Citizen concerns

GRANTS, N.M. - The City of Grants Council met on May 10. Mayor Pro Tempore Rick Lucero led the meeting; Mayor Martin “Modey” Hicks was absent.

The special May 5 meeting included action to rescind a budget adjustment resolution passed at the April 26 session and approval of a new budget adjustment resolution. This action was taken due to an “oversight” discovered by Cibola County Finance Director Paul Ludi after processing the previous budget adjustment. The new budget adjustment corrected that oversight. The mayor and Councilor Erik Garcia were absent from the special meeting, which was not available via Facebook because of hacker interference to the City’s page.

Citizen concerns

Three community members spoke during the May 10 session. Veterans Service Officer George Garcia, Veterans Service Office, talked about the program and described available services. He stressed that it is rare to have such an office available in a small community. Garcia asked the council to help spread the word about what is available to veterans. Because it is a state office it is currently operating mainly through teleservices. Garcia hopes to offer in-person appointments in June, but he is willing to work with any elderly veterans who are not comfortable working with technology.

Community member C.L. Peterson said she was attending the meetings to learn more about local government. She inquired about whether charter compliance was a flexible issue and asked about city manager quali fications, Peterson said she would like to learn more about new City Manager Vanessa Chavez and have her introduce herself at some point.

Another citizen raised concerns about the annual Fourth of July parade, which was not held last year in its traditional form. She explained that she had received word that it was not going to happen due to difficulties obtaining permits. The council reassured her about the annual preparations.

“It’s in the plans,” said

Mayor Pro tempore Lucero.

Charter compliance

The council discussed charter compliance and how there are differences of opinion and a bit of confusion as to how the city did not comply in recent meetings – an issue the mayor has brought up on a regular basis.

“[It’s] something we need to iron out,” said the mayor pro tempore.

Municipal judge re

quest

The councilors heard a presentation from Municipal Judge Elise Larsen regarding a raise. Judge Larsen has been with City of Grants Municipal Court for 11 years, has a master’s degree, works full time, and enjoys working in the area and bettering the community. Judge Larsen could not affirm whether she plans to seek reelection, but according to a city ordinance, raises for municipal judges can only be requested during election years. Judge Larsen pointed out that the last raise for the municipal judge position was nearly eight years ago. She provided the council with information, comparing the City of Grants with other cities and towns around New Mexico, Es panola being the most comparable to Grants noted Larsen, regarding things like case load, size, and salaries for municipal judges. The council requested more information regarding the ordinances from other cities about the way municipal judge raises are given and they would consider it.

Councilors tabled item six, which was going to be a Cibola Communities Economic Development Foundation Budget Request. The CCEDF Executive Director Eileen Yarborough rescheduled the presentation for the next regular meeting.

Action items

The council approved resolutions for the Washington Avenue Drainage Project and the Sakelares Boulevard Project. According to a memo to the city council, the Washington project is in the planning and design phase; the estimated project amount is $2,075,000. For the Sakalares project, “[t]he City is in the beginning stage of planning for reconstruction of Sakelares Boulevard from Route 66 to Lobo Canyon Road… [and] the estimated project amount is $575,000.”

The Sakalares project will be an excessively big project that the City will split up into various steps and phases over the years, ultimately resulting in a 20- million-dollar project by the end. Projects Coordinator Don Jaramillo thinks that it will receive interest in being funded because it connects two state highways and will contribute to economic development in the area.

The council approved a $99,999.99 purchase for a Skid-Steer from Clark Equipment Company, doing business as Bobcat Company, which was approved at a past meeting, but the motion did not include the specifics of the company.

The council approved Larry McCartin’s appointment to the Animal Care Board.

Council comments

Councilor Garcia asked that local events, such as a rodeo that was held recently, be advertised. and promoted more on the City of Grants Facebook page. Councilor Fred Padilla received updates from Public Works Director Mark Teshima on Well #3 and Projects Coordinator Jaramillo on the Rodeo arena project.