The Commission unanimously approved the $2.17-million purchase after holding a public hearing at the Sept. 17 meeting. No one spoke at the public hearing.
County Commissioner Frances Luna said the last proposal they looked at would cost $30 million, making the current purchase a good deal.
County Chairman James Paxon and County Commission Vice Chairman Travis Day said the Amin’s building was built “like a fortress.” Day noted it has “plenty of parking” and 5.5 acres, giving the county “room to grow.”
The various departments at the “old school building” at 100 N. Date St., as well as the departments at the 855 Van Patten building, will be consolidated at the Amin’s building, Paxon said. The Sheriff’s and Roads departments will stay where they are at 2501 S. Broadway, which used to be the Whitehead car dealership.
Day noted the county has always leased the old school building from the school district, paying for maintenance, repairs and upgrades, “when we don’t even own it.”
Paxon said the old school is a WPA building and he hopes it can be preserved.
The county will sell 855 Van Patten, Paxon said, returning it to the tax rolls. According to a county employee, the metal building used to be a VFW hall, built in 1999 and sold to the county in 2010.
The county insisted Inspection of Public Records Act requests be filed for more information and did not fulfill requests by press time.
Human Resources Administrative Director Serina Bartoo said the purchase price was nearly $2.16 million, $12,000 less than initially estimated.
The loan to purchase the building, however, stayed the same, at $2.17 million. According to loan documents the money will also be used to equip the building.
State law requires the county have the building appraised to ensure the public purse doesn’t overpay. Bartoo said this was done, but documents were not given by press time.
The cost of the lease for 100 Date St. is also not known.
The purchase price of 855 Van Patten is not known either, or if it is paid off or not.
The Commission approved a $2.17-million loan agreement with the New Mexico Finance Authority at the same meeting. The NMFA will kick in $217,051, or one-tenth of the loan’s principal in “disadvantaged funding,” since the county median income is about $29,000 vs. $44,000 in 80 percent of the state.
The loan pledges a portion of the gross receipts tax the county collects from businesses. It is a 17-year loan at nearly 2.5-percent interest, starting in 2020 and ending in 2037. $2 million cash will be available, with $16,400 taken out as a processing fee and $154,215 kept in a reserve account, according to loan documents.