Council - Regular Meeting

Welcome, everybody. I'd like to call to order the regular City Council meeting of August 19th, 2026 to order. Ms. Cassandra.

Mayor David Romero.

Here.

Councillor Marvin Martinez.

Present.

Councillor Barbara Casey. Here. Councillor Benito Pacheco.

Present.

Councillor David Ulivari.

Here.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. We do have a quorum.

And I was going to ask our princesa to say the pledge, but Mr. Arnold stood up faster, so we'll have him say it. Councillor Casey, moment of silence.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I would like to ask that everyone pray for the repose of the soul of Manuel Papi Padilla, who passed away recently. He was a Vietnam veteran, and after he came back from Vietnam, he went into training and he became a 25-year firefighter and paramedic for the city of Las Vegas. And so I'm very sad to learn of his passing. He was a very good person. Also anyone else who has passed away this last week, Mr. Louie Loera and others maybe that we don't know about because of the way the newspaper works and sometimes families want to keep those things private. so let us pray for those who have left us and those who are here to keep our community going and thriving amen mr mayor approval of the agenda

manager you had a condition yes mr. mr. mayor council under item 3 under business items mr. Marcus and I asked that we move that to after executive session that approval and also mr. mayor of a recommendation as well for item number four I did not add mr. Jimmy size his name in the out-of-state travel so if we can add him in there it's on the agenda request form those recommendations what's the pleasure of the council

I'm asking for what's the record?

Mr. Mayor, I'll move for a pool of the recommendations of the city manager and the city clerk.

A motion by Councilor Pacheco. Do I have a second? Second. Second by Councilman Martinez. All in favor? Aye. Those opposed? The ayes have it.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Moving on to our next item, public input. We have no public input this evening. Moving on to our mayor's appointments, reports, recognitions, and proclamations.

At this time, if we could have the Sanchez family come up. Over the past year, couple years, we've had musical icons pass away. And it just brought me aware to how fortunate we are to have Mr. Sanchez still alive. And I know the great things that he's done for our culture within new mexico music uh it's it's you know having the blue ventures at our fiestas i know a couple times we haven't been able to but just the icon that mr sanchez is and he's still with us here today is something that i think that needs to be recognized so i asked on behalf i have a proclamation for mr sanchez and miss cassandra do you mind reading the proclamation

Honoring Mr. Luis Sanchez, founder, manager, and patriarch of Los Blue Ventures and Luis Sanchez, whereas the music of Northern New Mexico is more than entertainment, it is a heartbeat of our communities, preserving our culture, celebrating our faith, and bringing families together across generations. And whereas Mr. Luis Sanchez, founder and manager of Los Blue Ventures, Luis Sanchez has dedicated his life to preserving and sharing the unique sound of New Mexico music, becoming one of the state's most respected ambassadors of our musical heritage. And whereas what began as one man's love for music became a family legacy as Luis welcomed his children onto the stage, creating one of New Mexico's most beloved family bands and demonstrating that the greatest traditions are those passed from parent to child, And whereas Luis is a proud father of eight children, all of whom performed alongside him as members of Los Blue Ventures, making the band a living example of family commitment, sacrifice, and the enduring strength of generations working together toward a common passion, And whereas the Sanchez family's musical talents have included Luis on keyboard, Harold on bass and songwriting, Matilda and Marie on drums, Lawrence on accordion, and Robert, Joseph, and David in the brass section, while Luis himself served as founder, manager, vocalist, and the steady hand that guided the family throughout the band's remarkable journey. And whereas the family tradition extended beyond his children to include his brother, Johnny Sanchez, and nephews Jerry Sanchez and Frank Martinez, and guitarist Derek Aragon, making Los Blue Ventures not simply a band, but a true family legacy built upon love, faith, and a shared devotion to music, And whereas Luis and his beloved wife, Della Sanchez, created a home where faith, family, hard work, and music were woven together into everyday life, raising children whose talents reflected the values they learned at home and whose music continues to honor the example set by both of their parents. And whereas, although Della's passing left an immeasurable void, her love and influence continue to be heard through every performance in every generation of the Sanchez family that continues to share their gifts with the people of New Mexico. And whereas, through Harold Sanchez's heartfelt songwriting, including cherished songs such as ,, the family has presented stories of faith, gratitude, love, and the cherished memories of Northern New Mexico for future generations. And whereas for decades, the people of Las Vegas have welcomed Luis Sanchez and Los Blue Ventures as more than entertainers, they have become part of the soundtrack of our community, filling dance floors, bringing neighbors together, and creating memories that families still share today. And whereas year after year, Luis and his family have proudly performed during the cherished Fourth of July Fiestas de Las Vegas, helping celebrate one of New Mexico's most treasured hometown traditions. Their music echoed through historic Plaza Park, providing the soundtrack for family reunions, hometown celebrations, and unforgettable summer evenings that remain woven into the memories of generations of Las Vegans. And whereas whether entertaining crowds beneath the lights of the plaza, playing dances that lasted well into the evening, celebrating weddings and anniversaries, or performing at community festivals and special events, Luis Sanchez understood that music was about far more than performing. It was about bringing people together, strengthening friendships, and creating moments that would be remembered for a lifetime. And whereas countless residents of Las Vegas remember hearing the Los Blue Ventures while grandparents danced together, parents reconnected with lifelong friends, and children experience the traditions of Northern New Mexico for the very first time, through those moments Luis Sanchez and his family became woven into the very story of our community, and their music remains part of the soundtrack of Las Vegas itself. And whereas under Luis's leadership, Los Blue Ventures, proudly known as Los Meros Meros, performed throughout the Southwest, released numerous recordings and earned recognition, including Band of the Year, Male and Female Vocalist Honors, Song of the Year, Gospel Song of the Year, and CD of the Year, while Luis himself received a Lifetime Achievement Award, recognizing his extraordinary contributions to New Mexico music, And whereas while awards and recognition celebrate a lifetime of achievement, Luis Sanchez's greatest accomplishments is the family he nurtured, the values he passed on, and the countless lives he enriched through music that continues to bring joy, preserve tradition, and strengthen communities throughout northern New Mexico. Now, therefore, I, David Romero, Mayor of the City of Las Vegas, New Mexico, along with members of the governing body and the citizens of our community, do hereby proudly proclaim our deepest appreciation and heartfelt recognition of Mr. Luis Sanchez, founder, manager, musician, mentor, husband, father and patriarch of Los Blue Ventures de Luis Sanchez for his extraordinary lifetime of preserving New Mexico's musical heritage, for demonstrating the enduring strength of faith and family, for inspiring generations of musicians and for sharing his talents in a way that has united communities and created cherished memories throughout Las Vegas and northern New Mexico. We further recognize the entire Sanchez family whose love, dedication, and musical gifts have become a treasured part of our state's cultural identity. May this proclamation serve as a lasting expression of gratitude from the City of Las Vegas to a man whose music has become part of our own story. Long after the final note is played, the memories created through Luis Sanchez and Los Blue Ventures will continue to live in the hearts of families who gathered on the plaza during the Fourth of July Fiestas, danced at community celebrations, and found joy in in the timeless sound of New Mexico music. His legacy reminds us that the greatest songs are not simply heard, they are lived, shared with those we love, and passed from one generation to the next.

that Mr. Sanchez we also got you a plaque and I'll go ahead and read it it says musical icon award presented to Luis Sanchez the recognition of your extraordinary contributions to music and your lasting impact on the cultural heritage of Las Vegas New Mexico your talent passion and dedication love inspired generations and and brought public pride to our community. On behalf of myself, David Romero, and the entire governing body, we thank you for all that you have provided, the culture, the history within your music, and also the faith. I know you guys are a very faithful family. You're loved in this community, and we want you to know that. We appreciate you. So on behalf of that, we'll have our reina and our princesa present with you the plaque. Last but not least, I'm going to bring Mr. This is going to be off the cuff, but Mr. Dwight Torres, do you mind saying a few words?

icon here but he has contributed to new mexico music you know the impact the family has had on new mexico music is really big you know um without these people to lead the future of our musicians in the state of new mexico you know we wouldn't be able to do it without them so mr sanchez the sanchez family thank you guys for everything you do for new mexico music

Mr. Sanchez, thank you. Thank you very much for everything. It's a pleasure to talk to you.

I've been listening to your music for about 55 years.

It hits me in the heart and hits all the people in New Mexico. I mean, you guys, I'm proud of you guys. You guys have done a good job. That was before us. I've been following you forever and ever. You guys have done a very good job.

It's part of you guys. Thank you.

Thank you. On behalf of my dad, I'd like to say thank you. And we appreciate, we've always loved coming to Las Vegas since we used to play at the end of Las Vegas and since we were teenagers. So thank you so much for this honor. Mr. Pacheco.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Sanchez family, thank you very much. It's been a pleasure following your music for my whole life. And there's a couple of songs that when I hear them, you know, they say music takes you back to a certain time. And of course at the Casa de Adove, I mean, I hear that and it's like I'm driving to my grandma's house to, you know, to go visit. And she had this big portal from one end of the house to the other. And you know how the houses are here in the Norte back then, no? And then I also have those memories of, you know, remember back in the day, we used to actually have dances almost every weekend. latina las vegas and a civic center a bull rush well my wife and i used to go to quite a few dances and we've seen you quite a few times over the years so quite a few good memories i thank you for everything thank you for always taking the time to come to our fiestas the the best fiestas in the state so and you help us make them the best fiestas in the state thank you so much

We really appreciate the joy that your music has brought us. We are proud that you are part of us and that we HAVE I'M VERY HAPPY THAT WE'RE HONORING YOU THIS EVENING AND YOU KNOW WE WE LOVE YOUR MUSIC WE LOVE YOU AND WE'RE VERY PROUD THAT YOU ARE HERE THIS EVENING JOINING US FOR THIS CELEBRATION THANK YOU THANK YOU SO MUCH MR. MARTINEZ MR. MAYOR THANK YOU I WAS PLANNING TO READ THAT PROCLAMATION BUT I'M DEFINITELY HAPPY I WASN'T

that's been a while but by all means you know thank you guys you guys the family for being here in our community to receive this award and i thank the mayor for bringing this forward and making sure that it's recognized from this day forward that we have recognized you as a leader and in our culture and the music that we continue to provide to the families in our community thank you very much VERY, VERY MUCH. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE.

NEW SPEAKER THANK YOU, MAYOR AND COUNCIL. JUST GOD BLESS MR. SANCHEZ AND THE WHOLE SANCHEZ FAMILY AND YOUR MUSIC NOW AND FOREVER. SO GOD BLESS YOU. NEW SPEAKER THANK YOU.

I'm going to get lost here. Everybody's taller than I am. Okay. You're not one of the brothers, are you?

Are you going to hold this? Ready?

One, two, three. Four.

JUST TO SAY A FEW WORDS OF MR. SANCHEZ AND HIS FAMILY, IF ALL OF THE SANCHEZ FAMILY WAS HERE, WE'D NEED A BIGGER ROOM. THAT'S ALL THERE IS TO IT. I KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF THEM, ESPECIALLY WHEN THEY DO ALL THE DANCES, ALL THE DIFFERENT FACILITIES THAT THEY GO TO. They're not only popular in New Mexico, they're popular in southern Colorado. They probably sneak into Texas and a few other states, probably Las Vegas, Nevada as well. But nonetheless, our families had an opportunity to provide facilities. My uncle had the the Palacio a few years ago. And then my sister ran the Civic Center for a few other years. So that's, I think, where the connection got really close. But we're really proud of what all the family's done. But it starts somewhere. And Mr. Sanchez is the one that really got this thing going. So congratulations for your honor. And we'll continue, right, Dwight, playing New Mexico music and the Blue Ventures in the middle of all of it. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. God bless you. Thank you all.

Congratulations. Congratulations.

And thank you guys for coming. I know you guys probably hit a big storm, so.

You guys have a safe trip home. Thank you. I made sure you guys didn't have to talk this time.

MR. MAYOR, THE APPOINTMENT OF KENNY LUJAN TO THE VETERANS ADVISORY COMMITTEE IS NEXT.

So as we're still kind of bringing in individuals to sit on committees, I have Mr. Kenny Lujan as appointment to the Veterans Advisory Committee. I know he sits on the State Advisory Committee, so it would, you know, bringing him to the local one here would be a benefit so he could take information from our committee to the state. So with that. Yes. What's the pleasure of the council?

Mr Mayor, I move approval of the appointment to the Veterans Advisory Committee.

A motion by Councillor Casey to have a second by Councilman Ulibarri. Roll call.

Councillor Pacheco?

Yes.

Councillor Martinez?

Yes.

Councillor Casey?

Yes.

Councillor Ulibarri?

Yes.

I have a motion by Councillor Casey, seconded by Councillor Ulibarri. Thank you, Mr Mayor. Motion carries.

Councillor reports. We'll start on this side. Councillor Martinez.

Thank you, Mayor. I KNOW WE STILL HAVE A NUMBER OF PROJECTS GOING ON IN OUR COMMUNITY AND THANK GOD WE'RE GETTING SOME RAIN AND THAT'S A GOOD THING BECAUSE WE DO NEED IT. BUT THAT DOES SLOW DOWN PROGRESS ON THOSE PROJECTS. SO I KNOW THAT I'VE GOTTEN SOME REQUESTS FOR SOME EFFLUENT WATER AND STUFF THAT IN CERTAIN PARKS THAT DON'T HAVE EFFLUENT WATER AND I WANTED TO Consider those I guess down the road not. Right now is not a good time. We don't have the water to support that, but these are these are items that I think we could work on for next year. But there's a few parks in our community that do need water. Carnegie, I think, is one of the main ones, I think, that I've seen that is really in dire need of a refresh there. Then we've got some smaller parks. I know there's parks on the other side of town, and not in my ward, but in other wards that do need attention. And in cases like this, uh maybe the right thing to do is prepare for bad droughts or droughts that we could uh support those little parks with uh with a water truck or something down the road again bigger priorities in the city at this point let's see we can get all this water stuff that we've got in the works moving forward and we do and we have and they are going forward So much appreciated. I don't have much other than that. Mayor, I just wanted to bring that up, OK?

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I have some comments that I want to thank Adele, Ludi, and Leon, and I don't know Leon's last name, Trujillo, from IT, who saved my cell phone today, who was badly compromised again. So I appreciate their time and their patience, and they did a wonderful job. And hopefully... Uh, I won't get any more things on my phone. I also want to thank the street department, Mr. Lopez, Danny and the crew that works there. For the work that they've started on 3rd street, and they will be continuing with that process. The work on commerce, I've received some phone calls from the people on commerce who are very excited about the street getting fixed. Some want to make sure that all the driveways are the same size and a few other things. But we've been able to communicate with the community a little bit more. And also coming up next would be some work on Mills Avenue. So I'm very happy about that. And I want to congratulate the folks who have been so busy for so many years putting together the Epi Duran substance abuse treatment facility. It's a 20-bed long-term facility for substance abuse and also eight additional beds for detoxification efforts. So I think it's something that we've needed for a long time, and I'm very pleased that it is going to be opened up on Monday. And the last item that I have is there were a lot of people who were upset about the flock cameras that. Are catching all the people who are speeding. And I received an email that had a petition. And they wanted me to sign it and of course, I didn't. But they did have a website that I could go to to put in. uh my comment my personal comments on that and so i did and what i did was i requested that the people who were complaining about the flock cameras that they read the march 11 2026 minutes of the meeting where that was discussed because many people were saying that we are spending money needlessly throwing money away to spy on people and all the that kind of stuff So hopefully they will take my advice and read the minutes of that particular meeting so that they know exactly what those cameras do. And they know that we're not spying on them in their homes or anything else. Some of them even alluded to that. So, hopefully, I think maybe sometimes. People have a tendency to overthink things and then the reality is so. I hope that people take that to heart. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you, Mr Mayor. I just want a point of clarification on the on the cameras as I understand them. Because I have. Had some feedback. Regarding the camera systems. And the cameras used for for our. First to assist with traffic control. Are different than. Flock cameras are two different things. So. I don't believe counselor that the minutes from March would provide much insight into the flock cameras. That discussion was specific to. Speeding cameras.

I just want to make that point with them so.

But I think each have their own purpose. I think we're we're very early on and there's. Of course, always discussion to be had. I do wanna, uh, as we're kicking off the academic year. For all of our local institutions, I wanna. I wanna see, uh. Best of school year to West Las Vegas, to Las Vegas City Schools, to Luna Community College, to Highlands University. You students bring a lot to our community and we're glad to have you starting your academic year as well as your athletic seasons. So best of luck as you start those fall sports as well and all the other extracurricular activities. Uh, just for the public information, there's a, there's a group of us that will be attending the municipal league next week. Uh. And I look forward to networking with with colleagues there. Getting to know some other individuals to from throughout the state. Because I think an important part of representation is. Is that networking and seeing how we bring resources, information, ideas to Las Vegas, New Mexico? How do we? How do we continue to grow and how do we continue to do that in this guess away? The other thing I want to just put out for the for the for the record is I've received some inquiries about this particular matter. Is the animal shelter? And I'm just curious and I don't need answers today. I'm just putting it out there so we So we think about it. You know what our process is for for adopting an animal. And. Is that to our benefit or or two? Or does it need to be reviewed? Like what? What is our when I look at these things, I think the dollars and cents and what's our cost per animal per year if we break it down right? And how's that rate to other communities of our size? You have to be logical. I'm all for animals. I have two dogs at my house. Sometimes I wish I didn't when I was a real pain, but but. You know we we have to. It has to make economic sense as well as meet the needs of the community and and I want to make sure that we have enough space. Because what I hear a lot is that well. There's no more space so we can bring new animals in. And we still have many animals running around, you know, unlicensed, unrestrained, safety hazard. And I just want to logically see how we improve upon that. That's all I have on my report. I will say for the public, you see many projects going on out there. We're glad for the rain. We're blessed with the rain. It does cause some delays. Be patient. I think a lot of projects are moving along very quickly. I'm glad to be a part of a group of officials that are progressing and moving things forward. And I'm here always to hear input and get feedback as we move along. One other additional thing I guess I'll say since it has happened in my neighborhood and just so individuals are aware. You know, crime is not specific to any part of this community and crime doesn't go away just because we have a police force that's selling or a... Oh, they're part of city government that's excelling. It takes citizen work and citizen perseverance as well. You know, I know in my neighborhood I think we had about three or four break-ins this week. Some of those could have been avoided, you know. But some maybe not. But the bottom line is that. You know, as a community we have to come together if we want to Stop the little things. It's up to all of us. You know the graffiti the. The lack of of civic pride in in in certain. Areas that all leads to. You know additional petty crime down the line, right? So you know I too I was at the Riverwalk this weekend. Individual camping on the Riverwalk. I'm not saying that's illegal, but it it is somewhat dangerous, right? There was people in. Many pedestrians and some kind of freaked out, but. Let's as a community be vigilant to be proactive, right? Let's let's do what we can. So thank you.

Councilman money. Thank you Mr Mayor, Mr Manager. It's a month's existence, so we're getting a lot of rain and a lot of weeds around our residents, our city stop signs. Maybe you could take a little ride and check the water and see what we need. I want to thank the staff for all the work we're doing at the city, paving our sidewalks. People are very happy about that. But I know we're working hard to Keep this little small city going and we're going to do all our best to do that. Dogs running around. There's a lot of things that we. House Councilman as we are, we see and and we we live here. We we drive through it. We you know, but see if you can get your coin first minute to take a look at that and go from there. So thank you.

Thank you, counselor. Mr. Manager, I just want to acknowledge, I know a person ended my, after the appointment, I didn't get to finish my report, but I do want to acknowledge Ms. Haley Lucero in my office, in the executive office. She's come a long way. She's getting things done. As a matter of fact, the project that I gave her, she just connected with Mr. Marcus and his staff. WHICH SHE REACHED OUT TO THE ALBUQUERQUE AIRPORT AND AS SOON AS MR. MARCUS GETS SOME DETAILS WORKED OUT WITH HIM, WE'LL START PUTTING OUR BROCHURES AND INFORMATION AT THE ALBUQUERQUE AIRPORT. SO I THINK THAT WAS KIND OF A LITTLE TASK I GAVE HER THAT KIND OF BECAME SOMETHING HUGE AND A MARKETING OPPORTUNITY FOR THE CITY. SO I JUST WANTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT. I KNOW THERE'S OTHER THINGS THAT SHE'S DONE IN She's coming out of her shell a little bit and she's getting things and I just wanted to recognize her. Thank you. Ms. Cassandra.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Moving on to our city manager's report. We have our city manager, Mr. Robert Anaya.

Thank you, Mayor and Council. I'm not going to read the whole report in the record. I did want to right out of the gate at the top. Muchisimas gracias. Special thanks to Morris Madrid, Travis Martinez, Jimmy Seiss, Chris Thornburg from the Office of the State Engineer, Elena Martinez, Chad Freeman Jonas Armstrong Finance staff throughout an additional enemy D staff additional staff at the office of the state engineer we were put in a in a position based on grant funding of needing to assure full compliance and expenditure of $3.5 million. That's no easy task when you have plenty of time. But it's even more of a challenge to do it in a compressed timeframe and to do it within the rules and within the terms of the grant. And these individuals, all of them, collectively did that in a short time period. I would also note that the intergovernmental agreement that mayor and council approved last year was a very critical component in assuring that we had what we needed on the state side to make it happen. And so I wanted to call all those individuals out and thank them publicly on the record. A couple of items. I would ditto your comments about Ms. Lucero and her work within the executive office. She's been a good addition and supports the work of the whole executive team and so I AGREE AND ALSO I'M THANKFUL AND COMMEND HER WORK. COUNSELOR CASEY ASKED SPECIFICALLY RELATED TO ICMA, AND I'VE PROVIDED SOME ADDITIONAL DETAIL RELATED TO ICMA. I'VE FULLY DIVED INTO ICMA. I'VE ACTUALLY DONE ONE COURSE ONLINE AND PLAN TO, IF APPROVED, ATTEND THE COURSES NOTED WITHIN THE ITEM ON THE AGENDA FOR TODAY. highlights that that particular training was specifically around council and manager relations. So I hope to work with each of you and the collective to work through some of those recommendations. It was a good training and it was done by somebody that was a counselor, a mayor, and a consultant, all of those things throughout a 30 plus year career. SO I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT OPPORTUNITY. AND THAT PARTICULAR TRAINING WAS TEN WAYS TO A SOUND COUNSELOR-MANAGER RELATIONSHIP. AND SO I WOULD ALSO SAY CONSOLO GALLEGOS COMPLETED A COURSE ON NAVIGATING MARIJUANA ALCOHOL AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE. WANTED TO NOTE ON THE RECORD THAT YESTERDAY WE HAD AN EXCEPTIONAL TRAINING WITH OVER 60 PEOPLE. There we had to find chairs to make sure we made everybody fit. But it was a comprehensive training provided through the New Mexico Municipal League as well as in coordination with our staff. And so all staff, all leadership staff was there. actively participated in that training. And so I appreciate the efforts and participation from all those individuals. I'll note that the clerk was called out in that training for her experience and background and different things. But many of the directors around the table were also called out in a positive way to give their feedback throughout the training. So kudos to everyone, Jimmy Sifes, HR, New Mexico Municipal League, the whole executive office team that helped put that together, Consuelo. Who am I leaving out? Everybody right everybody joined in and it was well attended and very successful The last note I would make so people in outreach is self-explanatory, but I would know and I'm gonna give mr. Martinez Travis Martinez the opportunity to make a couple comments is We had a massive project that started with our granular activated carbon system It's a step The new treatment plant, but it's a step for the existing treatment plants. So twofold We're gonna get benefits now and we're gonna get continued benefits moving forward. So Mr. Martinez, would you speak? Specifically to what's transpired there at the water treatment plant and how that system is gonna help augment and polish our water Mayor council to

ELABORATE WHAT ROBERT WAS SAYING. SO FAR THE TANKS HAVE COME IN. EACH TANK WEIGHS ABOUT 27,000 POUNDS. THERE ARE FOUR OF THEM. THEY ARE BEING SET UP RIGHT NOW. THE BUILDING JUST CAME IN YESTERDAY. WE DID INVENTORY. THE BUILDING IS BEING SET UP AS IT IS NOW. BUT AS FAR AS THE PROCESS GOES WITH THE GRANULATED ACTIVATED CARBON, IT'S JUST MATERIAL THAT'S IN THERE THAT'S CARBON. AND WHAT HAPPENS IS ONCE IT LEAVES THE FILTER BUILDING, IT WILL GO TO THE GACK. FROM THERE IT WILL POLISH. It'll polish our water and it'll take out the rest of the contaminants that are in there that we've been fighting with for years. The TOC, stuff like that. So our water will be even better than what it is now moving forward.

If you would, Mr. Martinez, we've been dealing with a lot of heat. Everybody has in the state of New Mexico. And within our water system, and we put out a PSA for this, and we've received numerous calls from the press and others. But could you speak to specifically the odor that some parts of the water system residents were smelling and why that happened? how we're working to mitigate that. But some of the things that are happening as a result of that are beyond our control, but tied to climate, but also speak to the water. And it's still passing the requirements associated with testing with the Drinking Water Bureau.

Correct. So pros and cons. We go into water restrictions because we do it off of the river. We have our backups. So restrictions. Over there at the water treatment plant, we've been averaging a savings of anywhere between 400 to 700,000 gallons a day. That's on restrictions. Everybody's doing it. Well, during that time, water becomes aged. It becomes stagnant. So what happens is the chlorine dilutes and when the chlorine off gases, it gives off that odor. So on certain sections of town where we are getting calls, we are going out there and we are calling it routine and conducting flushing in the areas that need it. Basically what we mean by strategic flushing is we're just getting the water moving because what's happening is the water is not moving like it's supposed to. Other than that too, the heat, like the city manager said, Now that we've been having record-breaking heat, our water storage tanks are metal. So when we have 90-degree weather, like we did today, I think, in my truck I saw it was 93, 94 degrees. Well, the tanks are metal, so you go and we got 93-degree weather, well, our water storage tank, you figure the water in there is... The tank itself is anywhere about 110 degrees. So the water inside is about 75 degrees. So when you get that water moving and it's going and it starts slowing down, it starts aging and it starts dissipating on chlorine. So that's where we have to step in and we have to keep the water moving. But back to what Robert said too, we are also staying in compliance. So every time we do the flushing and stuff like that, we do take our precautions. We do take our readings and we do make sure that we are fully in compliance with NMED regulations.

Thank you, Mr. Martinez. Mayor, Council, I'd stand for any questions.

Mr. Mayor. Mr. Manager, I'm looking at your collection totals here for the whole city. We're talking about tires, we're talking about mattresses, box springs, sofas. But I think what's maybe going on is maybe our force, our police force, maybe they're not, they're doing it where... They're not getting caught. That's a lot of stuff that they're leaving around our city. In our yards weeds. I mean, there's all kinds of stuff that's going on. Maybe your your staff or your police force can take care of that so we can get those numbers down.

Thank you, Councilor. We'll work on it. Concerns any questions?

Mayor Martinez, Mr Mayor, thank you. I I just I looked at the report. I saw Travis's report. It's got a lot of good information. It's got water levels and including information from last year's levels. And of course all the other reports that came in solid waste. And I know we did talk a little bit about. One of the amnesty days set up for two words. I'M JUST THINKING OUT LOUD AND THINKING THAT IF THIS IS EVEN A POSSIBILITY, WE HAVE A LOT OF RESIDENTS THAT DON'T LAND UP TAKING ITEMS OUT TO THE TRANSFER STATION. AND I'M KIND OF GUESSING OR MAYBE THINKING THEY DON'T WANT TO TAKE THEM OUT THERE OR SOMETHING, AND THAT'S HOW SOME OF THIS STUFF GETS THROWN OUT THERE AND LANDS UP EITHER IN THE COUNTY OR THE CITY. WE NEED TO PICK IT UP SOMEWHERE, AND THAT'S WHERE ALL THAT ADDS UP FROM THAT. during that amnesty day set up is it anywhere near feasible smart or something that we can do in reference to some of the wards in a strategic city-owned property can we place a bin i don't know i'm just thinking that if that's something that we cannot do it would have to be in a city-owned property naturally but we can do that, then sometimes what happens, you don't get what needs to be sent out there. I'm just thinking that might be an option for areas in our community that don't have to go take it out there. But what are we going to get? We might even get county trash out of it. I get that. But it also can clean up our own town. So I'm just thinking that, manager. I'm not sure what the best way to work with that. If that could work, maybe it needs to be monitored more. Maybe that's the reason why it has to be up there at the transfer station. And that's understood. I'm just thinking, how can we do a better job of cleaning our wards up? You know what I mean? That's what I'm boiling down to on that.

Mayor, Councilman Martinez, I'll work with Director Marquez to take into consideration potential options and alternatives and potentially other days as well, but we'll look at it and I'll work with Director Marquez.

Thank you.

Councilor Casey.

Thank you. Prior to Councilor Martinez being on the Council, the previous mayor had placed a big trash bin out here. And it was a good idea, but it didn't quite work like we thought it would. And so we had people coming in from other communities, outside communities, The valley and bringing their trash and putting it here. And, you know, it got possible, you know, it was very difficult to keep it empty. And the solid waste department had to do a lot of overtime to take care of that. So. Maybe if we can just have more than twice the. Price a year, or however often we have them so that people can bring. That in another issue is that sometimes we have a lot of elderly citizens. Who don't have a vehicle where they can put an old couch on it or. You know, carry anything that's very heavy. And so they can't get it to the transfer station. So they just, you know, somebody comes on and they say that. couch outside and leave it in the alley. So those are some of the things that we have to also take into consideration.

Mayor and Councilwoman Casey, as well as Councillor Martinez and all councillors, we will continue to work on alternatives, additional days. And I know a lot of times it has to do with logistics and placement and even support. We are working towards alley cleanup again. for the city, but maybe we can come up with some alternatives connected to that particular event that might facilitate some of the stuff that's being suggested. So I'll work with Director Marquez and the rest of the leadership, and we can come back with some recommendations to our mayor and council to try and improve.

COMMISSIONER WRIGHT- Mr. Mayor, I believe that our ordinances state that alley cleanup is not the responsibility of the city. IT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE PROPERTY OWNER AND EACH OWNER HAS TO CLEAN UP THEIR HALF OF THE ALLEY And whoever is across the alley from them, they have to clean that up. So I just want to make sure that we are following our own ordinances and so that this doesn't become something we've done at once. And that was already a violation of an ordinance. I don't know that it's needed, but I don't think we should be violating their own ordinances to do that.

Mayor, Councillor Casey, respectfully, also the city manager has the authority and responsibility to assure health and safety associated with access for our public safety officials as well as people in the gas department. And our employees across the board and so that's the specific area that I utilized and would utilize again For the cleanup, but you're absolutely correct. There are responsibilities associated with landowners But I utilized under I believe my authority and responsibility under health and safety to mitigate those challenges that affect access for our employees

In that case, I would suggest that we make it very clear when we post, you know, news articles on that, that yes, the ordinance says this. However, we are going to do this as a way to mitigate safety issues so that people know so that we don't get bombarded with phone calls by people saying, well, that's against the law and you guys are breaking the law. So I just want to make sure that that doesn't happen again.

Absolutely, I've heard I Appreciate it. I heard nothing but positive comments associated with the alley cleanup, but I absolutely will provide additional notice When we plan it and and as we approach those days, thank you Mr. Net mister manager on that note.

I Guess one big thing would if there's issues like that right now is code enforcement addressing alleys right now or What's the schedule or how are we figuring that out? Since it is their responsibility, if there's overgrowth, are we tackling alleys right now?

Mayor and Council, right now, we just started back on the weeds. We were pretty dried up there for a while, but the weeds have now started to take, I guess, root, you could say, with the newly rainfalls that we've had lately. So, yes, we are out there now hitting the weeds in that area. And the west side this week, I believe next week, we'll start going over to the next district and continue over until we get all the way around the town. no weeds but i'm just more specific to the alleys our work do our guys go through the alley or how are we figuring those we we do have uh times where we do go through the alley mirror and we'll go see what we can see as far as uh if we can get in there or not um there are some alleys that are pretty rough and the boys will will address it thank you thank you mr mayor moving on to our next item and our fire chief's report we have our fire chief mr stephen spence

Same barber I see.

So we got the report lot more pictures in this month because it's firefighter friendly so you should enjoy it. This kind of covered June 1st through July 31st. Sir calls for service. Breakdown is basically come up to 660% of our calls during that time frame or EMS. 1905 EMS 38 public safety 19 false alarms. 33 no emergency cancelled and that's cancelled by Mr or cancelled by dispatch because of false activation of alarm. 9 outside fires, 1 structure fire, 1 vehicle fire, 1 elevator rescue. Our train depot was 1 of our people. 1 of the city was. Seven special hazard situations, nonchemical 18 has a situations has its materials. Uh, that was due to, uh, multiple gas bills at one of our gas stations here. We did bring the code down on them though, and they are compliant. Now the gas leaks have stopped, um, two hazardous situations, investigations, and one law enforcement support. Uh, not going to see anything here in council but 3 325 calls total uh so fire inspections for june we did nine completed 16 scheduled july we did 35 completed and 20 scheduled that also counts all vendors during fiestas at the pleasant park all food vendors and mobile vendors 44 total training we had six employees complete the whip merit hazmat and rheological course which provide for the state to help us for initial response to the whip trucks if something should happen fire ops internally seven employees one hour each we had seven hours that hazmat materials were synopsis that's the agents of course all firefighters take two of them took that candidates jacob barmillo and jordan mesquinez 40 hours each, 80 hours total. EVO driver is Matthew Freeman. He did 24 hours, completed that. EMT basic class candidate, Manuel Silva, completed that, 160 hours for a total of 355 during the time frame. Current staffing, we have 26 uniformed personnel, one civilian personnel. Everything else below that has changed since we did this PowerPoint. Admin one, we have two applications that were turned in that we are processing at this point. Today we covered finals for admin to position with C manager and we'll getting that out with a few changes made. Fire Inspector one, we have one applicant and he's going through the testing and screening process as well. For firefighter positions, three tested, two were recommending. For hire. And one captain, which he will be starting on Monday, I believe that correct miss control. Monday, John.

Are you fired, Captain?

It's John Sotres, who used to be with us a couple years back. He's come back home. So he'll be our new captain. Uh, total activities conducted. We had one new hire testing event, graduating those about once a month of one to four people depending on the. How many of applied? Outreach is we had 7 of them and fire prevention. We had 8. I would list all of them, but you got head nuts from Adam. You guys know I will talk for a chance. Here's pictures of the guys. It's 4th July. It's our fireworks show that we fired up the city. Our Precision Fireworks is the company that was there. Bottom picture, we were doing the briefing. That's all city and county firefighters, including forestry from the state that showed up as well to lend a hand and helps with that. It went along great. No issues whatsoever. No problems, no injuries that we're aware of. And the guys wanted to get the mayor, so they had to line up and, you know, see things people may get excited. Um, but this with the fishing Derby, it was a great success that y'all set up. So I did very good. The kids did good. Any questions?

Mr. Mayor. Councilman Levine. Chief. Yes, sir. We've got over here buying inspections on our businesses in town. I know we have a lot of businesses. Yes, sir. How do you schedule your inspections? Do you schedule inspections the first part of the year, or you go by their anniversary?

We do it by anniversary. So they get inspected today, but we do this one next year.

So so I would say you have over here you had nine complete. By inspections, your schedule is scheduled in 16 and on July you have 35 completed and you're scheduling 20. Are these people already operating with licenses or or they get scheduled as soon as they bring in their application for an operational permit?

and then pay the $25 fee that is required. We won't sign them up for an inspection before that because they must have the permit before they get signed up. Because that permit is what updates our preplans for who's in charge, contact numbers, any chemicals the facility may have, hours of operation, all that.

Thank you. You're welcome, sir. Any other questions?

MR. MAYOR, I JUST WANTED TO ASK IF THE CONTRACT FOR THE 4TH OF JULY FIEST FIREWORKS DISPLAY, IS THAT ALREADY, IS THIS THE LAST YEAR? MR. THIS WAS THE LAST YEAR. I WANTED TO GET ANYONE TO BRING FOR COUNCIL AND SEE IF YOU ALL WANT TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THAT ONE. MR. OKAY. THE ONLY OTHER THING I WANTED TO MENTION WAS I KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF FOOD TRUCKS, FOOD And I think for the most part, they're probably, I think, have been checked. But I know they continue to pop up. And then they're mobile, so they kind of, maybe they just relocate every little while. But I don't know what they're doing exactly. But I see that a lot. I don't know. I guess you guys are kind of keeping an eye on that.

We are. And we started a new process during Fiesta, so the public knows that they've been inspected. Pardon me. we've ordered these new stickers that are required to go in the window ordering window of each truck it will have the date stamped or punched out of when it was inspected the permanent number so it can be referenced in our system and the signature of the inspector so we don't have any fly by nights just pop up if they don't have that they're not legal because they have to get that sticker before we even sign the paper for mr uh marcus okay no thank you i just wanted to kind of

Ask that I know in my line of business we do set up some or a number of those. You know food food trucks. We turn in a permit to the state. You know my in my work and then of course an LP gas inspector comes down and checks our work and but I also know that the city has plays a role in that as well. So I just wanted to find out if those are being checked as well.

don't accept it as an inspection. Thank you.

So chief on that question, I know we had one that was on the Fiesta as they came, so they were OK, right?

Yes, sir. Everybody that guys inspected I have all the inspection ports have stickers on the window. If they don't have that sticker, they weren't expected.

Because I know there's some that actually park in the county. We have no jurisdiction on that. That's the difficult part.

If they won't come to the city limits, they have to have that sticker. Even though they're here for one day, they have to have that.

All right.

And then, Chief, I know something special happened today. I don't know if you're going to save that news or if you don't mind.

Well, I still need some work to see a manager in HR. But we did have one of our internal firefighters test for engineers today. If everything goes through, she'll be the first female in the city of Las Vegas history to be an engineer for the fire department. All the pressures on you know Good that's positive news.

I mean, that's good. Yes. Thank you. Thank you.

Mr. Manager. Thank you Mary Mary counselor before before the chief leaves. I did want to comment that the fire chief as well as the police chief and I are in constant communication But we're still working towards and navigating a comprehensive public safety facility, if you will, and concept. But we're all in working together and communicating to work together to not only enhance what we do for public safety protection in the city, but also what we do with our colleagues and our neighbors throughout the neighboring communities to work together. And so more to come. I also wanted to note, Mayor, that I did have one omission on my report, and that was a discussion that you and I had with Chairman Garcia as well as the county manager to continue to bolster the relationship between the city and county, and specifically communications around AMR, our jail contract, as well as Office of Emergency Management. AND ANIMAL CONTROL. AND SO WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE THOSE COMMUNICATIONS COLLECTIVELY WITH OUR CITY DEPARTMENTS AND LEADERSHIP AND WORK TO CONTINUE TO WORK TOGETHER WITH OUR NEIGHBORS. THANK YOU, MAYOR. NEW SPEAKER THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR.

MOVING ON TO OUR NEXT ITEM, APPROVAL OF MINUTES FOR JULY 29, 2026. NEW SPEAKER MR. MAYOR.

NEW SPEAKER MR. CASEY.

NEW SPEAKER APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES AS PRESENTED, THEY WERE PERFECT.

AS USUAL. SECOND BY COUNCILMAN ULIVARI. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. THOSE OPPOSED? THE AYES HAVE IT.

THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. MOVING ON TO OUR PRESENTATIONS, NOT TO EXCEED 10 TO 15 MINUTES. OUR FIRST PRESENTATION WAS BY EL CENTRO CEO DEROME WILLIAMS AND BOARD MEMBER MIGUEL CHAVEZ, BUT IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING THEY WERE UNABLE TO MAKE IT.

MAYOR AND COUNCIL, YES, I WENT AHEAD AND HAD SCOTT REACH OUT TO SEE WHERE THEY WERE AT. I SAW THAT THEY WEREN'T IN THE CROWD. He reached out, and they did advise that they weren't going to make it in tonight.

Just for the record, they're the ones that asked to be on the presentation. Yes. So just in case everybody said, well, didn't you invite him? They were the ones that asked to be tonight.

To my understanding, I did ask the reasoning, and they wanted to discuss some other things with us before they came forward. So they're trying to schedule another appointment with me and Scott. All right. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Moving on to our next presentation by Anthropopulos and NMED, giving an update of the current status of the Old City Hall building.

Welcome. Who are you? Welcome.

Thank you. Good evening, Mr. Mayor and counselors. We really appreciate the time here this evening to share an update on a pretty special project that you have moving forward in town. We will just talk briefly about the old Las Vegas City Hall in general and then the rehabilitation efforts that have been happening, many of them supported by the NMED Brownfields program. um the remediation project to date funding sources architectural assessment envisioning and then we have a couple case studies as sort of inspiration and i should uh introduce myself i'm sorry i'm amy bell i am a principal with anthropopolis design and planning and i'll let savannah introduce herself mayor council thank you so much for your time this evening uh savannah richards i work for the new mexico environment department brownfields program thank you for your time OK, so the the old Las Vegas City Hall building was constructed in 1892 as a municipal center and courthouse. It is the first municipal building constructed in New Mexico territory and an excellent example of Italian Romanesque architecture. It was abandoned for decades and has been designated as a brownfield site due to the presence of asbestos and lead-based paint. And so remediation to address that contamination is set to begin soon. there are some structural issues with the building and again the asbestos and lead-based paint contamination that needs to be addressed and here's just some photos of the the current condition inside the building there has been a lot of momentum to rehabilitate the building There was a non-original rear addition that contained asbestos and that was safely demolished earlier this year using $60,000 of capital outlay funds. There was a $320,000 quality of life grant from the New Mexico Department of Finance administration that replaced the roof and that's I think completed and looking really fantastic and it's going to protect the interior from any more deterioration or damage and now I'll hand it to Savannah to talk a little bit about the NMED brownfields program

Thanks, Amy. So what is the Brownfields program? It's a little confusing when you hear Brownfield. What is that? So what you need to just think of when you hear Brownfields program is revitalization of vacant and abandoned properties that may or may not be contaminated with soil contamination, building material contamination. indoor air contamination. But it's really about the revitalization of these properties and the eventual redevelopment and reuse of these properties. So the NMED Brownfields Program is funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. And it's been a program for around 26 years. So it started in the early 2000s. And in the past, we've had projects in Las Vegas. The Carnegie Library benefited from our program's funding several, probably 10 or 15 years ago. And so I'm so happy to be working on funding for this building in particular. So we provide free testing, so any type of environmental sampling and testing to cities for free. And it can be really expensive, so we can come in and assist and remove those barriers for you all. We also can fund remediation, so the cleanup and abatement of the contamination. And it's all grant funding for cities. So we also have the ability to pay for planning type activities like community visioning or reuse plans for a property or for an entire area. And so we're able to have contractors assist us, you know, like Anthropopulus that really specializes in community reuse and planning for these properties to move them to redevelopment. So I you know, this is our this is the most significant project that I've ever worked on in my only I've only worked at NMED for eight years, but I just want to say thank you for Thank you to Robert Archuleta, who's sitting in the audience. He brought this project to my attention as a manager. And really, I've been talking to him probably for four years now to get the building tested, sampling conducted, and also the remediation, which we're going to meet tomorrow with the contractors to discuss the timing and scheduling for the abatement that's going to happen this fall. Next slide, please. So I just want to show you quickly, well, let's see. I'll just tell you so far, the New Mexico Environment Department, we've contributed over $450,000 to this building, to this one project. That includes the sampling, the remediation that's about to happen, the reuse envisioning planning that Amy and Anthropopulus have conducted for us. And then also, we recently received a report just two days ago, an architectural analysis of all the windows. Because if you know the building, you know how many windows it has. All of those windows have lead-based paint and asbestos in the windows. So we had a licensed architect come and inventory and do analysis and assessment of every window and say what needs to happen as far as the State Historic Preservation Office is concerned and also as far as what you need to do if you need to replace them completely or remove and restore them and there's also cost analysis in this report so that will be provided to you all as well after NMED has reviewed it but It's just been a substantial project funding-wise for our program and just historic. It's a historic structure. So yeah, so over $450,000 so far, and we're not done. We have additional funding available in the future if it's needed. So we're committed to seeing this project through however we can. So thank you.

That's awesome.

Yeah, and also as part of that report, we will look into potential future additional funding opportunities because we know no single funding opportunity ever completes a project. We have to patchwork them together like a quilt. And so we'll want to look for good matches for the proposed uses to fully rehabilitate the the building um savannah talked a little bit about the architectural assessment that's being done um to look into you know whether or not the windows need to be uh uh sort of fixed up or if they need to be completely replaced we are working with a architect who's very skilled in historic preservation and working with the state office of historic preservation to make sure that all of those requirements are met in order to receive public funding. We have been working on some of the visioning for the proposed uses for the building, and we understand that there have been conversations going on for quite some time about how the building could be reused. And it's our understanding that there is a strong desire for the building to continue to serve a core function of civic use. So specifically functioning primarily as a new council chambers, but also layering on other uses that support the community, such as supporting community programming, providing community meeting space, potentially office space for community organizations like New Mexico Main Street or other nonprofits, and then also layering in potential museum space. and thinking about what is on the walls or what is the interest that's in that space. So really kind of layering all of those different uses so that the building can do all of those different things. And we do have some good examples in the presentations, which would be in your packet. of this kind of, you know, adaptive reuse, redevelopment for historic buildings. The Santa Fe Red Room is a really good example. And I think we want to be clear that, you know, historic preservation requirements typically uh are are about the exterior of the building so it's possible to sort of follow all of those historic preservation requirements maintain the exterior appearance there isn't the same sort of requirements to you know rehabilitate the interior so the red room is a really good example of this it was constructed in the 1900s as the state senate chambers um but now it's you know really been updated as a modern functional um meeting and uh meeting space, presentation space. And then the old Albuquerque Municipal Airport is another example. It was originally constructed in 1939 as the main hub for the Albuquerque Airport, then transitioned to office space, and then underwent major rehabilitation in 2002. Actually, the architect who we're working with to assess the windows is the architect who designed that rehabilitation, and it continues to function as office and public space. Third, a building that folks are probably familiar with, the Highlands University Historic McCaffrey Trolley Building was originally constructed in 1905, and the trolley system was in operation until 1926. It is also a Romanesque style. uh building and the um the reuse blends the building's historic roots with modern infrastructure exterior walls were preserved and then integrated into a more modern industrial design and now new mexico highlands uses the building for the media arts and technology department so there's there's some really good examples of out there for how for how this can be done And I think a lot of excitement about the potential for this building. So again, thank you for giving us the time to give you an update and we'd love to hear any questions that you have.

Thank you for the update. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. So what I mean, I'm I'm all for that. I love that building. I remember when it was open. I remember it being open as a police station way back when and. And then I remember that little pizza place that was next to it, you know, in the basement for for some time, not not part of that building. Anyway, reminiscing going down memory lane over here. What is the what would you project a timeline? from where we're at now to where that building could be occupied and what you anticipate the cost from now to that point of occupancy would be.

That's an excellent question. Thank you, Councillor. You know, the timing is going to really depend on the availability of funding. So, you know, sort of ballpark guess, you know, best case scenario, you know, probably a few years to to many to many more years just just depending on um you know the ability to kind of match that funding whether it's capital outlay or whether there's grant funding available um to get to get the work done because i mean after after the you know um abatement um is done there is there is still a significant amount of work to um renovate the building so that it can um you know, serve serve these additional purposes. Cost wise, we will work with the architect to understand what renovation like this might cost. I'm a I'm a landscape architect. So I'm really good at estimating streetscapes and parks and playgrounds and things like that. So we want to make sure that we work with the architect to get you all a good you know, per square foot cost estimate so that again, we can start matching those funding sources to getting the work done.

Thank you.

Thank you. I don't know the process for designating a building or an area as a historic, you know. building a historic site. So how do, well, is it already designated as a historic site? Okay. Okay. I just want to make sure that's my favorite building in the whole world. I think I love that building. And I was in it the first time. Well, as a young girl, I used to go to Carnegie Library almost every day. And I used to always stare at the building and think, I wonder what's in there. And then as an adult, after I moved back to Las Vegas, our Literacy Council had books stored in there. So we went in there to empty out the books and we had an opportunity to look at the building then. And it was kind of depressing because it was, you know, in such disrepair. So I'm really happy that it's being restored, and I hope that it continues until it's beautiful all over again. To me, it's beautiful now, but it'll be even more beautiful, and beautifuler when it's done. Thank you so much for everything that you do and special thanks to Mr Archuleta who has continued working on that for the city because it's a it's a treasure that we have. It really is. And you mentioned that it is the first territorial building in the entire United States, so it's very, very special building. So thank you for everything that you're doing there. Appreciate it.

Thank you. That's when Martinez.

You mayor, uh, so the the brownfield funding is only for the exterior. Am I correct in saying that again? Is that what I heard you guys say? Is that?

Oh, um, counselor, the the brownfields funding is for yes, the it's for the interior and it it could fund the abate. The windows have to be taken care of so our funding could also pay for that, but. The issue with the windows is that. They are delicate and they're really what the State Historic Preservation Office, they really care about the way those windows are handled. So we have NMED, we have our contractors that do abatement. They have to work hand in hand with another contractor who knows about replacing the windows and That all has to be blessed by SHPO before it can happen. So the abatement that's going to happen soon on the interior, it's going to happen on the interior of the building first. So there's asbestos and lead-based paint inside the building, in some of the plaster, the tile, on the door jams. OK, that's going to happen first. And then we're going to have to regroup after that and talk about the windows, because the windows are a whole other phase of the project. because there's so many and it's very expensive depending on whether the decision is to rehabilitate the existing windows or replace the windows. All of that is going to be expensive. And we did receive, we just received cost estimates from the architect like two days ago on how much that will cost. And it's substantial. It's a substantial cost. You know, you're talking $500,000 or so to deal with the windows. And NMED, you know, we do have funding, but we're going to have to do the inside first and then regroup and then talk about the windows as a separate phase after that. Okay. Yeah, it's just complicated. And like Amy was saying, SHPO really cares about the exterior components of the building and how they're treated and how they look. And so we have to...

So in order to bring that building up to modern specs, is that building, because of its size, required to have an elevator?

That's a really good question for Robert Archuleta and for people who know more about building code. And I'm not an expert on that, so I don't want to speak to it. But I'm sure that's something that will have to be analyzed, sir.

Thank you for the presentation. Very nice and very educational on our end, on my end anyway. You have a building that. Was built that that year 1892. That's that's a pretty. That's a pretty big thing in, you know, far state so. Thank you for your presentation. Very good Mr.

Thank you Mr. Mr. May, if I could and I'd like to ask Mr. Chaleta if you come forward as well and. Maybe pull up a chair or give him a microphone. And the two of you, you could both stay there if you would, please. I just wanted to say on the record, one of the first meetings that I had with Mr. Archuleta and the mayor, actually, was at the fire station. And this particular project came up. And first, I want to articulate the work that's been done by all of these folks and many others associated with the with the building. There was a time when there was discussion through the governing board about a potential abandonment of the facility. And I want to commend the mayor and the council for not doing that first and foremost, and for setting the vision and the direction for Mr. Archuleta and the city to proceed in the manner that we're proceeding. I'm all in a history buff myself, but the historical aspect of this facility, the cultural aspect of this facility, the community aspect of this facility, all of that is embedded in in the walls of that facility. And so I look forward to working with this team and others. There's some major decisions that this council has before them today that are coupled with the potential for this facility as well. And so stay tuned depending on the recommendations and decisions that the council makes because I'll be working lockstep with the finance director to bring back additional recommendations tied to additional capital improvements coupled with a comprehensive plan. So we'll work together to seek out and find grant opportunities and then we'll seek other options and opportunities for capital funds to bring back to the council and mayor for your review and approval. So, thank you for that. Kudos. I also wanted to say on the record there was discussion relative to Mr. Archuleta at last meeting, I believe it was, and his work at the city. And I want to say explicitly on the record that I've been supported from day one associated with the work of this gentleman that he's done for the city for grants management and expenditures and drawdowns. There are things him and I both had a good conversation relative to communication and structure that we can work on, understanding that there's a different relationship between an employee to employee and an employee to a contractor. So I look forward to continuing that effort and I thank you. Mr. Archuleta, for your work and efforts. I want to give you the opportunity to comment on the facility because you've been a staunch proponent and were one of the people that raised the issue with Mayor and Council, and Mayor and Council ultimately took that advice and took it further for a greater vision. But if you comment on not only the building, but also just my conversation that you and I had and things we're going to do moving forward.

Thank you, Manager Anaya. Mayor and Council, so the first person I want to thank is sitting next to me, Savannah. She has been instrumental in really working through this project and helping me help the city move forward on this project. Without her support and the support of her contractors, it would have been kind of difficult because this building should be renovated it is a staple of the community it's got a lot of historical value so therefore it's really important that we do preserve the building for some sort of use Whatever it's used for is obviously the decision of the governing body and the administration, but my goal is to make sure that we move towards renovating the building. The second thing I want to address is the windows. The windows are going to be very expensive. However, there's opportunities, and I've spoken with Savannah about potential opportunities for cost. They're also part of the structure of the walls. We do have some step cracking on the outside of the walls that need to be addressed. So those windows are, you have to balance between historical preservation and practicality and use of the building. So those decisions will have to be made between environment, the city, and SHPO, and the architects as well. Third thing is the building is now roofed. I was there today with the architect doing just checking the punch list of the final things that need to be done on that roof. And the good news is that water is now going to be taken off those walls and taken away from the building. There were times where the water did penetrate on the inside of the building. So roofing it and getting the support to roof that, the grant funding, and the additional funding that Mr. Anaya provided as a partial match to the grant that I wrote really helped facilitate getting that building roofed. So I want to thank the governing body and anyone along the way that has provided the support for getting this building fixed. I think it's important that the city really lead this project uh as as an example to the community and so i think it's important that we stick to to really fixing this building and having it reused And I did meet with Mr. Nye on Monday and I would echo what he said. Moving forward, we have some plans to really strengthen where we're headed with some of the grant funding and projects. So I appreciate meeting with him and moving forward with future projects. So thank you very much. Any questions?

Mr. Arleta, good seeing you here. I just want to say that coming on and having this project in process, I've always found it very impressive and I have some memory of that building being open and I think it's a great asset to the community and could be a great location for many different things. Uh, maybe that that roofing was a blessing in disguise. It seems like, uh. We're great getting some some great restaurants. So, if it survived that shower today, I think we're going to be all right. I look forward to continue to partnership and working with you. On a side note, I do want to since you're there at the mic, I want to recognize the, uh. Robert Chava, your nephew James, and congratulate you on your run at West Las Vegas in the baseball program. I know that's turning a new leaf over there, but congratulations and thanks for serving our community in that capacity as well.

Thank you. Appreciate that. Mr. Mayor, one last comment is tomorrow we have a Zoom with yourself and Mr. Naya and Savannah and to the contractors. So we need to have some serious discussions tomorrow because there's a lot of square footage of contamination that needs to come out of that building. So we really need to have a good discussion tomorrow on what needs to happen next. So thank you. Thank you.

And I just wanted to make one comment I know mr. Marcus and I attended a historic preservation conference and we did do our we did I remember it was It wasn't just fun. It was a learning experience But counselor Casey you mentioned about you know that building being in the historic preservation, you know The registry but I give somebody whoever it was, you know commend because we have night over 900 buildings here in the city of Las Vegas the way it happens it takes a from somebody within the community, they send to the state and then the federal registry and that's how it's done. So somewhere along the line, we had somebody here that really made an effort to put these, you know, to get these buildings on the registry. So I think we still have some other ones and basically we could still do that if there's a historic, you know, history or a background to any home or anything like that and, you know, that's I MEAN, IT COULD BE WHETHER THE STATE OR FEDERAL, BUT THAT'S STILL POSSIBLE. IT'S JUST I DON'T THINK WE'VE DONE IT IN SUCH A LONG TIME. BUT WHOEVER DID THE WORK BACK THEN TO GET THESE BUILDINGS ON THAT REGISTRY, THEY DID A LOT OF WORK AND MADE SURE THAT, I MEAN, IT'S FOR NO REASON THAT WE'RE ONE OF THE HIGHEST, YOU KNOW, we have one of the highest populations of historic buildings in such a small community. It's because I guess we'll have to put Cassandra to work a little bit and find out who did that, but somebody did some work that put us there. So I thank whoever that was. So we did pay attention, Councilor. Right, Luke and Mr. Marcus? We did, we did. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Manager. That building's been here for a lot of years. It's a beautiful building. It's a tombstone for our city. I can go back 30, 60, 70 years ago and the city's too occupied. We had the police department there. That building's one of the, how do I say, tombstones for this city and We're taking care of it. We're going to fix it. It's going to look beautiful. People are going to want to come back and look at that work we've done to it. And it makes us proud. It makes me proud because I've been here all my life and I'm going to stay here all my life. I want to thank all the staff and everybody that's working to take that building and revenate it, fix it up. It's going to be there for another Thank you guys. Thank you. Ms. Cassandra?

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Moving on to our business items. Our first item is request approval of an agreement between the State of New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, New Mexico State Library Division, and the City of Las Vegas. We have our Community Services Director, Ms. June Tafoya.

Councilors, you guys have the memos in front of you. Any more questions other than what was presented? If not, what's the pleasure of the council?

Mr. Mayor, I move that we approve the agreement between the State of New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, the New Mexico State Library Division, and the City of Las Vegas for a geo bond in the amount of $73,599. Second, Mr. Mayor.

Motion by Councillor Casey. Second by Councillor Mirabelli. Roll call.

Councilor Martinez?

Yes.

Councilor Casey?

Yes.

Councilor Pacheco?

Yes.

Councilor Livari? Yes. I have a motion by Councilor Casey, a second by Councilor Livari. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Motion carries.

Thank you, Mayor. Thank you.

Moving on to our second item, request approval of an MOU between the City of Las Vegas and Luna Community College. We have our Community Development Director, Mr. Lucas Marcus.

We have Dr. Linder again. Welcome. Thank you for always attending our meetings. It's great to know that we have somebody up at Luna that's can at least be a voice for us to know what's going on here at the city and not just depend on social media and the rumors and mitote that's going on. So thank you for always being present. Appreciate that. So councillors, you guys have the memos, the information. Any other questions for Mr. Marcus?

Seeing nothing, it's the pleasure of the council. Move for approval of the MOU between the City of Las Vegas and Luna Community College.

Second by Councillor Pacheco. Second by Councillor Martinez. Roll call.

Answer Casey. Yes. I'm truly buddy. Yes. Councilor Martinez.

Yes.

Councilor Pacheco.

Yes.

I have a motion by Councilor Pacheco. A second by Councilor Martinez. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Motion carries.

You, Mayor and Council. Just real quick, I wanted to just let you guys know Coach Randall and I had a good sit down and discussion in regards to this, to the new fields. And again, I want to thank Mr. Archuleta has already gone, but I want to thank Mr. Archuleta for assisting us in getting those lights over there. They're excited to plan underneath those lights this year. So thank you very much.

It's just one question. Is there scheduled night games? Possibly you're not sure. So I have to find out that all right, it's going to be awesome. Thank you. Thank you Mr. Manager. Or is Cassandra excited?

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Moving on to item number four, request approval for out-of-state travel for city manager Robert Ianaya, Travis Martinez, Marvin Cordova, Jimmy Sice, and possibly members of the governing body to attend the 60% design and review of the water treatment plant in Denver, Colorado.

Councilors, you guys have the memos. I don't know if you have any questions of the manager or of Mr. Martinez since he'll be attending also. Councilman Martinez.

But in move to approve the out of state travel for city manager, Robert a and I, Travis Martinez, Marvin Cordova and members of possible members of the governing body and Jimmy size correct.

Second.

Second by Councillor Martinez. Second by Councillor Casey. Roll call. Councillor Lipari. Yes. Councillor Pacheco. Yes.

Councillor Casey. Yes. Councillor Martinez. Yes. I have a motion by Councillor Martinez, a second by Councillor Casey. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Motion carries. Moving on to Item 5, request approval of out-of-state travel for the City Manager Robert A. Anaya to attend the 2026 ICMA Annual Conference in Long Beach, California. Mr. City Manager.

I'm sure you guys have the memo before you. Any questions from Mr and I am. Request comes to Casey.

I just requested to report everything that you learned for that week, but we have our next meeting in September. OK, Mr Mayor, with that I move approval of the out of state travel for city manager and I have to attend the ICMA annual conference in Long Beach. And I look forward to hearing about whatever.

Was my counselor Casey. Second, they come. Is there a second second customer penis local?

Councilor Pacheco?

Yes.

Councilor Martinez?

Yes.

Councilor Casey? Yes. Councilor Levy? Yes. Now a motion by Councilor Casey, a second by Councilor Martinez. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Motion carries. Moving on to our next item, which is Executive Session.

Mr. Mayor, I move that we go into Executive Session. IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE NEW MEXICO MEETINGS ACT, MSA 1978, SOCIAL 10-15-1H8, FOR THE DISCUSSION OF PURCHASE, ACQUISITION, OR DISPOSAL OF REAL PROPERTY RIGHTS, PROPERTY WATER RIGHTS, AND PURCHASE AND ACQUISITION OF DISPOSAL OF REAL PROPERTY OR WATER RIGHTS BY THE PUBLIC BODY. ALSO FOR THE DISCUSSION OF regarding pending litigation pertaining to a former city employee pursuant to section 10-15-1-87. Second.

A motion by Councillor Casey, second by Councillor Martinez. Roll call.

Councillor Casey? Yes. Councillor Olivari? Yes. Councillor Pacheco? Yes. Councillor Martinez?

Yes.

I have a motion by Councillor Casey, a second by Councillor Martinez. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Motion carries.

after being in an executive session?

I think they need to start there.

Mr. Mayor, I move that we return to regular session after having met in executive session for the purpose of discussing acquisition, purchase, and disposal of real property or water rights. IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 10-15-1H7 OF THE NEW MEXICO OPEN MEETINGS ACT AND ALSO FOR THE DISCUSSION OF PENDING MITIGATION PERTAINING TO A FORMER CITY EMPLOYEE IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 10-15-1H Did I just do that one? H7, the other one should be H8. Sorry, yes.

OK. Motion by Councillor Casey. No votes were taken.

No action was taken and no votes were, nothing was voted on.

Second. Second by Councillor Martinez. Roll call.

Councillor Pacheco? Yes. Councillor Casey? Yes. Councillor Martinez? Yes. I have a motion by Councillor Casey, a second by Councillor Martinez. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Motion carries. Moving on to our business item number 3, request approval of the letter of intent to purchase property located at 622 Douglas Avenue, Las Vegas, San Miguel County, New Mexico, owned by the Bank of Las Vegas, doing business at Southwest Capital Bank. and request City Council to give authority to Mayor David Romero and City Manager Robert Anaya to negotiate a purchase agreement.

Mr. Mayor. Mr. Manager.

Yeah, I wanted to, before you vote, I wanted to have our Council, Mr. Cassiano, give some frameworks as to what we're doing and what follows and what will come back to Council.

Mayor, council, what you're voting on today is approving a letter of intent, which I believe is in your packet, signifying the city of Las Vegas' intent to purchase this property. You're also allowing the city manager and the mayor to start negotiating terms of a purchase agreement. As soon as those terms are finalized and both parties are comfortable with that, they will then bring that back to you all for approval and approval to purchase the property, and we'll do that by resolution as well. So that's what you are voting on today. We're not necessarily voting on buying the property per se. You're voting on your intent to purchase. And once that purchase agreement is finalized, we will bring that back to you all for approval and approval of the resolution purchasing that property, if that makes sense. And I'm happy to answer questions if that isn't all that clear.

I would just add that that could be a regular meeting or it could be a special meeting called by the mayor.

I move that business item 3 authorizing Mayor David Romero and City Manager Robert Montoya to negotiate and enter. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya. Robert Anaya.

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Mr. Mayor, Councilman Pacheco, can I have you clarify that you're, if you're willing to clarify, that you're approving the letter of intent and the...

The letter of intent. Yes. The letter of intent and negotiation.

Second. Second by Councilman Pacheco, second by Councilman Martinez. Roll call.

Councilor Casey?

Yes.

Councilor Martinez? Yes. Councilor Pacheco?

Yes.

Councilor Levy? Yes. I have a motion by Councilor Pacheco, a second by Councilor Martinez. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Motion carries. That concludes our business.

I have a motion by Councilor Casey to adjourn. Second. Second.