Las Cruces City Council Meeting – April 20, 2026

The Las Cruces City Council met at approximately 1 p.m. on Monday, April 20, 2026, with Mayor Eric Enriquez presiding. The meeting included community donation presentations, four proclamations, departmental highlights, public comment, approval of three resolutions, board appointments, proposed ordinance notices, and council member reports. No conflicts of interest were declared, and all roll-call votes taken during the meeting were unanimous.

Community Donation Presentations

Greg McDonald presented donations from the 2025 Light the World Giving Machines. He reported that one million people visited giving machines in 126 cities, 21 countries, and six continents; approximately 4.8 million items were purchased, with more than 500 nonprofits offering over 3,200 donation items. Locally, the machines in El Paso operated from November 22 through December 9, with an estimated 7,500 visitors and more than 400 volunteers. Seven nonprofits participated, offering 30 items; five were local nonprofits and two were worldwide charities, and 136,000 requested items were donated. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints covered all operational expenses, so 100% of donated money went directly to nonprofits.

• Casa de Peregrinos received a cash contribution of $18,760, which the speaker said translated into 102,000 meals due to the organization's efficiency.
• Days for Girls received a local cash contribution of $6,825. Including the Albuquerque giving machine stop, Days for Girls received over 550 menstrual kits, 411 new mother kits, and 1,270 school menstrual kits, for a total New Mexico contribution of $21,075. Mayor Enriquez noted Days for Girls is led locally by Judy Davis and is seeking volunteers.

Proclamations

• Mayor Enriquez proclaimed April 2026 as Kiwanis Club of Las Cruces 100th Anniversary Celebration. A Kiwanis representative accepted, saying the club supports youth service leadership clubs across local schools and wants more volunteers.
• Mayor Enriquez proclaimed April 2026 as Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month. Angelica Calderon, executive director of La Piñon Sexual Assault Recovery Services of Southern New Mexico, accepted and said that according to the recent New Mexico Crime Data report, over 50% of New Mexicans have been affected by sexual violence. She noted La Piñon serves Doña Ana, Luna, Sierra, and Hidalgo counties and operates a 24/7 hotline.
• Mayor Enriquez proclaimed the week of April 12-18, 2026 as National Public Safety Telecommunications Week. Jennifer Gorham, executive director of the Mesilla Valley Regional Dispatch Authority (MVRDA), accepted and said MVRDA handled over 400,000 calls in 2025, describing telecommunicators as the hidden first responders.
• Mayor Enriquez proclaimed April 2026 as National Volunteer Month. Wendy Shipley, volunteer coordinator of Volunteer Las Cruces, accepted. The proclamation noted that from May 2025 to the present, the city received 10,769 hours of volunteer service, representing an estimated $334,277 in contribution value. Shipley highlighted new volunteer-led programs, including conversational ESL, creative writing classes, and a chess legacy project.

Departmental Highlights

• Chris Favor, Community Development, reported that the East Loman development RFP is officially out. The RFP seeks a qualified master developer for about 84 acres of city-owned property east of Mountain View Hospital, between Roadrunner and Sonoma Ranch, with a mix of residential, commercial, hospitality, civic, and open space uses. The RFP closes June 11, and all questions must go through city purchasing.
• Liz Vega, Visit Las Cruces, updated the council on the 2026 Mita Las Cruces event, scheduled for Friday and Saturday, April 24-25. Friday hours are 6-9:30 p.m. and Saturday hours are 2-9:30 p.m. She said the 2025 event drew about 12,000 attendees and had a PR value of $3.8 million. This year's event will include more drones, doubled lucha libre matches, a car show, a kids zone, new Friday night programming, and a collaboration with the New Mexico Juneteenth Jazz Arts Festival. Website hits have grown from about 22,700 last year to 118,000 this year.
• Amelia Carallis presented the Pets of the Week. Dog of the week Layla is a female, one-year-seven-month-old stray, spayed and microchipped. Playa is a six-year-old neutered male who enjoys walks. Long-term residents included Rosa (320 days), Sheila (301 days), and Dauber (260 days). The animals will attend Mita Las Cruces on Saturday, April 25.

Conflict of Interest

No conflicts of interest were declared by council members, the city manager, or staff.

Public Comments & Testimony

Public comment was limited to three minutes per speaker.

• Jesus Fritz, American Legion Post, invited the mayor and council to a flag-placing event at St. Joseph Cemetery on Sunday, May 24 at 8 a.m., the Sunday before Memorial Day.
• Michael Hayes, a resident, opposed what he called a militarized police department, citing LCPD officers with rifles at a Hispanic rally at Albert Johnson Park last June and new links between LCPD and federal agencies. He criticized the council for approving Chief Story's request for five SWAT vehicles without asking for rationale and made a public request for that rationale.
• Brandy Alweel, South Central Solid Waste Authority, invited the public and council to a community information meeting on Thursday, April 30 at 6 p.m. at DACC East Mesa to discuss expansion, including a secondary transfer station off Holman Road.
• Staff Sergeant Doreen White testified that she is being harmed by chips, cameras, and cell phone surveillance, and asked the city to pass an ordinance, injunction, or law to prevent it. She also offered to volunteer for the police department on cold cases and said Mayor Enriquez had promised to follow up.
• Lynn Moore alleged that the city failed to provide proper notice to property owners with galvanized piping under the federal Lead and Copper Rule and said inspection reports appear to have been fabricated. She said reports for 36 properties were changed to claim no galvanized piping, none of the galvanized piping at 83 properties had been replaced, and the changes may preserve a $15 million fund for other uses.
• A subsequent resident presented an update on city records, saying utilities personnel are not prioritizing disadvantaged properties despite commitments. The resident said that in inspections conducted during the first week of each month from November 2025 through March 2026, only 31 of 183 inspections (17%) were for disadvantaged properties; in a 20-block downtown area, only 40 of 194 disadvantaged properties (21%) had been inspected. The resident demanded the city honor its promise to prioritize disadvantaged properties.
• A resident described barriers to care at Memorial Medical Center, including residents required to make large upfront or full payments and others told to obtain insurance before scheduling. The speaker called for a lawsuit, termination of LifePoint (transcribed as "life point"), and securing a new operator committed to community health.
• Vicky Lobos, a search-and-rescue member of nearly 30 years, opposed defunding police, said the core of public safety is fire and police, and argued that GRT funds should remain focused on police and fire training and equipment, including police vehicles.
• Juan Garcia read an op-ed by Police Chief Jeremy Story supporting license plate readers, then criticized council hypocrisy, saying some council members mocked NIMBY concerns about development but objected to a proposed CBP station.
• Steve Montanias listed 2026 capital outlay amounts for Las Cruces, including $1.7 million for Brannigan Library, $100,000 for a real-time crime center upgrade, and $2 million for a proposed officer training track. He defended police funding, criticized Councilor Harris for pulling $1 million from the police department, and said the training track will be completed.
• Leslie Woods invited everyone to a National Day of Reason ceremony on Thursday, May 7, 2026, at noon in front of City Hall.
• Haley Walker, an organizer for Pro Choice Las Cruces, told the mayor his participation in a Southwest Right to Life event at the women's health center site was an endorsement of a boycott against contractors, and asked him to renounce the boycott, saying his religion does not define women's rights.
• Another speaker supported the Day of Reason and separation of church and state, saying rights come from nature and government recognizes rather than grants them.
• A veteran introduced himself as a member of VFW 3242 and said he looked forward to working with the council and supporting veterans organizations.
• A resident urged the council to cap and reduce the police budget and redirect future increases to parks, libraries, recreation centers, and streets, arguing these are the foundation of public safety. The resident also questioned the message of delaying road projects while approving more police vehicles.

Resolutions

• Resolution 26-132, approving updates to the fiscal year 2026 vehicle acquisition program, was approved unanimously. Mercedes Tomako, Fleet Services, presented the request. It includes a fire department trailer for the technical rescue team, 18 Ford Explorer interceptors for the police department ($1.5 million), airport maintenance equipment, two F-150 hot shots for Meals on Wheels, four Ford Mavericks for long-term care, and two transit vans for the Dial-a-Ride program. Chief Story confirmed the new police vehicles are marked, will have high-visibility decals, and will include ballistic windshields; three officers have been shot at through windshields in the last five to six years.
• Resolution 26-133, authorizing the city's participation in Housing New Mexico's Rehab-to-Rental program, was approved unanimously. Kevin Wilson, Housing and Neighborhood Services, said the program provides forgivable loans up to $25,000 per unit to landlords to bring units into INSPIRE compliance, with a requirement to rent to voucher holders for five years. Violations trigger prorated payback to the city for affordable housing uses. Current program funding is exhausted, but participation allows the city to act when funding becomes available. Natalie Green clarified that the city assumes no liability; default repayments revert to the city.
• Resolution 26-134, approving a real estate purchase agreement with Anthony and Sylvia Smith, was approved unanimously. Natalie Green said the city is eligible for $850,000 in state grant funds and negotiated a $720,000 purchase price for the property at 911 West Amador. She reported two appraisals, transcribed as approximately $140,000 and $680,000, and said the purchase price was below their average; the transcript figures appear inconsistent with that statement. The property includes an 8,500-square-foot metal building and is intended for uses such as daytime outreach staff, cooling/heating stations, storage of belongings, supply distribution, and visiting providers.

Key Outcomes

• Agenda was accepted unanimously by roll-call vote.
• Resolution 26-132, Resolution 26-133, and Resolution 26-134 each passed unanimously.
• Board appointments approved unanimously: Jay Becerra to the Senior Programs Advisory Board; Adrian Veseth Nelson and Thomas Chapin to the Veterans Advisory Board. Randy Himmelgren's appointment to the Library Board was read into the record.
• Three notice of proposed ordinance items were brought forward: Council Bill 26-020/Ordinance 3112, Council Bill 26-021/Ordinance 3113, and a third item transcribed as Council Bill 26-020/Ordinance 3112.
• City Manager announced that legislators contributed $620,000 for eight F-150 trucks assigned to SWAT teams for regional response, and that the 2026 legislative update will be presented next Monday; the city received approximately $20 million.
• Councilor McCommel requested coordinated city messaging on the budget and new GRT funds to counter misinformation.
• Mayor Pro Tem encouraged attendance at the Mesa Vista public meeting later that evening, April 20, from 5-7 p.m. at DACC East Mesa, 2800 Sonoma Ranch Boulevard, and reflected on the recent death of a 13-year-old, urging collective action to prevent tragedies.
• The meeting adjourned after a motion to adjourn was made and seconded.