plan um the
vote on the MRA plan as the extension is
incorporated into the plan. With that,
I'm going to go ahead and turn it over
to Ali Casy.
Good afternoon, Mayor and Council. Thank
you all um for your time this afternoon.
We're really excited to follow up on our
conversation from the work session back
in June just a few weeks ago. Um I want
to just share kind of a highlevel um
quick presentation to just again tie all
those bows and explain what we're trying
to do here today. Um I just want to
start with the highlevel project
purpose. Um a metropolitan redevelopment
area is a tool that allows cities to
take control over the redevelopment and
revitalization of their areas, these
neighborhoods. Specifically in our plan,
we created a framework which would help
guide the decision-making and projects
and policies around transforming El Paso
in South Solano into economically
thriving pedestrianfriendly community
areas. Um with this kind of renewed
focus on what sustainable development
and equitable growth can look like in
the future, um we incorporate the six
kind of main um focus areas on the right
here. thinking about how redevelopment
touches all aspects from infrastructure
to quality of life, public health and
safety, thinking about opportunities for
businesses, economic revitalization. Um,
under underpinning this plan is a
commitment to social equity that folks
across the area will all benefit from
the recommendations made. Um, in that
same vein, um, environmental
sustainability, thinking about how these
recommendations can support, um, the
city's larger goals, um, and as well as
promoting historic preservation in this
area and throughout the city. Next
slide, please.
Um, again, just to recap, we have been
working on this project for just over a
year. Um, starting with the initial
question of what do folks need in this
area? Um, as to to begin to answer that
question, we wanted to meet folks where
they were at. And so you see here, we've
had a kind of a thorough community
engagement process using a variety of
tools and methods to be able to have
people answer that question. Starting in
April, we began listening sessions
meeting and meeting with different
stakeholder groups, um, local
businesses, staff, different
departments, um, students, um, moving
into just to build that kind of initial,
um, context for what the needs are in
this area. Um, following that, in
September, we hosted a intensive 3-day
community design workshop where we
worked with um, folks from the community
and and high school students as well. um
excuse me, just students, but um to
really begin to think about what this
transformation could look like. Um
beginning to both kind of pick areas to
design and then iterate on those designs
on that third day. Um throughout that
process, we also again continued to meet
with different groups as needed. Um
yeah, and then kind of ongoing to be
able to capture um as much feedback as
we could hear about this plan, we
launched a community survey in which we
mailed copies of the survey to every
property in the MRA and a reminder. Um
we received over 2,000 responses which
helped us um again build into these
recommendations kind of furthering
refine the projects and our approaches.
Um leading to our public draft which has
been available on the city's website. Um
this entire time um we closed comments
last week. Um but we were able to yeah
really interact and hear um what people
were thinking about the plan directly
through a more engaging um kind of
platform. And so a variety of methods in
person and online um hoping to hear from
as many people as we could. Next slide.
And so guiding this plan is this
illustrative vision which sees the MRA
as um just quite frankly a very large
area. Um this is typically MAS focus on
one corridor but understanding the
importance and significance of not just
the corridors in the area but also the
neighborhoods and services in between.
Um we wanted to think about how
redevelopment and revitalization could
look in an area this large. And so here
we're thinking about how El Paseo and
South Solano function as corridors in
this uh neighbor in the area, but we're
also thinking about the residential
areas, public spaces um and trails um
and yeah as a part of kind of thinking
holistically about redevelopment and
revitalization. Next slide.
with within the illustrative vision.
We're also thinking about yes, how to
address kind of safety concerns that are
prevalent within these areas. Not just
for students or residences, but also
business owners, visitors. Um thinking
about again specific projects that we
can build on to kind of kickstart the
redevelopment process. um as well as
building on uh uh the existing assets in
this area including the neighborhoods
and their strong identity and character,
the historic district as well as exist
assets that may have been unrealized
like the drainage ditches for trail
connections. And so the illustrative
vision is just meant to kind of guide
the large scale revitalization of this
area by targeting specific pockets
within that. Next slide.
And so the pockets or opportunity nodes
as we describe in the plan, we've
identified kind of these four key areas
as potential places where these projects
are either already ongoing or have great
potential to kick off this process. And
so thinking about opportunity as just
that, that we can build on the momentum
that's happening in these areas and
really target specific needs within
these different again kind of character
areas um to begin to kind of prioritize
and identify um redevelopment
strategies. Next slide.
And so in the plan, you'll see that our
strategic recommendations are centered
around these six different topics.
Wanting to address public safety, which
we heard overwhelmingly as the number
one concern and barrier to this area.
And so thinking holistically again about
programming and infrastructure that
could help improve um senses of safety
and belonging in this area. We're also
thinking about housing and
transportation and mobility ways that we
can again continue to bolster these uh
residential areas within the community
as well as these kind of significant
corridors. El Paseo and South Solano.
Economic development um touches on how
redevelopment and revitalization can
help kind of build on itself and help
support and uplift community members
through this process, local businesses.
Um yeah, and then also sustainability. I
mentioned kind of underpinning this is
not just environmental sustainability
for kind of new projects that we're
integrating, but also thinking about um
economic and financial sustainability
and how we can kind of continue to carry
out this plan in a reasonable way. Next
slide.
And so the again to kind of help us
further prioritize um different
activities we identified several
catalytic projects. And so these are
kind of high priority high impact
programs and projects that we've
identified as being able to address
urgent community needs while also
providing the springboard for the
revitalization of this area. Um and so
again in the plan talks much more in
depth about each of these projects. Um,
I also want to note that these projects
aren't necessarily um, you know, the how
do I say the number, they're not the
ones that might happen the soonest, but
these are projects we've identified as
having the highest impact for
transformation um, and and therefore
maybe being a higher priority for the
city. Next slide.
And so I just wanted to acknowledge that
through our conversation and public
participation um at the June work
session, we were able to integrate um a
lot of what we had heard. And so just
wanting to acknowledge that we were um
have updated the plan to include code
references that again make sure that
that is in alignment with the new zoning
code realize Los Cusus. We also added
context to help guide kind of staff
decision-making and policymaking beyond
this process. And so we have information
about best practices for vacant
properties. Um as well as kind of safe
streets um and also looking at what the
city is already doing with the real-time
crime center and again integrating that
into our plan acknowledging these as
resources. Um and yeah, hoping to
provide more information for staff. Next
slide.
And again, just touching on some more of
the revisions that wanting to include
the public safety resources and partners
that we think will help kind of provide
a lot of the support needed for this
plan as well as different transit
recommendations for El Paso based on
different multimodal needs. We
highlighted the need for the safe indoor
community spaces. I think we focus a lot
on public spaces in parks and then
hearing feedback about yeah it's hot
here and so needing to if you know
provide those spaces for community
members needing to meet that need um as
well as other administrative
recommendations um as well in the plan.
You'll also see the appendices um which
include all of the community engagement,
all of the comments we've heard um both
on the draft plan and then synopsies of
our engagement thus far. Um, next slide.
All right. Thank you, Ellie. Um, so to
revisit our internal timeline, um, and
this is a very brief timeline. Um, we
are going to form the inter internal MRA
committee by the new budget season in
October. Um, we plan to, um, implement
the safe the safety improvement program
along with other MRA incentives by
September and then, um, pass a
resolution for the GRT baseline and
county property tax by January or
February of next year.
And here are your options. Again,
council, you will be voting on two
separate items, the boundary extension
and the adoption of the plan. And with
that, we stand for questions.
All right. Thank you, Blair. Uh,
councelor Fes.
Thank you, Mayor, and thank you for the
presentation. Uh, can you go back to
slide five, please?
So, um, on the, uh,
community responses for the community
survey. Uh, you had the 20,000 attend
or the 2000 because it says 20,000 plus.
Oh, I see more than 2,000 responses.
Okay.
Yes.
But on the community design and
listening sessions, um well, the
listening sessions, stakeholder
meetings, uh were they an open forum?
Was it in person? How it doesn't show
how many people participated?
Uh yes, councelor Flores. Um the
stakeholder meetings were in person and
um we did also hold the public meetings
in person as well. Uh the community
survey was collected um through
different avenues including um mailout
surveys. We had the survey online. We
hosted um a casa deino food drive where
we had um locals fill out the survey as
well.
And so um do you have the numbers on on
the uh the meetings and and the
responses you had to the uh design
community workshop?
Uh councelor Flores, all of that is
included in the plan. Yes.
Okay.
And the appendices. Yes.
Okay. Thank you.
Anyone else? Councelor Mchis.
Ladies first.
Thank you, Mayor. Uh, can you give me a
description of the the makeup of how
you're going to seek out the MRI, the
committee, and that will serve?
Yes, Councelor Matise. Um so the
internal committee will be um comprised
of uh directors of each department um or
whoever they choose as um department uh
representatives and also uh economic
development will be running that MRA
committee. Um we will be deciding the
capacity funding opportunities any
project um prioritizations as well.
Does that answer your question? Yeah. In
other words, that that committee is will
all be internal. We will be our staff.
Yes, it will be internal and then any um
recommendations that the committee come
uh comes up with, they will present
towards the council.
Okay. So, you don't see any members of
the public serving on that committee?
As of right now, no.
Okay. Thank you,
Council Mccclure. Uh just real quickly,
we we kind of spoke early last week. Um
I just wanted to make sure that we are
leveraging opportunities like with the
Boys and Girls Club to make sure that we
can say get with the county and figure
out some solutions. Um I know
anti-donation is a huge issue that we
have to overcome, but it feels like the
MRA could be an opportunity to get this
catalytic program, specifically Boys and
Girls Club started a little bit faster
than maybe two years from now, maybe in
the next six months. Um, I just hope
that we look at that and get buy in by
actually seeing things happen. Um, I
think that's kind of you all have kind
of gotten my sentiment on that, but I
just wanted to make sure that that for
the record we
um Yes, Council Mccclair. Actually, I'm
going to go ahead and um pass it on to
my director, Elizabeth Teters.
Good afternoon, Mayor, City Council.
Elizabeth Teters for the record. Um you
are correct councelor mccclar that um
you know we want to try to assist
nonprofits, businesses, everybody within
the MRA and while the MRA does give
flexibility we still have to operate
within the parameters of the MRA state
statute and it says in order to give
funds to nonprofit organizations, local
development corporations or entities
organized under the federal small
business investment act we have to do it
through grants. So there has to be some
kind of competitive mechanism in place
and which is the MRA committee will be
the one that actually comes up with all
of this and comes up with the way we can
give out these funds when the time
comes.
Meters I have a followup on that
question. So um are the MRIs MRIs I need
an MRI. Um are the MAS um aware of the
fact that they can um seek additional
funds?
Um Mayor Councelor Flores, so when the
time comes and we actually um come up
with the programming and we actually
have official programming in place, like
Blair said, we have $100,000 for a pilot
program this year. We plan on doing a
full marketing campaign to make sure
they know they can apply for these
funds.
Okay.
But we don't actually have programs in
place at this point.
Okay. But then the prospective like um
the boys and girls uh club I mean it
would they be included for for example
would they be included in that
information?
Um yes councelor Flores they will be
included but the the $100,000 is going
to be used for a safety program safety
improvement program. Um while we are
going to be applying for the tax
increment and getting tax increment
funds it's going to take a few years to
actually get the ball rolling on that.
So other than the $100,000, um that's
really the funding we have to get these
programs started.
Right. Thank you so much.
Thank you, Mayor.
All right. Thank you. Are there any
members of the public that would like to
speak to this?
Go ahead. Come on up. I'll give you two
minutes.
Uh George Pearson, I've been
participating in this and it's a very
good program and looking forward to its
implementation. I do have a question on
some of the details. Um,
with the first resolution, you're going
to increase the size of the area, but
the document has the maps for the
smaller by passing the the increased
size. Does that mean that the maps will
automatically that staff can just change
those or do you need to direct staff
with an amendment to update the maps for
the new area? Thank you.
I can um field that. I would say that a
lot of our illustrative maps don't
necessarily define that barrier and or
the boundary. And so we I we might have
a few maps to update with this new
boundary, but a lot of the content is
focused around maps that don't
necessarily are aren't necessarily
defined by this boundary. The plan
itself was written with the boundary
extension in mind and so we can um
ensure that all of the maps reflect the
latest boundary. Um yes.
All right. Thank you. Come on up, sir.
Uh mayor, council, thanks for the time.
My name is Michael Harris for the
record. Um I've seen this MRA
presentation several times at several
meetings now. um done the surveys and
everything. So, I think it's uh pretty
good. Clearly, there's a lot of thought
and community involvement um has gone
into the overall strategy. Um the area
is a big part of the district I live in
and uh most of the things I would have
wanted to say uh now and in the past are
already in there, but I still have a
couple comments that I think are worth
emphasizing. Uh the first is that we
shouldn't lose sight of small projects.
uh one street light, one crosswalk, you
know, restriping lanes, flex posts. Uh
these are very cheap ways to to have a
big impact in the area and maybe achieve
some of the goals um without waiting for
the bigger funding. Um, another one is,
uh, no no projects. And I think this was
brought up in another meeting, um, also,
but, uh, it bears repeating. And too
often we get tunnel vision for big
funding. Um, and we get trapped into
when we're talking about housing,
especially as part of this plan, get
trapped into uppercase A affordable
housing projects. Um, and sometimes this
makes us miss out on much much more
lowercase a affordable housing projects.
um or not necessarily a project in it of
itself. We need abundant housing and
closing the gap with different styles
and options like town homes, cassitas,
starter homes are more effective than
maybe chasing a couple big complexes,
big subsidized housing projects. Um
mixed income neighborhoods that have
lots of options uh are very nice, very
nice places to live. Um and in my
neighborhood in particular, you know,
there's lots of options and everyone
gets along and cares for their place.
So, like I said, overall I think it's a
great vision and I support the
designation and want to see it leveraged
to its full potential. Thanks.
Okay, thank you. Seeing none, no other
comments or questions. Uh Christine,
this is on the motion to approve
resolution 26-008.
Councelor McClur,
yes. Councelor Matise,
yes.
Councelor Graham is absent. Councelor
Karan,
yes.
Councelor Fletes,
yes.
Councelor Bencoml,
yes.
Mayor,
yes.
Now we need a motion and a second for
the next one.
Move to approve.
Second. Okay.
This is on the motion to approve
resolution 26-009.
Councelor Mccclur.
Yes.
Councelor Matise. Yes.
Councelor Graham is absent. Councelor
Karan.
Yes.
Councelor Flores.
Yes.
Councelor Bencoml.
Yes.
Mayor.
Yes.
All right. Thank you. Next is uh board
appointments and there are none. Notice
of proposed ordinances. None. We'll turn
to city council member board reports and
comments. I'll start with councelor
Mccclure.
Thank you, mayor. Um happy to be back.
uh enjoyed our trip to represent
Neneberg uh or Las Cusus in Neneberg. Um
I just want to quickly say that um
inclusion is very important. I I wonder
how a lot of us got here and to hear
that people don't want that is
remarkable to me. That's all.
Council Mat.
Thank you, Mayor. I just wanted to give
a kudos and a recognition to Leticia
Sanchez Freeman. I know Katrina and
Scott has worked with her quite a lot.
She's uh making her home in El Paso now,
but she she was actually a captain of a
neighborhood association and very
instrumental in putting meetings
together for the neighborhood
associations as well as Crescent Park
and and other associations. So, she will
be missed. their leadership is
important. I think with the MRA, uh,
it's important that the neighborhood
associations
and the people that are concerned with
the safety and and the conditions of
their neighborhoods should be maybe uh
notified by the committee and at least
share the progress that the committee is
making with these neighborhood
associations. I think uh uh Leticia will
be very missed, but we have others.
Nancy Hastings, and I just want to make
a comment for my
uh
the the work that Scott and Katrina do
for the neighborhood associations is
amazing. And just like we had this
gentleman today coming up from Gardener,
uh we need to contact him and and I'm
sure Chief Story will put him on the
list and see what's going on in that
particular neighborhood. But just a a
word to the neighborhoods in the city of
Los Cusus. if if you could um actually
band together, get together and watch
each other, incorporate rain in your
systems and and let neighbors know if
there's people in those streets or
neighborhoods that uh you feel may be uh
suspect of of bringing harm to your
neighborhood. It's important to have the
associations and build them. It it keeps
your neighborhood safe and it also
communicates with the city of Los Cusus
and gets a lot of services that we could
offer not only from LCPD but the fire
department codes and and beha behavioral
help for those that are in need in that
neighborhood. Uh appreciate you Leticia
and you'll be missed. Thank you Mayor.
Thank you councelor K.
Thank you. Um, I want to thank all of
the staff that got together and got the
East Mesa pool back up and running. I
know that that was uh a lot of folks
collaborating and and joining together
to get that open for for people to swim
um back this weekend. So, thank you to
all of the city staff that that made
that happen. I also want to just thank
the animal services center for um
they've recently they've they really did
a lot of work in the last few weeks to
get to try to alleviate their uh influx
of of strays after the fire traumatic
fireworks of last week. Um and I'm
excited for a number of their really
cool programs that are that are helping
get animals out of the shelter. And I
just signed up today to be the to take
apparently you can um take your dog to
the ice cream store andor the brewery.
They recommend don't take it from me,
take it from them um to get them out of
the shelter for a few hours. So I urge
folks to consider that they're they're
laboring under an enormous weight of of
animals coming in right now and and
anything that you can do to support them
and in reducing that um means a lot to
to the animals there. So,
um I think that's it. Thank you.
Thank you, council. Councelor Flores,
I um I'd like I have a question. Um over
the weekend, um I read in the uh Lasus's
bulletin, no, not the not the bulletin,
the uh our newspaper. At any rate, um I
read that the the AM AMR contract was
not renewed and the uh county didn't
renew it as well. And uh so I'm just
wondering uh what what recourse or what
what what's the city going to do?
Council,
I'm sorry, councelor Florida. We we'll
be having a work session on that next
week.
Oh, well, okay. But,
okay. So, all the
So, between now and next week, you'll
have a solution as to what we're going
to do. Great. Thank you so much. You're
a good politician, Mr. Mayor.
Mayor Prom.
Thanks, Mayor. Um,
speaking of fire, I want to thank the
fire department for having us uh um over
at the fire academy graduation for
Academy 38. It was a very beautiful
event. Um I it's I really love to attend
those and to just, you know, watch
families and their loved ones walk that
stage. And just on a on another note,
thank you for doing it at the Rio Grand.
Okay. I hope that that worked out well
and hope you continue to do it there
because I thought no shade to DAC. It's
it's been great doing it there. Um but
it was really wonderful to have it at
the Rio Grand. Um and thank you Chief
Daniels and congratulations on your
first academy as fire chief.
I want to remind folks that I'll
continue to have some office hours after
hours. Um I will not uh be holding them
this Tuesday. I'm out of town, but I
will hold them the following Tuesdays in
July at 5:00 p.m. um 5 to 6 right
outside in the conference room right
across the way here in the lobby. And a
huge thank you to Scott and Katrina for
helping me organize those and helping me
um um help constituents who come by and
visit. So, please come by. Again, I
won't be there July 8th, but I will be
there July 15th, 22nd. and 29th.
Um, I think one of the things I wanted
to ask regarding the MRA and the Boys
and Girls Club that I think potentially
can get us started and to what councelor
McClure was saying in this big catalyst
project. Um, I'd love from our off um
city manager's office to see if we can
get some sort of uh report on what is
expected their impact fees to be and um
potentially think about waving those,
whether it's uh the park impact fees,
utilities, public safety, whatever it
is. I I'm curious about how much those
are amounted to be and if there's
something we can do there um to support
them um as they continue to fundra and
and build some of that out. So, I'd love
to know those numbers before we make
those decisions. I I truly have no idea.
And then just the last thing I wanted to
say is um a little bit more on the
national level. Um, you know, I've
always really sort of loved and
respected and honored that often our
administration and operations really
they not often I always respect that
like our we have a very clear focus on
the operations of our city like that is
our priority. Um, and often I notice
that we don't always get, you know, sort
of distracted, if you will, by the
national politics, by the national
narratives that are happening um, in
Congress or wherever. And I sometimes I
think that's really important. Uh,
unfortunately
now I don't think we get to have that
privilege.
Um,
last week the so-called big beautiful
bill passed. I personally would have uh
picked a different adjective, but um the
bill passed and I think it's important
for us to recognize
um the impact that it'll have on New
Mexicans and on Los Crusen specifically.
I think that that's really important and
um I'm going to name some of the reasons
why, but I have a specific ask around
this. Um in the bill it is expected that
Medicaid will be cut about 12%. That
amounts to perhaps 11 to 12 million
Americans will lose coverage of their
Medicaid coverage. Medicaid these are
the poorest most vulnerable folks in our
community in this country. STA SNAP
benefits or food stamps um will be
significantly reduced um
and again thousands if not millions will
lose food stamps benefits. Again the
most uh vulnerable in our community and
this is just some of the key pieces.
There's obviously a lot of really
harmful pieces in this piece of
legislation but I'm naming the ones that
I think are more critical. Um, border
enforcement and deportations,
I don't know another way to say this,
but uh, they have an absurd increase.
About 150 to 175 billion dollars over
several years will go to funding for ICE
and um, increased detention. That's to
round up our neighbors, Los Cruus,
people who work here, live here, pray
here, go to school here, pay our GRT
here, those folks.
and amongst many other things. Um, for
New Mexicans that may be New Mexicans
about 100,000 New Mexicans are projected
to lose Medicaid coverage and about
60,000 New Mexicans are likely to lose
their SNAP benefits. Again, these are
our most vulnerable neighbors. And I
think it's important that the city um
understand these what the consequences
of this legislation will be. And um for
our city manager, I I'd really love to
understand from our state and federal
lobbyists what their sort of analysis is
on how we should be preparing. Um,
certainly from Larry, I think it's
important we understand if there will be
a special session at the legislature and
how we best can be involved in that to
advocate for our own residents. And for
federal lobbyists, really just thinking
about what this means, how to prepare,
and what more is coming. Um ultimately I
think this bill um and the intention
behind this bill it honestly they it
does not care about Los Cruins. It cares
about wealthy uh interest and so we have
to care we have to care a lot more and I
just think it's really important that um
we are just acutely aware of what's
going to happen and how it's going to
impact our community. So I I that's my
request for city manager's office um so
that all of us know how to be
um better municipal leaders during this
time. Thank you.
All right. Thank you. Uh
just a few things that I want to bring
up. Uh first of all, thank you to
economic development and all the staff
that helped out with the MAS. This is
truly something that's going to help
revitalize our city. uh places that have
been neglected to bring them back up so
that it'd be a thriving community. Thank
you to the consultant and everybody else
with the city that was involved in our
residents that parttook in the surveys
and the meetings. It's going to be
great. So, thank you and and uh look
forward to the continued work. Uh want
to give a special thanks and hope that
everyone had a very happy 4th of July.
It was 249. Next year will be the big
one. 250 years of celebration, u all the
planning, the organizing,
the keeping us safe. So, a special shout
out to Parks and Wreck for all their
work with the light parade, and then the
event, with the entertainment, the food,
everything that took place. Thank you,
Steve, and your staff. Everyone that
that helped out, and police and fire,
thank you for for the safety during this
time. There was a lot of people out
there. Solano was lined up. There was
thousands of people at NMSU and thank
you NMSU for the partnership and
allowing us the location. It was a great
event. Thank you all.
Now, what I want is to recognize a local
hero um and the book that's coming out.
This is a book called Peaceful Warrior.
It's a Kanan Bower story
and his parents are in the audience here
today. Uh we'll definitely recognize him
in a in a little bit.
But for those that don't recall, in
2020, a 16-year-old wrestling champion
ran into a dangerous situation. As
everyone was running away, Kanan Bower
stopped an active kidnapping attempt and
saved a woman's life and her three
children. Those that were close to Kanan
said, "It's not surprising. It's just
another day for Kanan doing the right
thing and loving people." Kanan received
many accolades, including a Kanan Bower
Day of Valor by the county and
recognition from Carnegie Hall as a real
life hero. Dana White, CEO of the UFC,
calls Kanan a superhero. A movie is
currently being written and the script
is in the top 5% in a worldwide
competition judged by movie producers
and directors.
After much encouragement from the
community and beyond, the family has put
in the effort to proceed the upcoming
movie with a book. We've adopt We've
opted to make this affordable and to
apply proceeds towards the Kanan Legacy
Scholarship to promote our youth. The
author contacted Amazon and they are
going to make Kindle download free today
in observance of Kanan's birthday which
is today, July 7th. Kanan is no longer
with us sadly, but Kanan would have been
22 years old today. Uh to the parents of
Kanan, Mr. or Mrs. Ber, please stand up.
We'd like to recognize you. Give them a
round of applause. Thank you.
Like I said, we look forward to this
book when it comes out. I'm looking
forward to reading it myself and
hopefully we can get that movie going
and display it in our uh international
film festival when it takes place and
and showcase that and show what a true
hero your son was. Thank you.
And with that, I'll turn it over to our
city manager or acting JC Boreal. Thank
you, mayor. That that's a that's a tough
act to follow. Um JC Bargo, assistant
city manager. For the record, I do have
a few announcements. Um we'll start with
our quality of life department. Junth
event sponsored by the Los Cusus Museums
along with several partners including
NMSU
drew an estimated 700 people during the
week including events at the Brandon
Branigan Cultural Center, the downtown
plaza and NMSU and other venues around
town.
Nearly 900 people signed up for the
summer reading program at the Los Cusus
Public Libraries, which ends this
Saturday, July 12th, at the Sage Cafe
Branch from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Featured presenters will be a mermaid
and a youth magician.
Uh the public is loving our new exhibits
for children and youth that were
recently installed by our vendor at the
Museum of Natural or of Nature and
Science, including the Journey to Pluto.
A new kiosk with railroad elements was
placed at the Railroad Museum as well.
Um,
the utilities board work session is July
10th beginning at 1 PM at joint
utilities at the joint utilities
building off Motel Boulevard.
The work session will be discussing
draft util the draft utilities master
plan and the energy decarbonization
transition plan.
Beginning today, Monday, July 7th,
applications are now open for the next
LCPD Academy class. Um, it'll be open
till September 8th, 2025.
Parks and Wreck. Um, we're excited to
announce upcoming public events for the
Young Park master plan, which will focus
on a refresh of the park. Um, the event
schedule will begin Friday, July 18th,
2025 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Lynn
Middle School Cafeteria and then on
Saturday, July 19th, 2025 at the Los
Creus Farmers Market downtown on Main
Street. Look for us near the Bank of the
West. And that'll be throughout the
farmers market.
Uh, public works, the EV charging
stations project is complete.
This includes installation of a dual EV
charging port at the following city
locations
at the airport, at fire station one,
East Mesa Public Safety, um, off Soma
Ranch Boulevard, the Los Cusus Police
Station off Picacho Avenue, the Hadley
Complex, and here at City Hall,
we've got
a couple of awards. Um, one it and and
and the city clerk uh received an award
uh for laserfish. It's the laserfish
team. It's a national recognition as a
model for onboarding by laserfish
Aspire.
And
the other one was uh visit Las Cusus
announces that Los Cusus makes CNN's
America's best towns to visit in 2025
ranked at number seven.
High scores for blend of cultures,
jaw-dropping scenery, outdoor access,
and an abundance of day trips. And
that's all I have. Thank you.
Thank you, JC. And yes, uh, thank you.
Visit Los Cusus. I read that article and
it was great to see that, uh, what
they're doing and how they're promoting
Los Cusus is truly a great reflection of
our community and we really appreciate
all the work that you do. And
congratulations to our city clerk and it
another award for our clerk.
And with that, uh, I'll take a motion to
adjourn.
So moved by Flutus.
Second.
This is on the motion to adjourn the
meeting. Councelor McClur,
yes.
Councelor Matise,
yes.
Councelor Graham is absent. Councelor
Karan,
yes.
Councelor Fletes,
yes.
Councelor Beno,
yes.
Mayor,
yes.