Raton City Commissioners Approve Agreements and Bids

By Marty Mayfield

KRTN Multi-Media

Raton City Commissioners met Tuesday evening October 8, 2024, where they worked through bids for several items as well as event forms and the reintroduction of ordinance to de-annexation of land in south Raton.

Commissioners heard from City Manager Rick Mestas about the property on the south end of Raton that will be de-annexed for the Indian Casino. This change is done by ordinance which was reintroduced and will be acted upon at a later meeting after public hearings and debate.

The reintroduction was required after some confusion about the amount of property to be de-annexed was brought up. The city is de-annexing 132.7 acres for the casino and 244.2 acres south of the casino property. This is to move all the property outside the city limits to meet the requirements of the gaming compact.

Commissioners were presented with a recommendation for the pickle ball courts to be located at Roundhouse Park. There were two bids received, one from Robert Cohen Co LLC for $442,788 and Renner Sports Surfaces in the amount of $526,000. Both bids were for only two courts and the Pickleball group was asking for at least six courts. The city budget for the project was only $251,987. This is $190,801 above budget for the project. The commission rejected the bids.

Bryan Nazeri was present to discuss other possibilities such as resurfacing the tennis courts at the high school. Leslie Fernandez spoke about the tennis courts around Raton that were repurposed for other purposes which brought up the question of ownership of the tennis courts at the high school. Based on the purpose of the courts and the partnership between the feds, state, city and school who provided the money that built the courts the ownership is up in the air depending on who you talk to. Jason Phillips, with two hats on, spoke as school board president about the courts in the scheme of the new school campus and whether they will even exist in five years and as public works director spoke about the yearly upkeep cost of the courts and can the city meet those needs with the current public works budget.

Commissioners approved a couple of celebration permits for Dragonfly Brewing, LLC for a celebration at High Country Meats for a fall festival on October 19-20 and October 26-27, 2024.

Commissioners approved the purchase of two 2024 Ford F150 extended cab pickups. The pickups will be 4-wheel drive and go to the public works department and solid waste department. The purchase will utilize the CES price agreement #2024-31A-101C-All and cost $48,975.00 each and come from Phil Long Ford in Raton.

A quote for baseball batting cages was received from Creative Recreational Designs which will go to for new batting cages at a cost of $65,518.35. The city will purchase three JayPro Sports Mega pipe cable batting cages and batting turf for the ballfield complex.

Resolution 2024-63 deals with NMDOT L400645 agreement between the city and NMDOT. The resolution calls for an extension to the agreement. The amount of the grant is $100,810.00 with the city making a match of $33,603 for a total project cost $134,413.00. The request will extend the grant from a deadline of December 31, 2024, out to December 31, 2025.

Commissioners heard about the grant agreements with the NMDOT Aviation Division for the construction of a new electrical vault and reconstruction of Taxiway B at the airport. The estimated funding for the electrical vault project will include a city match of $19,035, the state will provide $171,315 and the FAA will provide $556,579 for the project. The Taxiway B project includes a city match of $26,254 with the state contributing $236,286 and the FAA will contribute $2,362,857. Both grants agreements were approved.

Commissioners approved a change order for the Author Johnson Memorial Library painting project. The original painting project was to cover a portion of the outside and after some cleaning and power washing more paint peeled off than was anticipated and will require an additional $4200.00 to complete the job. If the city wished to push beyond the original scope of the project and to paint the entire building it would be an additional cost of $12,000 for a total cleaning and painting cost of $16,200. Commissioners approved the total $16,200 extra work.

City Treasurer Michael Anne Antonucci presented the third budget adjustment for FY25. The adjustment includes line-item adjustments to cover grant agreements and for the general fund.

City first line supervisors completed the Art of Supervision training that lasted 24 weeks. 95% of the construction review at Kearney School has been completed and are getting quotes for abatement through the state price contract.  Mestas reminded commissioners of the Economic Development Summit and Summit of Governments will be coming up next week.

A pat on the back goes to Michael Martinez, Gerado Tafoya for taking great pride in their work and Leonard Zamora for his work at the Convention Center. Mestas finished by talking about the need to help with the efforts in Florida possibly sending rescue personnel and or making room for displaced citizens like what happened after Katrina. He also suggested donating to the Red Cross.

The next City commission meeting will be on October 22, 2024, at 6:00 p.m. and there may be a potential quorum of commissioners attending the Economic Summit and or the Summit of Governments.