Roswell Daily Record THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Vol. 123, No. 187 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
August 5, 2014
TUESDAY
www.rdrnews.com
County budget down 6 percent; city’s up nearly by 22 BY JEFF TUCKER RECORD STAFF WRITER
While Roswell city leaders have approved a $19.6 million increase in the city’s budget, Chaves County leaders have trimmed $2.8 million from the county’s authorized year -to-year spending, while also giving all county employees raises. The Chaves County commissioners last month unanimously approved the county’s $43,354,116 budget for the 2014-15 fis-
cal year. The county’s projected spending from July 1, 2014, through June 30, 2015, is a 6.1 percent reduction from the county’s budget of 2013-14 $46,200,394. By contrast, the Roswell City Council last week approved a 21.7 percent increase in the city’s authorized expenditures from last fiscal year. The city’s $110,332,668 budget for the 2014-15 fiscal year is a $19,658,552 increase in authorized
The city needed to pass a final budget by July 31 to meet a reporting deadline with the New Mexico Department of Finance and Administration. City leaders said the city’s budget expenditures will increase $19.6 million in a single fiscal year because of one-time only, non-recurring revenues and expenses totaling $23,667,965. The city’s $110 million budget includes $8.5 million for a runway project at the airport, $4,699,000 for
spending from the city’s $90,674,116 budget for the 2013-14 fiscal year. The city’s budget passed 8-1 at an emergency City Council meeting Thursday, after failing to pass a roll call vote at a special City Council meeting on July 29. City Councilor Steve Henderson cast the dissenting vote, saying he had concerns revenues would be sufficient to meet the city’s first-ever, nine-figure budget of $100 millionplus.
the North Main Street rehabilitation project, $2.7 million for bond refinancing, $2 million for New Mexico Youth ChalleNGe, $2 million for a clean water loan, $1,271,270 for a hangar project at the airport, $581,342 to pave the parking lot at DeBremond Stadium, $500,000 for a roofing project at Yucca Recreation Center, and $1,416,353 in other legislative appropriations.
The city is receiving state and federal matching funding for several of the capital
Five Taekwon-Do black belts from eastern New Mexico competed in the International Taekwon-Do Federation’s world championships in Rome, Italy, from July 23 to July 27. Master Steve Blakeley, seventh-degree of Portales, left, accompanied his team to the tournament. Team members include Audra Brown of Portales, a fourth-degree black belt, Evan Luna of Clovis, a second-degree black belt, Maeve Brown of Portales, second-degree black belt, Bryce Hart of Roswell, first-degree black belt, and Haley Madden of Portales, first-degree black belt.
Area Taekwon-Do students compete in Italy SUBMITTED
fourth-degree black belt; Evan Luna of Clovis, a second-degree black belt; Maeve Brown of Portales, second-degree black belt; Bryce Hart of Roswell, first-degree black belt; and Haley Madden of Portales, first-degree black belt.
Five black belts from Eastern New Mexico Taekwon-Do qualified to compete at the International Taekwon-Do world championships, held July 23-27 in Rome, Italy. Audra Brown earned a Traveling to Rome were Audra Brown of Portales, a Gold Medal in power
breaking, and Maeve Brown, earned a Bronze Medal in specialty breaking.
110 umpires, and 20 VIPs from the 38 countries. Team USA had a total of 88 black belts who qualified for this event.
The international comThe VIPs in attendance petition was attended by Taekwon-Do black belts included the President of from 38 countries. The the ITF, Choi, Jung Hwa, competition was for black ninth-degree black belt, belts only and there were just over 700 competitors, See TAEKWON-DO, Page A3
Staff increases
Both the county’s and city’s budgets for the 201415 fiscal year add employees. The county’s budget adds seven new full-time posi-
Agency: Confusion caused it to miss WIPP inspections
CARLSBAD (AP) — Two U.S. senators say a federal agency charged with reviewing the safety of mines failed to conduct required inspections at the gover nment’s troubled underground nuclear waste dump in southeastern New Mexico. Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich say the Mine Safety and Health Administration put the repository’s workers and the surrounding community at risk by not doing the inspections. The New Mexico Democ-
Submitted Photo
projects. The commissioners adopted their final budget for the 2014-15 fiscal year on July 24. Both the city and county fiscal years began July 1.
See BUDGETS, Page A3
rats first raised questions about the checks in March, shortly after a fire and separate radiation leak forced the closure of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant.
The senators released the agency’s response Monday. The agency says confusion over its authority and unresolved negotiations with the Department of Energy led to inspections being done only periodically. The agency says it’s now inspecting the repository four times a year as required under law.
Plan for Roswell horse slaughter plant may be over
ROSWELL (AP) — A company’s plan to open a horse slaughterhouse in Roswell may be over. The lawyer for Valley Meat Co. submitted a letter Thursday to the New Mexico Environmental Department withdrawing the plant’s application for a permit to operate a wastewater discharge lagoon. A permit from state regulators is needed to discharge blood and other slaughtering wastes into tanks and lagoons on the company’s property. Attor ney Blair Dunn
wrote that Valley Meat was withdrawing its application “and any plans for operating a livestock processing facility at this location at this time.” Dunn also noted “predatory litigation” by state Attor ney General Gary King, who filed a lawsuit seeking a permanent order blocking horse slaughter in New Mexico.
The last domestic horse slaughterhouses closed in 2007, a year after Congress withheld inspection funding.
New Mexico cleans up, Office space targets young professionals braces for more rain
ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — Much of central and western New Mexico were under a flash flood watch Monday as several communities cleaned up after severe weather brought heavy rains and damaging floods over the past week. The latest flood watch covers more than 36,000 square miles from Albuquerque west to Gallup and north to Los Alamos and Taos. The National Weather Service says more than 1 million people live in the area and it includes more than a dozen airports and hundreds of miles of interstates and railroad tracks. State emergency management officials have been keeping a close eye on weather forecasts and have been in contact with counties that have been hit the hardest in recent days, including Taos, Rio Arriba and Sandoval. Last week, heavy rains brought flooding to towns
in eastern New Mexico and Albuquerque, where city workers have cleaned up most of the mess but are still adding up the costs and bracing for the next round of showers. Michael Riordan, director of the city’s municipal development department, estimated the damage at between $300,000 and $400,000. He said it could have been much worse had the city not made improvements to ponds, stor m drains and pumping equipment. “This last storm really stressed that system out, but it showed that it worked and we saved about 5.5 million gallons of stor mwater that would have otherwise gone into the neighborhoods of Martineztown and Santa Barbara,” Riordan said. In Algodones, just north See RAIN, Page A3
HIGH 92 LOW 67
TODAY’S FORECAST
BY RANDAL SEYLER RECORD STAFF WRITER
A big city business trend has arrived in Roswell — liquid of fice space. “In larger cities, there is a general trend of young entrepreneurs to work from their iPad or smart phone,” said Connie Harrell, property manager of 400 Penn Plaza. “And young professionals who are just starting their careers need a flexible workspace.” Enter Beta Roswell, a shared office space suite located on the fourth floor of 400 Penn Plaza — the building for merly (and mistakenly) known as the Wells Fargo Building. Beta Roswell of fers suites, cubicles and work stations for rent by the hour, day, week or month, although Harrell says the first two clients to sign up have both taken out year
• PHALA ANN WHITAKER • JOHN JAY CARNES • RIKEY RAY REID
Randal Seyler Photo
Brianda Calvo, left, and Christopher Rodriguez, center, of DirecTV, visit with property manager Connie Harrell at Beta Roswell, located on the fourth floor of 400 Penn Plaza. Beta Roswell offers office workspace for rent by the day, week or month for young professionals.
leases. The office offers both Wi-Fi and hard-wired workstations, as well as a shared break room area and lots of elbow room. Harrell, along with the
• ROBERTA POWERS
TODAY’S OBITUARIES PAGE A6
• THOMAS RANDOLPH GRADY JR.
Roswell Chamber of Commerce, held an open house for Beta Roswell on July 10. The moder nlooking suite cost about $250,000 in remodeling,
CLASSIFIEDS ..........B5 COMICS .................B4 ENTERTAINMENT .....A8 FINANCIAL ..............B3
Harrell said, and the concept is based on Wisznia Development’s first and model project, Beta New See BETA, Page A3
INDEX GENERAL ...............A2
HOROSCOPES .........A8 LOTTERIES .............A2
OPINION .................A4
SPORTS .................B1
WEATHER ..............A8