Making camping in county arroyos and waterways illegal, doling out nearly a quarter billion to a solar panel company and extending the 1/16th healthcare gross receipts tax until 2029 are just a few of the items on the the January 23 agenda of the Bernalillo County Commission.

Arroyo Safety

Commissioners will debate making it illegal to camp and to be anywhere near, much less in, the many arroyos and drainage channels crossing the county. This includes all drainage ditches, detention ponds, right of ways and the trails leading to these ponds. According to the proposed ordinance the penalty for being caught in an arroyo for a first offense is a written warning. Subsequently, the officer can issue criminal trespass notifications. If there is immediate danger, officers can issue a verbal warning prior to an arrest.

This doesn’t mean that walking along waterways is illegal, but it’s unclear at this point what length of time would constitute hanging out or loitering by a waterway would be illegal.

In 2022, City Councilor Tammy Fiebelkorn sponsored a city ordinance making it illegal to camp in an arroyo. The city’s ordinance allows for a $500 fine or 90 days in jail.

Bernalillo County sees a handful of people washed away in the waterways during storms.

Big Bucks

A quarter billion in Taxable Industrial Revenue Bonds to a solar company to induce Sun Lasso Energy Center, LLC to locate a battery storage facility in the County. Commissioners are being asked to approve $205 million to coax the Delaware based company to bring its company to the county.  IRBs are a class of municipal bonds issued to fund public projects which then repay from the income created by the project. This chunk of bonds are being used by the County to entice this company to locate here. 

Health Tax & Report

Renewing the 1/16th Behavioral Health Tax will be taken up by Commissioners. If renewed the tax will stay in effect until June 30, 2029. The health tax funds various programs within the Behavioral Health Initiative which is intended to create a behavioral health system to provide a continuum of care based on evidence-based interventions for mental health and substance abuse. Direct care services are provided at the CARE Campus, formally MATS Campus, near San Mateo and Zuni.

Commissioners will also hear a quarterly report from the Department of Behavioral Health Services to get an update on how the department is handling the seemingly overwhelming need for mental health services.

Roadway Spruce Ups

A plan to make Rio Bravo safer is also on the agenda. This project will widen Rio Bravo from 2nd Street to the south diversion channel. This will add a lane making it 6-lanes with new pavement, gutter, sidewalks, traffic signals, lighting, multi-use trails, storm drain and other improvements. The overall cost is estimated at about $4 million with the majority of the money coming from state coffers.

In addition, after a couple of years of planning and taking public comment, Bernalillo County is starting the first phase of the full roadway reconstruction of Isleta Boulevard in the South Valley. The major revamp will include bike lanes, curbs, gutters, landscape buffers, sidewalks, driveways, and storm drain infrastructure. This initial phase of the project will begin at Malpais Road and extend to just north of the intersection at Luchetti Road.

El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro was trail blazed by the Spanish conquistadors using an ancient network of indigenous and trade footpaths. Isleta Boulevard was one of those ancient trails of blood and tears winding through the South Valley that led to the colonization of the Middle Rio Grande Valley.

Bernalillo County meetings are conducted at 5pm on the first and third Tuesday of the month in the Ken Sanchez Commission Chambers at 415 Silver Ave SW or via a hybrid manner through GOV-TV or online at Bernco.gov/live or on Bernalillo County’s YouTube channel.