By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Sandoval County voters could see three General Obligation Bond questions on their November ballot — for libraries, fire training and a beefed-up Bureau of Elections building — after commissioners hear a mill rate study Wednesday night. It’s one of several consequential items packed into a meeting that also tackles who […]
■ Local Government
Posted in■ Local Government
Defiant to the end: Assessor Linda Gallegos resigns, criticizes commissioners
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Sandoval County Assessor Linda Gallegos has resigned, closing out a two-term tenure that became a countywide controversy after she kept collecting her county paycheck while working a second, higher-paying state job. Her resignation, effective July 10, comes five weeks after commissioners voted to formally demand it. In a resignation letter […]
Posted in■ Local Government
RRPS attorney tapped to fill Mayor Wymer’s old council seat
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. District 4 residents are one vote away from getting a new voice on the Governing Body. Mayor Paul Wymer says David Mann, a Rio Rancho Public Schools lawyer, is his pick to fill the council seat Wymer left empty when he became mayor. Wymer announced the nomination at the June […]
Posted in■ Local Government
Village unveils draft 40-Year water plan Thursday
Corrales has been drawing more water from its municipal wells than its water rights allow — and the Village wants residents’ input before locking in a fix. The Village Council will hold a special meeting Thursday, July 16, at 6:30 p.m. in Council Chambers to unveil a draft 40-Year Water Development Plan. Water rights attorney […]
Posted in■ Politics & Elections
Should voters fund campaigns for county officials? Voters will get to decide this November
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. — Bernalillo County residents will get to decide in November whether their tax dollars should help fund county campaigns — a move commissioners say is aimed squarely at kneecapping the influence of big donors and corporate PACs. The Board of County Commissioners voted unanimously June 23, to advance a package […]
Posted in■ Courts & Justice, ■ Local Government
July 4th keeps Albuquerque firefighters busy buying illegal fireworks undercover, brush fires and a body in the Bosque
The Paper. — The Independence Day holiday always keeps Albuquerque firefighters on their toes. Last year, the city’s Fire and Rescue Department spent the days before the holiday responding to a house explosion linked to a large illegal fireworks stash that killed a homeowner and injured two others in the Northeast Heights. This year, they […]
Posted in■ Local Government, NM.news, The Paper.
Watch: City demos Lindy’s Diner after owners walk away
By Roberto Rosales and Pat Davis, The Paper. — A city-contracted demolition crew stepped in this morning to bring down what was left of the 121-year old Bliss Building after the building’s owners walked away from plans to clean up and demolish the site where an exterior wall suddenly collapsed onto a Downtown city street […]
Posted in■ Local Government
Brown appointed to Corrales council as replacement for Alsobrook
By Rodd Cayton Lisa Brown, a longtime Corrales resident and water-rights attorney has been named to the Village Council. Brown was sworn in immediately after Councilors ratified her appointment by Mayor Fred Hashimoto at the June 23 meeting. Brown, who grew up in Corrales and whose parents still live in the village, said she’s familiar […]
Posted in■ Local Government
Sandoval County hands salary power to the people
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Sandoval County commissioners voted unanimously Wednesday to stop setting their own salaries — handing that authority to a new five-member citizen commission instead. Ordinance 624-2610 creates the Sandoval County Elected Official Salary Commission, a resident panel that will set pay for all county elected officials, including commissioners themselves. The ordinance […]
Posted in■ Local Government
Rio Rancho pumps the brakes on Maverik gas station
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Neighbors who spent weeks circulating petitions and distributing flyers against a proposed Maverik gas station near Enchanted Hills Elementary School got a reprieve Thursday night when the Rio Rancho Governing Body voted 4-2 to postpone the site plan vote until September 10. The vote delayed — but did not kill […]