News

Omicron surge in Cibola COVID-19 tears through county, set to break 2020 record for new cases; School-aged kids lead surge

Body
CIBOLA COUNTY, N.M. – As it has through the rest of the nation, Omicron is making its way through Cibola County. Case numbers are jumping, Cibola General Hospital is reporting a constantly filled intensive care unit to the United States Department of Health, filled to capacity a majority of the time with COVID-19 patients. COVID cases in Cibola County began to rise dramatically after the New Years holiday, putting Cibola on pace to break its COVID-19 record which was set November 24, 2020 before vaccines became widely available to New Mexicans.

Municipal elections quickly approaching

Body
VILLAGE OF MILAN, N.M. — The Village of Milan Board of Trustees held a special meeting on Thursday, January 13, 2022 at 9 a.m., and then a workshop meeting at 5:30 later that afternoon. The special meeting in the morning only had one item up for action/discussion, and that was the approval of election board workers for the upcoming election in March. The Milan Board of Trustees has three municipal officer positions up for grabs in the March 2022 election, and those are the position of Mayor, Position 1 Trustee, and Position 2 Trustee, according to the 2022 Municipal Election Proclamation found on http://www.villageofmilan.com/2022_election_in formation/index.php. Each position is for a four-year term. The two trustees that have finished their four-year terms and will be concluding their time serving on the Board of Trustees are Chris Archuleta and Ellen Baca. The proclamation also includes information about declaration of candidacy, write-ins, and withdrawal dates, which have all already passed. According to the village’s Election Resolution, Resolution No. 2021-030, the election will be held March 1, 2022, polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and voting will be done at the Rockin’ 66 Transit building on 407 Airport Road, Milan, N.M. The resolution also included information about absentee and early voting, which can be found at the same web address mentioned above. As for the Jan. 13 afternoon workshop, all trustees, the village clerk, village manager, and village financial director were all present. A citizen presumed to be a village employee addressed the board to talk about water, one of the village’s wells, its history, problems it had in the past, how employers and engineers fixed it in the past, et cetera. The employee then discussed how he has spoken with one of the employees/engineers who worked on the well when a problem occurred with it some years ago, and the gentleman recommended that they have a company take the well’s current pump out and install a six-inch submerge pump instead. The employee said if all goes smoothly from there, they will be able to repair the well line that was cut, install a bypass, and “get some water so we can get some wind breaks going,” which the employee said will open up opportunities for a few interested individuals to farm vegetables on a nearby 30-acre land parcel. The employee asked the board if the village would be able to purchase the six-inch pump, assuming all necessary tests go smoothly, to which the board and Financial Director Candi Williams agreed, yes, that it would be worthwhile to evaluate the pricing. Next, Village Clerk Denise Baca provided the board with a rundown of items that would appear on the next regular trustee meeting’s agenda. Some resolutions that are going to appear are an Open Meetings Act resolution that must be renewed at the beginning of every year; a CDBG resolution including a participation plan, procurement details, rules and regulations, fair housing and section three; and a few new resolutions added by Village Manager Linda Cooke to establish financial institution, business hours, Robert’s Rules of Order, and the Inspection of Public Records Act for the village. Clerk Baca also covered ordinances that will appear, including a municipal bonds ordinance and a minimum wage ordinance. Baca also shared that she received a call from local Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Brenda Curtright asking if the chamber may give a presentation regarding an ATV/UTV event that they are trying to organize for Labor Day weekend this year. Cooke said the chamber mentioned something about possibly utilizing the local racetrack, Uranium Capitol Speedway, in Milan for the event. Trustee Chris Archuleta mentioned this might be beneficial to bringing more attention and advertising to the track.

Tom’s Detailing: A story of faith and cars

Body
GRANTS, N.M. — Community member Jeremy Tom has been working with cars since he was in high school. Around that time, Tom began detailing his family member’s vehicles for some extra cash. “They would be happy about it and they kept telling me, ‘You should open a detailing shop,’ and I didn’t really consider it at that time because I thought Grants was going to kind of go downhill and I didn’t know where to begin. Plus, I was just still a teenager,” said Tom. A few years later, in 2017, Tom began working for Ed Corley Ford Sales, Inc. and that is where he started to consider the idea of stepping more seriously into the detailing business. “I always had a thing about vehicles. You know, I always liked the fact of the before and after, making it clean, and just, that’s what got me into it, was when I used to work at Ed Corley’s,” reflected Tom.

Honoring Martin Luther King Jr

Body
MILAN, N.M. – The 16th annual celebration of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was held on January 17 in the Village of Milan, New Mexico. The annual event has moved across the county, from the City of Grants to now in the Village of Milan, but the premise of the celebration has maintained. Bringing together cultures, and recognizing that Cibola County, New Mexico, and the entire United States is not a home for hatred, but a place for acceptance and growth.

Community Calendar

Body
February 12 Cibola County Historical Society General Meeting and Program for the Cibola County Histroical Society. February 12, 2022 at 2 p.m., 525 W.

Cibola County road blading schedule 2022

Body
GRANTS, NM – Cibola County Road Department 2022 blading schedule for County Maintained Roads. Gravel and dirt county-maintained roads will be bladed every other month based on the schedule for 2022: Seboyeta area, County Road 1, Timberlake area, and Zuni canyon area county-maintained roads will be bladed in the odd numbered months starting in January.

AG Balderas Seals a Victory for New Mexico; Enters $5 Billion Opioid Settlement with Johnson & Johnson

Body
A L B U Q U E R Q U E , NM— Attorney General Hector Balderas today announced that New Mexico will join in a $5 billion nationwide settlement with drug maker Johnson & Johnson and two related companies, resolving allegations that the companies fueled the opioid crisis in the state. The companies have agreed to pay New Mexico its share of the settlement in full, in 2022, if all eligible New Mexico county and city governments sign onto the deal by May 31, 2022. Most other states will be paid over the course of several years.

STATE BAR OF NEW MEXICO ANNOUNCES 2022 OFFICERS

Body
A L B U Q U E R Q U E , N.M.— The State Bar of New Mexico announces its 2022 leadership: President Carolyn A. Wolf (Santa Fe), President- Elect Benjamin I. Sherman (Albuquerque), and S e c r e t a r y - Tr e a s u r e r Erinna M. Atkins (Alamogordo). The State Bar is governed by a 23-member Board of Bar Commissioners (BBC), elected by the membership.

Blood shortage hits critical records

Body
CIBOLA COUNTY, N.M – The Red Cross declared a “National Blood Crisis” on January 10. This means there is not enough life-saving blood being donated to fill the ongoing need. Several COVID-19 patients need blood, sickle cell anemia patients need blood, trauma patients need blood. The more hospitals are slammed, the less blood is available.

Cibola County COVID-19

Body
Stats as of January 14 5,081 Total cases 884 Active cases 162 Deaths 456% Increase in 14-Day change rate 19,316 Residents with one vaccine shot 15,853 Residents fully vaccinated 77.1% of Cibola is fully vaccinated Register for a test at https://cv.nmhealth.org/pu blic-health-screening-andtesting/ Register for a vaccine at https://cvvaccine.nmhealt h.org/my-registration.html.