Otero County Commission tables subdivision fee hikes; sheriff reports 40-pound meth seizure

ALAMOGORDO — The Otero County Commission on Tuesday, Sept. 15, put off a proposal to raise the county's subdivision and planning fees. Commissioners said the increases could discourage development in a county already struggling to attract builders.

Commissioners voted unanimously to table the resolution until the November meeting. Commissioner Gerald Matherly, who led the opposition, plans to meet privately with planning staff before a revised fee schedule comes back.

Matherly argued that subdividers already pay substantial property taxes once land is divided and developed, and that reviewing their plans is a basic county service. "I'm in Otero County. I'm trying to take care of my people," he said. "It's hard enough to try to get people to do subdivisions and do work around here." He said large subdivision activity is limited mostly to Chaparral and appears to be slowing. He did not object to higher fees for road and easement vacations, which he called "above and beyond" services.

A second commissioner called the proposed increases "pretty drastic." That commissioner pointed to the county's efforts to encourage economic growth, including a joint initiative with Lincoln County, and suggested revisiting fees once development picks up.

County planning staff said the fees have not changed in at least 16 years. Most of the office's workload now comes from claims of exemption, which are simple land splits that fall outside the formal subdivision process. Those filings cost $15, and 38 had been filed this year through August. Staff said rising mapping costs justify raising that fee in particular.

Staff also noted that the Planning Commission is rewriting subdivision regulations last updated in 2013. They said decades of minimal requirements left many properties without adequate surveys, easements or floodplain review, and newer homeowners sometimes find out when monsoon rains flood their homes. The goal is to require enough review to prevent that without making it too expensive for residents to divide small parcels.

The debate turned to how Alamogordo's growth affects county residents. Matherly said development inside city limits has redirected stormwater onto county properties, and argued the county should have a voice in municipal planning. Staff encouraged closer coordination with the city. A commissioner suggested county planning commissioners attend city planning meetings.

Consent agenda and road actions

On its consent agenda, the commission approved:

• a $580,125 Operation Stonegarden grant from the Department of Homeland Security,

• the 2026 tax rates,

• a September budget adjustment,

• two requests for proposals for the Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee,

• a second grant agreement of about $625,899,

• a resolution declaring a property a public nuisance and moving it toward condemnation.

Commissioners also approved a resolution confirming a 60-foot public right-of-way along the Alamogordo Drive and Lonesome Dove corridors. The resolution authorizes a retracement survey to find where those rights-of-way actually lie.

The issue arose from a driveway permit for a solar project on Mesa Verde Ranch land. Staff said newly located records from 1900 and 1904 show the original dedication, but existing roads may have drifted from their recorded locations. The county does not plan to move any roads, and a 2019 settlement between Mesa Verde and a neighboring owner will stand. One other property could be affected, but its owner died in June and the county has not reached his heir.

The commission also appointed viewers for a proposed road vacation on Del Rio Chiquita. The vacation would let a homeowner reach the three-quarter-acre minimum needed for a septic system.

Sheriff's office and dispatch

Sheriff David Black said the White Mountain Drug Task Force wrapped up a long-running operation the day before. One man was arrested and about 20 kilograms, roughly 40 pounds, of methamphetamine was seized. Black said that was about 19 kilos more than investigators expected. The Alamogordo Police Department, several other agencies and the DEA took part, and a press release is expected.

In August, the sheriff's office logged 1,902 calls for service and 90 arrests. Narcotics officers served 12 search warrants and made 38 arrests. They seized about $35,000 in drugs and cash, including fentanyl powder, 133 fentanyl pills and three firearms. Deputies also launched D.A.R.E. programs at four elementary schools.

Black said four cadets are in the academy in Hobbs and two positions remain open. Three of 12 new patrol units have arrived and are being outfitted with striping and radios. Eddy County also donated 10 used vehicles that Black said are in good condition. A commissioner asked the sheriff to remove an abandoned trailer that has sat on the Lollygate Road easement for eight weeks.

The regional dispatch center received 6,744 calls in August, including 1,639 calls to 911, and dispatched 4,316 calls. It has 10 fully trained dispatchers and one in training.

Emergency services and roads

Emergency Services Director Matt Clark said volunteer fire departments answered 351 calls in August, 277 of them medical. Burn restrictions remain in place despite recent rain, because a statewide restriction covering private property would still apply.

Clark said the county's Sept. 11 anniversary parade included a Native Air flyover for the first time. He invited commissioners to a first responder rally on Oct. 2. He also praised the Forest Service and volunteer departments for keeping recent fires small. The county's roads superintendent said crews are preparing Sixteen Springs for chip seal, though dry conditions have slowed work. Crews are also coordinating with the Forest Service to repair a road damaged in last year's fire.

Construction projects

The county's project manager said the first construction package for the new district courthouse is proposed at about $9.5 million, roughly $115,000 under the original estimate. Excavation could begin in October, weather permitting.

Designs for the Chaparral law enforcement facility are moving forward on an expedited schedule. The prefabricated building for the grant-funded animal shelter ships from Pennsylvania Sept. 28. The fairgrounds animal barn roof will be replaced after the fair. One flood mitigation design is complete and another is 90% done.

Staff said a special meeting will be needed before Sept. 30 to approve a Timberon guardrail grant.

Detention center

The detention center's average daily population was 181 in August, and it has eight staff vacancies. The director said placing juvenile detainees remains difficult. The facility is also dealing with boiler, water heater and plumbing problems, much of it in cast-iron lines dating to 1998.

Forest Service

Cecilia Clay, acting supervisor of the Lincoln National Forest, introduced herself and pledged closer cooperation with the county. A Forest Service official said a fire burning in rugged terrain to the south was expected to be contained within days. The forest's last timber sale of the fiscal year was its largest since 2006.

Commissioners criticized an off-road vehicle gathering over Labor Day weekend that drew more than 250 vehicles and left damage and trash behind, much of it from out-of-town visitors. The Forest Service said it now tracks social media posts about such events and requires permits. The sheriff's office helped patrol that weekend. One commissioner urged support for HR 9536, a congressional bill that would limit environmental groups' lawsuits against federal agencies.

Tularosa water and other reports

Commissioners discussed the village of Tularosa's continuing water problems. Its tanks were full as of last week, but the holding pond remains low. The village is borrowing a pump from Cloudcroft, and the ditch corporation is replacing a headgate.

The village plans a reverse-osmosis system to use as a backup, and a commissioner has been asking how its brine could be disposed of safely. Staff pointed the village to $35 million in state grants for brackish water projects. Staff also said the state has not answered the county's request, now four weeks old, to reimburse emergency water hauling.

The commission chair, president-elect of the New Mexico Association of Counties, reported on:

• an interview with a Japanese newspaper,

• an upcoming Business News Magazine feature on Otero County's economic development,

• mental health talks with Lincoln County and the Mescalero Apache Tribe,

• negotiations over Bonita Lake with the city, Lincoln County and the state.

She also said New Mexico's only New World screwworm case, in a Lea County dog, was cleared Aug. 30, though Texas has several cases. Matherly said he resigned from the grazing board and recommended the chair replace him.

County officials said:

• an insurance broker contract and a cooperating agency agreement for the Western Gateway pipeline project will come to the commission in October,

• interviews are underway for a human resources director and a replacement for landfill manager Ralph Murphy,

• nearly all employees now receive paychecks by direct deposit,

• the county's move away from paper checks to vendors has been slowed by software errors.

Commissioners also discussed a landowner's offer to donate land and a large flagpole at a highway junction, and asked staff for draft agreement language covering maintenance. They asked about the status of a plaque dedicating the emergency services building to Matt Starr.

The commission issued three proclamations. It declared September Suicide Prevention Awareness Month and encouraged residents to take the state's free ABC suicide intervention training. It marked the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. It also named Sept. 22 Sgt. Willie Estrada Day, honoring the Alamogordo native killed in action in Korea on that date in 1952. Estrada is Otero County's only recipient of the Distinguished Service Cross.

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