City Council Recap – March 2, 2026: Canopy Liquor License, HAWK Signal Project, Film Las Cruces and Medicaid Ambulance Reporting

At its regular meeting held Monday, March 2, the Las Cruces City Council discussed and voted on four resolutions. 

The resolutions approved include a transfer of location of a canopy liquor license for package sales to BW Gas & Convenience Retail LLC., doing business as Allsup’s. The location for the license is 4805 Mesa Grande Drive in Las Cruces, where a convenience store and gas station will be built. The New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department’s Alcoholic Beverage Control Division gave preliminary approval to the transfer request in January. According to state law, the transfer request must also be approved by the City Council after holding a public hearing. No one spoke at the public hearing. The resolution was approved by a vote of 6-1, with Councilor Bill Mattiace voting no.

City Council also approved a $300,000 grant application from the City to the New Mexico Department of Transportation’s Municipal Arterial Program for the City’s Amador Crossing HAWK Signal Project.  The grant requires a $100,000 City match. The proposed project will include installation of a pedestrian hybrid beacon (a button-activated traffic signal), sidewalk and Americans with Disabilities Act curb ramp modification and appropriate signage and striping. The project will provide pedestrians with an improved and protected multi-lane crossing point by stopping busy vehicular traffic along west Amador Avenue at the intersection of McSwain Drive. The total cost of the project is estimated at about $984,000, of which more than $584,000 will be funded by a state capital outlay grant. The resolution was adopted by a council vote of 7-0.

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City Council agreed to add $10,000 to the City’s annual contract with Film Las Cruces (FLC), increasing FLC’s contract from $95,000 to $105,000 for the final year of the City’s current two-year contract to bring film and television production to Las Cruces. For the past 10 years, FLC has cultivated relationships with film industry firms and personnel and brought film production to Las Cruces. The additional funds will be used to support a marketing and promotional campaign, including advertising in MovieMaker Magazine and FLC’s participation in the American Film Market in Los Angeles. The resolution was approved 7-0. 

Lastly, City Council approved a purchase agreement for Medicaid ambulance reporting between the City and Public Consulting Group, LLC (PCG) of Boston, Massachusetts for an annual amount up to $600,000, effective through Dec. 31, 2028. The Las Cruces Fire Department provides ambulance service to the Las Cruces community for life-saving care, relief of medical symptoms, and transportation to medical facilities as needed. These services may be eligible to participate in state and federal ambulance supplemental payment programs that reimburse LCFD for providing ground ambulance transportation for people who participate in the Medicaid program. In 2024, LCFD provided 3,852 program-eligible transports, at an estimated cost of more than $3,400 per transport, for a total estimated cost of more than $13.15 million. LCFD will contract with PCG to assist with Medicaid cost reports and ground-transportation data collection so LCFD can receive reimbursements for these services. The resolution was approved 7-0.