Binkley to bid farewell to city

By Zsombor Peter
Staff Writer

GALLUP — It wasn't the most glamorous or headline-grabbing job inside City Hall. And that's just the way Larry Binkley seemed to like it.

But as the city's unassuming executive director of administrative services, it was his job to make sure the city had enough money to do what it had to do and do it well. Although most major financial decisions had to be cleared by the city manager, then approved by the City Council, they all relied on Binkley's expertise.

Now, after nearly six-and-a-half years with the city and more than 40 years in public service Binkley is calling it a career. He tendered his resignation, effective in mid-May, Friday.

With the press, Binkley was coy about his immediate future with the city. When asked only weeks ago, he gave no clue about his pending departure.

But City Manager Eric Honeyfield, who has relied on Binkley to be his right hand man for almost four years now, knew better. After Friday's letter, he said he'd known that Binkley had been thinking of retiring for some time. And indeed he was.

"It's something (me and my wife have) been looking at for the last few years," he finally conceded Monday afternoon.

It was only natural. Binkley was approaching standard retirement age. And having just recently hit 65 years and eight months, he was finally in line to receive his full retirement benefits from the city.

Leaving on a high note
But Binkley also seemed to be waiting for something else.

"I wanted to go out when I felt good about what I accomplished," he said.

At the top of that list Binkley places the city's new aquatic center on Boardman Drive. He served on the joint committee, between the city and Gallup McKinley County Schools, that ushered the project from conception to completion. The center had its grand opening almost a year ago to the day.

Binkley is also proud of the approximately $60 million in bonds he estimates he helped secure for Gallup during his tenure with the city. Again, it wasn't glamorous work, but it's money the city wouldn't have had otherwise to take on some major projects, including the aquatic center, much-needed upgrades to the city's wastewater treatment plant, and the expansion of Gallup's trail system.

But the job also had its challenges. Binkley doesn't hesitate for long to bring up the municipal golf course.

Dual roles
Not long after Honeyfield's arrival in 2003, the executive director of administrative services took on a second title: assistant city manager. As part of his new duties, Binkley suddenly found himself in charge of the golf course. So when the city came under fire for the facility's deteriorating condition, not least of all from The Independent, Binkley took some heat for lacking the right experience for the job. After hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of improvements, and the hiring of a trained agronomist, he seems to have the course on the road to recovery.

Binkley won't miss the irate utility customers either. Complaints about inaccurate city bills were one thing. But when the city carried out a "utility blitz" last year against delinquent customers and The Independent published the names of all overdue account holders, that was something else. Although the city had no choice about releasing the information at the paper's request, as per the state's open records laws, many customers blamed the city for the unwanted publicity.

In the end, the blitz didn't achieve the kind of gains Binkley was hoping for in recovering the money customers owed Gallup Joint Utilities, but it did help.

Jail change
Helping guide the county jail from private to public management wasn't one of the easiest projects of his city career, either, Binkley said.

After a number of escapes under Management Training Center, the McKinley County Commission resolved to run the facility itself with the city's help. But as the inmate population fell, the jail started to run into the red. With some fiscal belt tightening, Binkley helped turn its financial fortunes around.

Overall, Binkley believes he's leaving the city in a promising position. He's especially glad to see all the construction going on around town.

"If we continue to see gross receipts tax from that, and if we continue to see retail sales increase, I think the city will have money to keep moving forward," he said.

As for his successor, whoever it may be, his advice is simple: "Be real frugal; watch the funds and always be up-front with what money's available."

Honeyfield said he'd like to have a new administrative services director on board at least a week before Binkley leaves, for training purposes; however, neither of them know precisely when that will be.

Binkley wants to stay long enough the help the city settle on a budget for the next fiscal year. He figures that should be some time between May 7 and 18. The budget is due to the state by June 1.

Binkley insisted that the timing of his departure had nothing to do with the recent municipal elections, which saw the election of two new city councilors and after the March 27 runoff a new mayor. And Honeyfield had to reason to doubt him; however, the city manager did find the loss of three top administrators in such short order unusual. Parks Director Vince Alonzo left in the fall. City Planner Lisa Baca Diaz made her exit at the end of last year.

After his own departure, Binkley plans to take it easy. His working days, he said, are over.

"I'll try to improve my golf game," he said.

Binkley will probably be saying good-bye to Gallup as well. He figures he and his wife will resettle in Las Cruces eventually to be around their grandchildren.

"I'm from Phoenix," he said, "so I'm used to the warm weather."