By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. — If your street has more patches than pavement, you’re not imagining it. Rio Rancho crews repaired 64 water main breaks last fiscal year and 66 the year before. More than $123 million of the city’s planned water and sewer work has no funding yet.
Main breaks happen for many reasons, Utilities Director Steve Gallegos told the Governing Body on Oct. 20. Pipe condition, construction work and swings in water demand and pressure all play a part. The new fiscal year started with eight breaks from July through September.
Miles of trouble
The city’s system stretches across 639 miles of water line and 435 miles of sewer, serving 41,481 customers. The city owns it. Contractor Jacobs runs it with about 71 workers, under a contract that expires June 30, 2031.
In September 2024, the city amended that contract to speed up repairs. The changes added workers and equipment, cut the target repair time for service-line leaks from seven days to three, and called for up to 500 proactive service-line replacements. Since July 2013, crews have replaced 7,295 service lines.
Fix it once
The city times water line replacements with road rebuilds whenever it can, to save money and avoid digging twice.
This year’s list includes Barbara Loop at $3.3 million and Broadmoor Boulevard at $8.4 million. Black River Court ($1.8 million) and Baltic Avenue (an estimated $8.1 million) follow in 2027.
Who pays
Your utility bill does. The utilities department runs as an enterprise fund with a $78.3 million budget, separate from the city’s general fund. Water and wastewater rates rise 3% a year through fiscal 2030 under a plan the Governing Body approved in March 2025.
The city’s five-year capital plan includes $139 million in water projects and $131.7 million in wastewater projects. Utility revenue, impact fees on new development, water rights fees and bonds cover $233.1 million. The remaining $123.2 million has no funding source yet, and the city is chasing state and federal grants.
That plan includes $5.3 million to rehab five wells this fiscal year and $13.8 million to bring the redrilled Well 9 online by winter of fiscal 2029.
Utilities staff plan to return to the Governing Body to discuss serving customers outside city limits.
BY THE NUMBERS
- 64: water main breaks in FY2026
- 8: main breaks from July through September 2026
- 639 miles: water lines citywide
- 7,295: service lines replaced since 2013
- $123.2 million: planned water and sewer work still unfunded
INFO BOX
Water main breaks map and updates: rrnm.gov/2618/Water-Main-Breaks
Utilities presentation: rrnm.gov/DocumentCenter/View/89990
Governing Body meetings: rrnm.gov/2303/Watch-and-Download-City-Meetings
Share this story and start a conversation
