Councilors, commissioners talk solutions
Answers to the problem of community spread of COVID-19 through McKinley County and Gallup have been hard to define and even more difficult to realize.
An April 14 emergency meeting of the Gallup City Council and Gallup Mayor Jackie McKinney was held online to determine how to address the threat of community spread from people panhandling to buy alcohol at area convenience stores.
“We don’t want to do anything that penalizes law abiding citizens,” McKinney said.
But finding answers to how to flatten the curve in Gallup is a challenge. The mayor and city councilors listened to more than 12 people giving two minutes of public comment each on subjects including curfews and alcohol restrictions and the differences were stark.
One person warned against overreach disguised as public safety.
Another said putting a curfew in place would restrict all citizens, when only some members of the population were behaving in a dangerous manner, suggesting that the city needs to contain the homeless population, so the general public does not have its constitutional rights restricted.
One of the calls was in opposition to restricting the sale of alcohol, because transients who depend on being able to buy it, could become agitated and aggressive if they couldn’t get it.
Another said there will always be people selling alcohol off the back of pickup trucks and out of hotel rooms, so such a move would not be a threat to life or safety.
In that same vein, one caller suggested that sending transients to grocery stores to buy liquor would spread the virus among shoppers who are practicing social distancing, and only venturing out to purchase necessities.
Councilors considered several options.
District 3 Councilor Yogash Kumar mentioned the issue of cross contamination at convenience stores with gas pumps as he’s seen throngs of people flock to local gas stations to buy booze, with some folks ignoring social distancing protocols to panhandle to get a drink.
“There’s always going to be traffic in these locations. These people are sharing drinks,” he said. “We can’t really do a curfew because they have no teeth.”
Dist. 1 Councilor Linda Garcia echoed Kumar’s concerns about the curfew because it might be overwhelming for the Gallup Police Department to enforce.
“We don’t have the manpower to stop everyone on the streets to see if they are abiding by this curfew or not,” she said.
On the alcohol issue, Garcia said, “I think it’s going to be all or nothing.”
She was particularly concerned that a restriction of alcohol sales at convenience stores might push transients to visit grocery stores for liquor, putting customers at risk.
“I see vandalism going up. I see panhandling going up,” she said.
Michael Schaaf, newly-elected to represent Dist. 2, liked the idea of restricting alcohol sales at convenience stores.
McKinney agreed.
“I am not in favor of continuing alcohol sales in convenience stores,” the mayor said.
Dist. 4 councilor Fran Palochak expressed her concern about how people with alcohol outside the convenience stores might be contributing to the spread of COVID-19.
“If we limit certain alcohol [sales], what would stop someone from going outside and passing it to another transient and then going back in to buy more liquor or going to another establishment that sells liquor?” she asked.
Ultimately, it was Palochak who made a motion to restrict the sale of liquor at convenience stores. The motion received support from all but one councilor. Dist. 1 councilor Linda Garcia opposed it.
City Attorney Curtis Hayes was given the task of writing the ordinance for distribution to convenience stores in Gallup.
Ordinance No. S2020-3, dated April 14, known as An ordinance restricting the sale of alcohol by certain outlets to aid in stopping the spread of the COVID-19 virus during the period of the declared emergency, calls for convenience stores located in the city to stop selling, serving or otherwise transferring beer, wine, or any other alcoholic beverage until the Governor of New Mexico revokes the health emergency declaration in Executive Order 2020-004.
It further makes it a misdemeanor for anyone to violate any section of the ordinance and includes a fine of between $100 and $500. Provisions of the ordinance shall be enforced by citation by any law enforcement, or code enforcement officer or fire marshal employed by the city.
Attested to by City Clerk Alfred Abeita II and signed by Gallup Mayor Jackie McKinney, it was passed, adopted and approved April 14 and was published on the City of Gallup website April 15. It becomes effective after 5 days, meaning it will take effect April 20.
Fire inspectors from the fire prevention office hand-delivered the notices to the establishments involved April 16.
THE COUNTY’S ANSWER
The McKinley County Commission held a special meeting about community spread of COVID-19 April 13 (see Board of Commissioners discusses curfew for county - Page 6).
Now it has scheduled a second emergency meeting via Facebook at 9 am April 20 to revisit the county ordinance that limited convenience store alcohol sales to only products at or under 15 percent alcohol content and one 12-pack of beer and one bottle of wine and a self-imposed curfew from 8 pm to 5 am.
Dist. 3 Commissioner Bill Lee told the Gallup Sun April 14 that he doesn’t believe the ordinance is going to be effective.
He says the city’s plan to send transients into grocery stores looking for alcohol is a bad idea. As for the county’s plan, Lee is talking about rescinding the restrictions proposed April 13 and returning to the former course of action.
“We can’t hold people more than 72 hours or against their will in isolation and quarantine,” he pointed out. With Na Nizhoozhi Center Inc. detox closed, there are few options.
“I think our best alternative would be to run a shuttle service to Albuquerque or Santa Fe, where they have the resources to help treat these people,” he said.
Asked how the county would pay for such a plan, Lee said, “We have a choice. Let the infection continue to spread and spread rampantly through our community, or find someplace to get help and treatment.”
The state is going to have to figure it out financially on the other end, he added.
Lee said he would speak with State Sen. George Muñoz, D- Gallup about the shuttle idea.
Muñoz told the Gallup Sun April 15 that the ideas were still fluid because the Emergency Operations Center had said it would assist in helping the McKinley County Juvenile Detention Center take in people who could no longer be housed at the NCI detox center. But the senator said the EOC then changed its plan.
County Attorney Doug Decker told the Gallup Sun April 15 that the Juvenile Detention Center has closed and the corrections staff has been moved out. But that alone won’t turn the Juvenile Detention Center into a place to safely hold people during the COVID-19 crisis.
The building must be prepared before it can be used as a detox center for COVID-19 positive patients. Decker said that preparation is not going to move forward until the state Emergency Operations Center responds to a request to provide people who can operate the facility.
“It will take time to be able to get it ready for use for patients,” he said.
He listed all the things that would have to be moved out of the building including furniture, equipment, supplies, cleaning chemicals and stored files.
The facilities management department offices are also in that building.
Decker said the county believed it had a commitment from the state and he thinks that can still become a reality, but so far, the operators for the planned facility have not shown up.
“We’re ready to do our part but we’re waiting to know if that one key component is going to materialize,” he said.
By Beth Blakeman
Associate Editor
