Commissioners approve road engineering, airport easement and equipment purchases

Lee County commissioners on Jan. 16 approved multiple capital and contracting actions intended to support road work, airport operations and in‑house material production.

Interim County Manager Corey Needham described successful pilot use of a rented track‑mounted crusher at the county pit north of Lovington and recommended purchase of the same type of machine. Needham said recent rental operations had reduced crushing costs to about $8.09 per ton, roughly half previous costs, and that rental fees paid to date would be applied toward a budgeted purchase. Commissioners moved and approved the purchase.

County staff also presented and the board approved an easement and construction agreement with Xcel Energy to formalize underground primary electric work the utility already installed at Lee County Regional Airport. Needham said the easement carries no cost to Lee County and that Xcel provided the survey.

For roads, the board approved a $414,697 engineering task order with Square Root Services to design an industrial corridor in three phases; the scope includes surveying and FEMA coordination for a floodplain crossing. Separately, commissioners approved a $103,671 task to design interim improvements at the NM 28/Orla intersection intended to add a right‑turn lane and a free right onto NM 128 to relieve evening backups. Staff explained the interim design responds to longer‑term DOT intersection projects and projected traffic growth tied to a nearby conveyor project.

All items were presented as budgeted and approved by voice or roll‑call votes during the meeting.