MILAN, NM – The Board of Trustees held their regular meeting on October 12. This meeting mainly centered around finances, but included new items such as the acceptance of Cibola County support of the Milan swimming pool, and acceptance of a new grant for the police department for recruitment and salaries.
The Meeting began with the approval of Minutes. The minutes to be approved included the Board of Trustees Regular Meeting held on September 21, and the Board of Trustees Special Meeting held on September 27. Both meeting minutes were approved by the board.
Next on the agenda were the discussion/action items. The first item was acceptance of municipal court cash journal for September 2023 which was approved. The second item was approval of the finance report for September 2023. Finance Director Candace Williams gave a presentation to the board on the finances. Some of the highlights of this presentation were that all accounts are in balance, they made 165 payables in the month of September for a total of $460,351.16. The finance report was approved. The next item was a resolution for BAR #6, according to WIlliams the BAR was a little bit complicated due to them having to move funds to different accounts, the BAR also included a separate grant for law enforcement for recruitment and salaries. The resolution was approved by the board. The next item was resolution of the quarter 1 finance report for FY2024, the report included all of the reports and charts that were submitted to DFA. The report was approved.
The agenda moved forward with the acceptance of a separate grant for the police department. The grant is for recruitment and the salaries of new employees in law enforcement. The total grant is $1.1 million and it is to be split over three years. The grant only covers the salaries and benefits for three new officers. The board accepted the grant. The next item was acceptance of Cibola County support for the Milan swimming pool. Cibola County offered support to assist with the pool for utilities, the county offered a total of $75,000 which will aid in covering the electricity and gas at the pool. The board accepted the support from the County. The final item was acceptance of the TPF agreement for Stanley Ave/Stanley bridge. The item was regarding a grant agreement with the DFA for a total amount of $2.8 million, the village would have to match $150,000, but they have submitted a match waiver request for the grant. The total amount of the grant is $3 million. The board accepted the agreement.
Updates were then given for each of the departments. Fire Chief Daniel Urioste was not present at the meeting so there were no updates regarding the fire department.
Police Chief Carl Ustupski gave his updates regarding the police department. In the month of September the department responded to 277 calls for service and had 18 arrests. MPD new Tyler reporting software went live and according to Ustupski there have been a few minor errors that have needed corrections but overall, it has shown to be a good system. They applied for assistance in the recruitment funding for four officer positions, and were awarded assistance with salaries for three positions. The department participated in an event to raise money for MADD at the golf course, with an event in honor of Andrew “Wake Self” Martinez who was a local rapper who was killed in 2019 after a drunk driving accident. Ustupski ended his report by saying that the department has made several updates to equipment and procedures at the police department that have been much needed and they are slowly catching up on areas that have not been fixed or handled in a long time.
Village Clerk Denise Baca gave updates regarding projects/clerk operations. Early voting has begun and voters can begin voting at the county clerk offices.
Village Manager Linda Cooke also gave updates regarding all other departments. Due to the accident of a car running into the old Village Hall, they might lose the mural on the building, but the city is in contact with the artist to see if they can either touch up the mural or create a new one.
As of October 1, the garbage rates have been raised, for one trash can the price has increased by $1.84 and for two the price has increased by $3.
The meeting ended with announcements, the Village of Milan Pumpkin Patch will take place on October 21 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Kearns Park; a trunk-or-treat will take place on October 31 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. at New Village Hall; the planning and zoning meeting will take place on November 2 at 4:30 p.m.; the Villagewide cleanup will take place on November 4 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. trash bins will be at Village Hall and the Febco Fire Station with tires only being taken at Village Hall only. Dump coupons will be handed out at Village Hall; and the Board of Trustees Regular Meeting will take place on November 16 at 5:30 p.m.