GRANTS, N.M. – For the past few months, local government managers have met with locals the first Thursday of every month to discuss community issues and provide updates from each municipality. However, with the Village of Milan searching for someone to fill their open village manager position the past few months that these meetings have occurred, locals have only heard from City of Grants Manager Vanessa Chavez and Cibola County Manager Kate Fletcher. That changed during the October 7 Coffee with the Managers, when the new village manager, Linda Cooke, was finally introduced.
According to County Manager Fletcher, who worked with Cooke during her time with Catron County, Cooke has over 20 years of government knowledge and everyone is very excited to welcome her and see what things she can accomplish with the Village of Milan.
As for the rest of the Oct. 7 Coffee with the Managers gathering, the county introduced their new addition to the information technology department, Jessie Carlile, who will be the department’s IT Director. During the meeting, Carlile was able to share some information about cyber security and how important it is, especially for government entities. Fletcher later said of Carlile, “I’m very lucky and very excited to have Jessie on board. He’s extremely experienced. He’s got a wealth of knowledge, and I think he’s going to save the county money, but also secure the county so we don’t fall under cyberattacks.” Carlile will also be in charge of putting together the IT infrastructure for the county’s new public safety building.
Cibola County Emergency Manager Dustin Middleton also attended the meeting to discuss some of the needs that a public safety building should meet and how the plans for the new Cibola County public safety building fulfill them.
At the meeting, Cibola County Finance Director Paul Ludi also gave an update on county finances. The managers also discussed the American Rescue Plan funds and provided the locals with the same presentation that had been given to the City of Grants, Village of Milan, and Cibola County. These funds can only be used towards specific projects, and each municipality will receive their own portion. Each of the municipalities have already begun planning for which projects they would like to use the funds for.
At the meeting, the managers once again emphasized being wise with the funds and making sure they are using them for projects and things that will benefit the largest number of people as possible. They are focusing on benefitting the whole, rather than parts. “We need to utilize the funding the best way we know how to help people that we can help,” later added Manager Fletcher.
One project that passes ARP fund qualifications and has garnered excitement from all entities is establishing RedBolt Broadband internet services across Cibola County. The village, city, and county also all have joint interest in possibly using the funds towards drainage for Elkins Road. The next Coffee with the Managers meeting will be on Thursday, November 4 at 8 a.m. at Coyote Del Malpais Golf Course Clubhouse.