Residents oppose race track, casino
Bill Donovan
Staff Writer
GALLUP — A dozen area residents spoke out at a Gallup City Council
work session Tuesday, saying that the last thing the city needs is
a race track and casino built at Red Rock State Park.
A race track and casino would result in a lot of people losing money
needed to pay their rent and buy food, and life as Gallupians know
it would change for the worse, they said.
"Only a few people will make money and they will make gobs of
it," Susan McBride said.
Others said Gallup drivers would routinely see traffic jams, crime
rates would soar, and everyone would regret the day the race track
and casino were built.
Except for the two men Rudy Garcia and Frank Budick who are trying
to obtain permission to build the racetrack, casino and a family theme
park at Red Rock State Park, few people at the work session had much
good to say about the proposal.
But the council seems willing, at the suggestion of an audience member,
not to rush into a premature conclusion. Instead, the city fathers
plan to hold a public hearing sometime in the near future to let both
sides express their views.
City Manager David Ruiz said no date has been set for the hearing.
He added that he knew of a number of people who were supportive of
the proposal who would probably come to a public hearing.
Neither the city council nor Mayor John Pena gave any indication which
way they would have voted if the matter had been decided this week.
But Pena and some of the council delegates indicated the question
may not be whether Gallup will have a race track and the accompanying
slot machines but whether it will be built at Red Rock State Park
or elsewhere.
It's possible, they said, that a negative vote about
the Red Rock State Park proposal would result in the development being
built by Garcia and Budick elsewhere in town. Alternatively, they
said, someone else, such as the owner of the Downs in
Farmington, might build the race track/casino on the
western side of town.
It's also possible that the development might be set
up somewhere in the county.
If his group is turned down by the city, Budick said,
it plans to look at an alternative site on the north side of town,
across from the Gallup Flea Market.
Many of those attending the council session spoke of
the peace and quiet that now exists at Red Rock State Park and how
this would be affected by the Garcia/Budick proposal.
Carl Loman, one of the coordinators of the city's annual balloon rally,
which uses the state park as a launch site, said approval of the development
would "kill the balloon rally dead."
"We are not opposed to growth or even theme parks," he said,
but the rally is dependent on the ability to launch from the state
park. That ability would be severely hampered by a race track and
casino being built.
Budick disagreed, saying his group's efforts would only enhance the
balloon rally and other events now held at the state park, including
the Gallup Inter-Tribal Indian Ceremonial.
The state park, he said, costs the city some $700,000 to $800,000
in subsidies annually, and the city would save this by approving the
agreement.
If the city disapproves the use of Red Rock State Park and the race
track and casino are built elsewhere, the city would have to continue
subsidizing the operations at the park.
Anita Frederiksen, who also spoke in opposition, said use of the state
park, located in the middle of Navajo country, would be viewed as
another attempt by the "white people to exploit the Navajos.
"It would be a fragrant disrespect for the Navajo people, who
twice voted down a referendum on gaming," she said.
The Rev. Jay McCollum of the First Baptist Church urged council members
to think of the lives that would be ruined if the casino was built
here.
"I deal with people on a weekly basis who can't pay their bills
because of gaming," he said.
But Garcia said these kinds of statements prove that a gaming operation
in Gallup wouldn't have a major effect, since people are already betting
at other casinos in the area.
"The money at least will go to help Gallup and the businesses
here," he said, pointing out that millions of people annually
will go to the park if there were a race track, casino and theme park.
"Everyone benefits," Budick said, especially those who now
go to the other casinos or Albuquerque or Phoenix for entertainment.
"This is a boring town," Budick said. "There is nothing
to do here on weekends. That's why people have to leave."
Garcia pointed out that attendance at the Ceremonial has been down
drastically in the last few years. If something isn't done, he said,
it's going to fail, or some other town will pick it up.
Ruiz said more information is needed before the council
can make a decision.
He said city attorneys have been asked to give a legal opinion on
whether the council can consider the Garcia/Budick proposal or whether
they would have to open up the possibility to others who may want
to submit their own proposals.
| Top |
Jail blues Negative news has effect on
bed 'sales'
S.J. Ludescher
Staff Writer
GALLUP — Publicity concerning the recent escape of five inmates
from the McKinley County Adult Detention Center is making it difficult
for the Management and Training Corp to market the extra bed space
here, MTC's director told McKinley County commissioners Tuesday. MTC
is the new private company hired to manage the jail.
"We are working very hard to market the extra bed space throughout
the industry," Director Lane McCotter said. "The first ones
we contacted are the vendors that have already used this facility.
We've had some disappointments, but will be pursuing this quite actively
throughout the next few weeks."
The contract between the county and MTC calls for the two to share
50 percent of gross receipts earned on inmates for whom MTC charges
more than $36 per day.
McKinley County Finance Director Judith Krauklis said it would take
MTC some time to rebuild its inmate count at the McKinley County facility
since the Correctional Services Corp., the jail's old management company,
had transferred the inmates who were not from this area to other prisons.
CSC will run the local jail until around Jan. 5, the expected day
MTC will take over.
Sometime over the night of Nov. 25-26, five inmates escaped from the
McKinley County facility. One escapee, Timothy Mora, turned himself
in to the Bernalillo County Detention Center Nov. 28. The remaining
four are still at large.
The escape, the third from the facility in three months, has fostered
significant unhappiness among residents of Gallup, particularly from
people living in Mossman, a housing development near the jail.
McCotter's comments about marketing extra jail beds was part of a
briefing he made to McKinley County commissioners concerning the transition
of the operation of the county jail from CSC to MTC.
"It looks like we're going to have no trouble at all finding
qualified employees," McCotter told commissioners.
As soon as MTC begins operating the jail, he said, it will begin giving
its new employees 40 hours of mandatory training. The company will
also review policies and procedures with new employees prior to the
takeover.
Other upgrades for the detention center, McCotter said, include a
state-of-the-art computer system and a 15-passenger van. "We
hope to assume the leases on the other vehicles now being used,"
he added.
McCotter also said MTC had evaluated the jail's booking area and would
make only minor changes there.
In addition, MTC will continue to use the fingerprinting system, but
will allow the sheriff's office full access to its information. In
the past, CSC rarely shared its information with the sheriff's office.
MTC will meet with local law enforcement within the next two weeks
to review policies and procedures to deal with any future escapes.
Two bids for the installation of motion and body heat detectors between
the roof and ceiling were also received. "Installation will begin
on or as close as we can to Jan. 5," he said.
Implementation of a Citizens Advisory Committee is awaiting action
from the commissioners, McCotter said. Commissioners have not yet
made appointments to the committee, but MTC is hoping to call a meeting
prior to its takeover date.
During the Tuesday meeting, McKinley County Commissioner Harry Mendoza
talked about the recent allegations by acting facility administrator
Harold "Bob" Bass.
In an interview with New Mexico media on Nov. 27, Bass said the McKinley
County jail was unsafe because it didn't have metal mesh in the ceiling
and had glass instead of plastic in the skylights, making it relatively
easy for inmates to escape.
"Bass was appointed as special projects coordinator (by the county
for the overseeing of the building of the county jail,)" Mendoza
said Tuesday. "If it's faulty or doesn't meet the standard, then
he neglected his duty. The last escape was due to faulty management
and training by CSC, not because of the building.
"It kind of gripes me that Bass was at the head
of the crowd praising this facility as the best in New Mexico. Now
that CSC has lost the contract, he's trying to put the blame on someone
else. I think it needs to be put right where it belongs. And he's
right in the middle of it."
Bass, however, said last week that he was "only involved through
the planning and RFP (request for proposal) stages. I was on the committee,
but I was not in charge."
A review of county personnel records indicates that Bass had been
appointed special projects coordinator from June 25, 1995, and served
in that position until July 21, 1996.
| Top |
Becenti gets 7 days in jail
S.J. Ludescher
Staff Writer
GALLUP — McKinley County Commission Chairman Earnest C. Becenti
Sr. has been sentenced to seven days in jail.
Becenti, who also was ordered to undergo a psychological evaluation,
will report to the county jail at 5 p.m. today.
The sentence imposed this morning was 364 days in jail,
with 357 days suspended. That leaves seven days to serve.
Becenti had been found guilty on two counts of battery in the groping
of a female attorney October 1998.
Becenti, a long-time political power in McKinley County, was found
guilty in a bench trial before San Juan County Judge George A. Harrison,
who was brought in to handle the case. Harrison also imposed the sentence.
Becenti was found guilty of two counts of misdemeanor battery following
a three-hour trial.
Marcella King-Ben, Becenti's victim and a deputy district attorney,
had asked the judge for the maximum fine and penalty on each count.
King-Ben at the time of the incident was a staff attorney with the
Northern New Mexico Legal Service. She filed the complaint in December
after a federal sexual harassment lawsuit filed against Becenti was
made public. The lawsuit was settled out of court earlier this year
for an estimated $180,000.
According to King-Ben, she encountered Commissioner
Becenti in County Manager Irvin Harrison's office on Oct. 28 of last
year while everyone else was at lunch. She introduced herself by extending
her hand for a handshake. Instead, Becenti "put his arms around
her, trapping her and tried to kiss her."
She claimed she was only able to avoid being kissed on the lips by
turning her head side-to-side. Finally, he kissed her cheek as she
turned her head.
"He grabbed me again when I headed for the door."
She testified that she was able to get only one arm out of her pocket
to push him away with a force that set him off-balance and reeling
backward several steps.
Becenti testified that he did, in fact, hug and kiss
King-Ben but that it wasn't in an inappropriate way, it was a "traditional
greeting." He also corroborated that she had admonished him to
stop this practice as she was leaving. Becenti also insisted that
she was smiling and laughing when she left the office.
| Top |
Correction
GALLUP — Gallup City Manager David Ruiz said the city is paying
law firms up to $200 a case - not per hour - to handle plea bargains
and prosecute misdemeanors in the city court.
Ruiz added that the city wanted to hire an attorney to handle these
cases and is now looking at someone who would work as a city prosecutor.
He said he did a study of salaries offered by district attorney's
offices throughout the state and found that attorneys with the level
of experience Gallup requires averaged between $30,000 and $35,000.
Tribal drivers, beware
Board looks for misuse
Bill Donovan
Diné Bureau
WINDOW ROCK — Laurence Garnernez says he is tired of tribal employees
ignoring tribal laws by speeding in government vehicles or using them
for personal trips.
"We get, on the average, three calls a day from people who call
the 1-800 line with a complaint about tribal employees," said
Garnernez, who is head of the tribe's highway safety program.
But that may soon change.
Navajo Nation President Kelsey Begaye has just appointed new people
to the tribe's Motor Vehicle Review Board...
| Top |
Grants applies for new tank
Water rates could increase
Tom Purdom
Staff Writer
GRANTS — The city is taking steps to build a new water tank to
replace the old tank it has now through a state grant and possible
loan, which could result in a water rate hike.
A resolution approving the grant application was one of the items
to be heard at the city council meeting Monday, but was postponed
until a Thursday council meeting.
Tom Pollard, executive director of the New Mexico Finance
Authority in Santa Fe, said Tuesday that the city submitted an application
for a $400,000 grant, not a loan application. The same application
form is used to apply for loans. The city submitted the application
Nov. 22...
| Top |
Probe into escape raises questions
S.J. Ludescher
Staff Writer
GALLUP — An independent consultant is now questioning
whether some of the explanations he has been given concerning the
most recent escape are correct. The consultant was hired by the architectural
firm responsible for the design of the McKinley County Adult Detention
Center to investigate the Thanksgiving night escape of five prison
inmates.
Robert Viterna, of County Association Consultants of Texas, said he
is investigating the escape for the jail's architects, Ray Mitchum
and Associates of Roswell.
Shortly after midnight Nov. 26, five inmates escaped from the county
jail's G pod, using a skylight that is more than 20 feet from the
bottom floor of the pod...
| Top |
Birds Springs man cuts wife
Diné Bureau
DILKON, Ariz. — Navajo police arrested a 43-year-old Bird Springs
Chapter man on an aggravated assault charge for allegedly cutting
his wife with a pocket knife in the parking lot of the school in Bird
Springs while the children were inside presenting their annual Thanksgiving
program to parents and friends.
Joe Tom Thompson of the Navajo Housing Authority subdivision in Bird
Springs allegedly grabbed his wife, Sarah Thompson, 44, and attempted
to stab her in the stomach with the pocket knife, according to the
report filed by Officer Alta Jensen of the Dilkon Police District.
The attack occurred around 10:45 a.m. Nov. 24 in the parking lot of
the dome building at Little Singer Community School. The school complex
is located several miles south of Navajo Route 15...
| Top |
Bilagody named to college board
Diné Bureau
WINDOW ROCK — A second member of the Education
Committee of the Navajo Nation Council has been named to the embattled
Diné College Board of Regents.
James Bilagody, a former committee chairman and a council delegate
for the Tuba City and Coal Mine Mesa chapters, immediately began a
six-year term representing the Western Agency.
His appointment by Navajo President Kelsey Begaye was confirmed, 7-0,
Friday by the council's Government Services Committee...
| Top |
Indian Hills gets preschool award
Nancy Watson
Staff Writer
GALLUP — When you love what you do and are good at it, it shows.
For Mary Johnson and Karen Linford, what they're good
at shows daily in the faces of the tiny children they teach and care
for at Indian Hills Elementary Preschool.
Their efforts gained national recognition in October when they received
the 1998 Early Childhood Professional Award. They were nominated for
the award by a parent, Melinda Marble, whose daughter, Allison, attends
the preschool...
| Top |
Code Talkers film needs actors
Jim Maniaci
Diné Bureau
WINDOW ROCK — Navajo men who want to star in a major motion picture
"Windtalkers" about the Code Talkers of World War II will
be able to audition Thursday and Friday at the Navajo Nation Inn.
According to Mindy Marin, casting director of Bluewater Ranch Entertainment,
the tryouts will be held from noon to 3 p.m. the first day and 9 a.m.
to noon the second day.
"We encourage all those interested to attend," she said.
The movie has parts for two men to act as the featured members of
a secret U.S. Marine Signal Corps unit only 420 Native Americans served
in the special outfit...
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