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 […]
Local Government
Posted inRio Rancho
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 […]
Posted inCorrales
Corrales parking compromise follows long debate
By Rodd Cayton A meandering discussion about parking availability in Corrales ended with a compromise that saved the village thousands of dollars in grants. The Village Council has for months been engaged in an effort to craft a parking ordinance update that would curtail illegal parking by patrons of local businesses while not penalizing Corraleños […]
Posted inEdgewood
Edgewood, Santa Fe County finalize new fire service deal just in the nick of time
By Rodd Cayton, Route 66 Independent — After months of uncertainty, false starts and conflicting ordinances, town commissioners in Edgewood gave in and approved a new ordinance to fund a new fire service agreement with Santa Fe County in June. The Route 66 Independent previously reported that the county rejected town commissioners’ changes to an […]
Posted inJobs, Workers & Economy
Should Edgewood raise taxes to subsidize business growth?
Amidst months of discussion and debates over budget gaps and fire service costs, town commissioners asked the town’s Economic Development Advisory Board to evaluate a proposal to raise local taxes to incentivize new growth in Edgewood. Grant Taylor, a local economic development specialist who works with PNM and other large industries in the state, pitched […]
Posted inRio Rancho
Rio Rancho council takes up 350-home development, water rights purchase Thursday
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Rio Rancho’s Governing Body meets Thursday with decisions on the table that will shape the city’s growth for years — including a 350-home subdivision, a water rights purchase and a cluster of zoning changes that range from a new fitness center to a Maverik gas station. The council returns to […]
Posted inRio Rancho
Showdown at City Hall: Residents prepare for June 25 vote on gas station
By Tristen Critchfield A proposed gas station in Rio Rancho has been met with strong opposition from residents of a nearby neighborhood. Now, many of those residents are distributing flyers and gathering signatures on a petition to stop a proposed Maverik convenience store ahead of a Governing Body vote on June 25. Neighbors filed the […]
Posted inTown of Bernalillo
Bernalillo revamps fire chief role to boost recruitment
By Rodd Cayton, Sandoval Signpost In a move Mayor Jack Torres says will improve the candidate pool, town councilors in Bernalillo Monday approved a change to how the fire chief will be employed. The 3-1 vote changes the position from serving at the pleasure of the mayor and council to a regular employee, who cannot […]
Posted inSandoval County
Sandoval County commissioners set to vote on elected official pay commission, hospital mil levy deal
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Sandoval County residents will soon have a say — at least indirectly — in what their elected officials earn, under a new salary commission the Board of County Commissioners is poised to create at its Wednesday meeting. Commissioners meet at 6 p.m. at 1500 Idalia Road, Building D, in Bernalillo. […]
Posted inRio Rancho
Barbara Loop reconstruction starts Monday — expect detours through January
By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Drivers who use Barbara Loop between Sara Road and NM 528 should find another way to work starting Monday — the city is tearing the road apart and won’t put it back together until January. Rio Rancho kicks off a $3,273,113.85 reconstruction project June 29 that will strip and replace […]