Lea County Electric Cooperative operations center completed
CURTIS C. WYNNENEWS-SUN
Lea County Electric Cooperative Board of Trustees President John Graham cut the ribbon for the grand opening of the company’s new Operations Center in March in the company of former and current general managers, trustees, board members, company employees, Lovington Chamber of Commerce officials and City of Lovington officials. The building cost $2.6 million, including furnishings, IT equipment and controls.
LOVINGTON — With a grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony on March 16, Lea County Electric Cooperative (LCEC) celebrated completion of its new multi-million dollar operations center.
The almost 100 people in attendance included employees, board of trustees members, City of Lovington officials and Lovington Chamber of Commerce personnel.
LCEC Board of Trustee President John Graham explained the 10,000-square-foot building resolves operational concerns while improving safety cost effectively.
“Our employees’ safety was becoming more and more of an issue,” said Graham. “We were at a point that something had to be done and building the new operations center was the most cost effective solution for our members.”
Graham said the new structure cost about $2 million, $2.6 million when adding in furnishings, IT equipment and controls.
LCEC General Manager Bobby Ferris, welcoming the crowd before yielding the microphone to former General Manager Gary Hurse, said, “This has been a project that’s been in the process for about 18 months here at Lea County Electric Cooperative.”
Hurse, who retired at the end of 2017, returned to Loving-ton for the ribbon-cutting celebration and explained events leading up to the construction phase.
He said the board had looked at retrofitting other structures at the power plant, even calling in a third party consultant, to bring operations personnel into one safe building. The power plant building, some 60 years old, had been used by some of the personnel and needed extensive remodeling if it were to continue usage.
“It was going to cost about twice as much as it would to build this building,” Hurse said. “Obviously, looking out for the members’ money as we always do, we decided to build a new building.”
He pointed out bringing both operations crews into the same building improved efficiency as well as safety.
Lovington Chamber of Commerce Director Leslie Everson, introducing the ribbon-cutting portion of the ceremony, thanked LCEC for reinvesting in Lovington.
“Lea County Electric is a vital component to our infrastructure,” she said.