Archive for Edgewood
Solar-Power Incentives — Bah, Humbug!
by Chuck Ring (GadAbout-BlogAlot ©2008)Â
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Of course, I’m not against incentives for solar or wind power. Let me explain. The New Mexico Public Regulation Commission (PRC) has just approved regulations that requires Public Service Company of New Mexico (PSC) to pay commercial customers 15 cents for ever solar-generated kilowatt used by its commercial customers. This is in addition to a 13 cent scheme for residential customers. The PRC stopped short or refused to require PSC to pay for any excess power generated by the company’s customers. Whether this refusal is good for the customer and PSC is anyone’s guess, but one reason given by the PRC is that the PRC didn’t want the customers to become mini-utilities or words to that effect. On balance all the forgoing seems great for PSC’s customers and it allows PSC to comply with regulations that require it to be more green.Â
Town House Community Not Approved
By Bob Steiner
At a meeting of the Edgewood Planning and Zoning Commission on Monday, December 22, a request to change a zone designation to allow the development of a town house community within current town boundaries, was defeated. The requested zone change from “R1 residential” to “multi-use”, would have permitted the erection of eight clusters of four town houses each on the Northwest corner of the the intersection of State Road 344 and Venus. »» Town House Community Not Approved
“LIBRARY” —- Now Let Us Apply The Name It Deserves
by Chuck Ring (GadAbout-BlogAlot ©2008)Â
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The new location for the Edgewood Library is said to be ready to open for the enjoyment of Edgewood area citizens. All of the volunteers, board members, town councilors and Mayor Stearley deserve our thanks. The facility is designated “LIBRARY”. But, there is a conspicuous absence that should be addressed as soon as possible. »» “LIBRARY” —- Now Let Us Apply The Name It Deserves
Public Service Announcement – MS Support Group Forming
by John Weckerle
We’ve received word from Donna Seagrave on the formation of the East Mountain/Estancia Valley Multiple Sclerosis Support Group. The group will provide support and socialization for people in the area who do not wish to or cannot drive to Albuquerque. Meetings will be held at the Edgewood Community Center on the second Tuesday of each month, beginning January 13, 2008 from 6-8 p.m. and will be facilitated by Donna and Jacqueline. For more information, call 281-0996.
This is great news for area residents who are dealing with the challenges posed by a difficult and not always well understood medical condition. According to the Mayo Clinic, “Sometimes, joining a support group, where you can share experiences and feelings with other people, is a good approach.” We wish the group the best of success and hope those in the area with MS will benefit from it.
A few MS-related links:
Bacon Fried Is Pork Applied
by Chuck Ring (GadAbout-BlogAlot ©2008)Â
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The Rio Grande Foundation (RGF) has just published their latest piggy booklet
It’s A Bungle Out There
by Chuck Ring (GadAbout-BlogAlot ©2008)Â
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At a time when folks are jolly and throwing holly, you would think we all would exercise a little common sense when it comes to operating dangerous vehicles. Tain’t so Edgewoodians (hate that nickname). And, it is very obvious when you visit certain retail establishments. »» It’s A Bungle Out There
It Is All Bass-Ackwards
by Chuck Ring (GadAbout-BlogAlot ©2008)Â
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The title puts it mildly. Edgewood, has for some time, failed to convince Santa Fe County to return taxes to Edgewood that rightly belong to Edgewood. Additionally, Edgewood has missed opportunities to joint venture with Santa Fe County for a regional library, a public safety facility, a recreational complex and an animal control facility. »» It Is All Bass-Ackwards
Turbines Galore — But, Not Without Combat In San Miguel And Taos Counties
by Chuck Ring (GadAbout-BlogAlot ©2008)Â
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Pueblo, Colorado has just landed a wind-turbine factory which will likely employ 500 or more Coloradans. It is estimated that the facility will manufacture 1000 wind-turbines a year when it is operating at full capacity. You can read more about the good luck in Colorado. Click the colored text for more READTHESTORY
Meanwhile, some folks in San Miguel MaybeSpinNotWorthyInSanMiguel and Taos Counties WeHaveAHumAlready have been decrying the fact that wind energy developers are trying to install wind-turbines in those counties. You may wonder why the opposition is of interest to folks in the Estancia Valley (the valley). It is really quite simple; the valley already has its first wind-turbine farm and there will likely be additional turbines in the future. Which we deem to be a good effort. Edgewood and the Moriarty-Edgewood School District are both very serious about generating wind energy to power various aspects of their electric energy needs. That is not to say, that they are not interested in solar energy, but they have each seriously started the process of examining the viability of wind energy for the near future.
»» Turbines Galore — But, Not Without Combat In San Miguel And Taos Counties
Lights Out … Quite Often
by Chuck Ring (GadAbout-BlogAlot ©2008)Â
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Green light, yellow light, red light, green light. That’s usually the way a traffic control signal cycles through to allow for the efficient flow of vehicles through high volume intersections. Why then does Edgewood have two signalized intersections that often blink red for days at a time?
The intersection at State Road 333 (Old 66) and State Road 344 and the intersection of State Road 344 and Interstate 40 have been “out of order” more than any signalized intersection I have ever seen … and I have seen many of them.
I recall that the Edgewood Town Council voted not to contract to maintain the lights, yet for some reason (I don’t recall a second vote) the town has contracted with someone who is supposed to maintain and repair the traffic signals when they become inoperable. I and others would like to know why a chronic problem exists with the intersections mentioned above and why the contractor takes an inordinate amount of time to respond to the problems and often takes days to rectify the problem.
Saturday Evening — Mourning For Section 16
by Chuck Ring (GadAbout-BlogAlot ©2008)Â
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Since shortly after Edgewood was incorporated in 1999, it has been the town’s policy to move forward to develop a center for town facilities on Section 16. It has been the policy, but nothing has been done toward that end. One of the facilities to be constructed on Section 16 was a library, either as a library alone or as some sort of combination facility. The governing body recently voted to move the library from its location off of Old 66 to a building adjacent to State Road 344 rather than to apply available funds to a new library on Section 16. The budgeted cost for this move, which included monthly lease payments and monies for remodeling amount to at least $70,000 for the first year, if there is not a cost overrun for the modifications. Of course, monies for the lease, maintenance and utilities will continue as operation of the library goes forward. Additionally, money for a full time librarian salary and benefits, along with a library assistant’s salary and benefits has been budgeted.
While I and others support the idea of a town library, we did not support the move mentioned above as we believed that it made economic sense to build a completely new library and money spent on the move and other elements of the library at its new location amount to throwing money away that could have been more sensibly spent toward a new library on Section 16. It should be said that the mayor and other volunteers involved in preparing the new location and moving the books to the new location deserve our thanks and appreciation and this new location for the library will be fine for a while, but the governing body needs to start now to plan a new library for Section 16, preferably so that it is ready within a three year period.
Sneaky Petes With Dirty “Feats!”
by Chuck Ring (GadAbout-BlogAlot ©2008)Â
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Have any of you noticed how your eyes have become defective. I mean, have you seen that packaging in food stores seem to be the same size, but the contents weigh less than they did perhaps a month or a few days ago? Can we lay this on a sign of the times or pure fraudulent deception? Can we just chalk it up to sophisticated packaging to allow for a more comfortable ride for the various items as they zip to their various destinations? Or, should we accept one or more of the manufacturers lame explanations (revelations) given when they are pinned to the wall?
Revelations are popping-up all over and it makes one wonder, why the deception? Wouldn’t it be proper and honest to just raise the prices? The manufacturers seem to say that the consumer will accept deception before they will accept honest increases in prices. Well, let’s view a television spot which sheds more light on the issue
That’s it, except that if you want to keep up on consumer scams, you might want to subscribe to the newsletter offered here TrappedByAMouseÂ
Like A Good Neighbor … Time To Belly Up
 by Chuck Ring (GadAbout-BlogAlot ©2008)Â
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On October 7th of this year I posted the following article
Since that time area churches, other non-profits and area businesses have contributed money and other items to assist those losing their jobs through the difficult transition in times that were perilous even before the closing of the call center. Temporary assistance is always welcome by those in need, but more is needed in order to secure another employer or employers to employ those who want to work.
The rumor on the street is that Moriarty has asked for the help of Edgewood to refurbish parts of the building or grounds where a new tenant might locate. I believe this is a fitting proposal for several reasons:
- those who have or will lose their jobs want to work and they need to work
- some employees who lost their jobs live in Edgewood and other points outside of Moriarty
- as a former employee of the connection, I can attest to the fact that a majority of the employees spent a portion of each paycheck at Edgewood businesses
- Edgewood is not in the charity business, but this potential assistance is not charity. It is taking care of our own; no matter the location of their residence
- this assistance would demonstrate Edgewood’s willingness to recognize the assistance given to citizens of this valley and reward that assistance in a meaningful way
- it would be one more illustration of a regional approach to economic development
- it would demonstrate to the legislature and Santa Fe County that our dollars need to stay here to help our own, before sliding to Santa Fe City and Santa Fe County
Support Your Local Vendors First
by John Weckerle
In the November 19 issue of The Independent, editor Wally Gordon showed support for an Edgewood Chamber of Commerce proposal that the Town of Edgewood “formalize an arrangement for giving a 5 percent preference to town businesses” – a proposal that we also support. Mr. Gordon also urged the Chamber to follow its own advice and support local business, citing publication of a recent magazine that was contracted to a Colorado business, Sixtus. In a subsequent exchange in the November 26 edition, Myra Oden, executive director of the Edgewood Chamber, stated that this was a tri-chamber publication, and that two local publishing companies – not including The Independent – were contacted and asked if they were interested in bidding on the project, but neither was interested. Ms. Oden went on to explain how she came to be familiar with the firm selected to do the work, and suggests that The Independent market the Chambers of Commerce throughout the entire state in order to business with the Edgewood Chamber and other area Chambers. »» Support Your Local Vendors First
The Lion’s Friend Sleeps Tonight
by John Weckerle
The memorial service for Bill Brown took place at the Wildlife West Nature Park Bean Barn. Friends, acquaintances, fellow volunteers, and others joined Bill’s family to celebrate the life of Edgewood’s mountain lion man (seen here with his friend in this photo provided by Judy Hudgins). In attendance were a broad spectrum of area residents: former Edgewood Town Council members Chuck Ring and Frank Lasky; former Edgewood mayor Howard Calkins; and current Edgewood Town Council member Rita Loy Simmons, just to name a few. The service was officiated by Roger Alink, founder and director of the park and long-time friend of Bill’s. On hand were many of Bill’s friends and those who held him dear, several of whom shared anecdotes about their experiences with Bill during his years as a volunteer and president of the Park’s Board of Directors. »» The Lion’s Friend Sleeps Tonight
Scam Some Ham, Or My Attempt To Double-Up On Thanksgiving
by Chuck Ring (GadAbout-BlogAlot ©2008)
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After having a great meal with my friend Jim Smith at Katrinah’s East Mountain Grill (KEMG) on this date, Jim and I were privileged to have Katrinah’s grandmom (Kathy Shuit,co-owner of KEMG) grace our table. Jim’s satiated eyes were glazed over due to the effects of the giant chicken-fried steak he had just experienced; but I of the grand abdomen, had given my stomach a reprieve having recently experienced fusion of L-4/L-5 and needing less strain on the back, I had taken the ignoble, but sensible path to satisfaction … I quit eating.
But, I did not quit listening. I heard that Kathy would close the grill on November 25 (tomorrow, Thanksgiving Day) and that she would be open for approximately sixty family members and friends. Knowing that my lovely Carol would not open the Ring Kitchen until Thursday at around 3:00 PM, I was quite sure that I was friend enough to throw myself on Kathy’s mercy. »» Scam Some Ham, Or My Attempt To Double-Up On Thanksgiving