Archive for Estancia
Public Urged To Catch Fish in Estancia Park Pond As Water Level Drops
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, Nov. 1, 2017:
SANTA FE – The Department of Game and Fish has issued an emergency salvage order allowing the public to harvest an unlimited amount of fish by any means through Nov. 10 from Estancia Park Pond.
The salvage order was requested by the Town of Estancia as one of the town’s wells that supplies the pond is currently out of service and fish soon may begin dying as the water level drops.
Tackle regulations will be suspended during the salvage period that runs through 11:59 p.m. Nov. 10. The salvage order will allow anglers to use nets or other means to remove fish from the pond.
Anglers ages 12 and older are required to have a state fishing license.
For more information about the state’s fishing regulations, please visit www.wildlife.state.nm.us.
New Mexico Department of Game and Fish
Public contact, Information Center: (888) 248-6866
Media contact: Dan Williams, (505) 476-8004
dan.williams@state.nm.us
Estancia Basin Water Planning Committee Meeting
The Estancia Basin Water Planning Committee will hold its regular meeting at the Administrative Offices of Torrance County in the Commission Chambers at 205 9th Street in Estancia on Thursday, October 15, 2015 at 9:30 a.m.
Edgewood Will Leave The Light On For You – Finally
by John Weckerle
In a September 17, 2015 article, the Mountain View Telegraph reports that the Edgewood Town Council has taken formal action toward bringing a hotel to the Town. According to the article, the hotel will be a Comfort Inn (yes, we know our title for this article suggests a different chain) built on Marietta Court by Aspire Hotels. The Town acted to approve an ordinance and a contract to allow the project to move forward. As the Telegraph reports, the hotel is projected to results in 10 full-time equivalent jobs, $26,000 in gross receipts taxes, and $3,718 in property taxes.
This is great news for Edgewood; the local business community has long cried out for a hotel. As with Estancia’s wishes to bring in a hotel to house people visiting inmates at the nearby prison, these cries seemed unheard by the regional economic development community. At one point, however, Edgewood apparently decided to pursue the concept, and the Town began working with the Edgewood Chamber of Commerce to assess the feasibility of bringing a hotel to the Town.
Edgewood is entering the hospitality arena – and given the Town’s closer proximity to Albuquerque as compared to Moriarty, shifts in the region’s economic configuration remain an item of interest. Moriarty has long held a monopoly in the lodging arena in the region, and a solid entry into the market on Edgewood’s part could seriously erode Moriarty’s primacy in the lodging sector. Moriarty holds certain advantages with respect to road infrastructure, especially regarding truck traffic, but if old proposals for an exit between Edgewood and Moriarty resurface, the value of that advantage could decrease.
Of course, Moriarty holds one other distinct advantage that Edgewood refuses to take away: the ability to have a cocktail with dinner ( we will note that we gave up on dinner in Moriarty several years ago, with or without cocktails, so we may be a bit behind the times in this regard). Edgewood has only one establishment – Pizza Barn (which we recommend) – that offers beer and wine with dinner. And of course lodgers will be unable to purchase wine, beer, or other alcoholic beverages to take back to the room on Sunday, unless of course they drive to Moriarty. Regardless, the arrival of Comfort Suites in Edgewood is good news for local businesses and attractions. Perhaps this will renew Estancia’s interest in obtaining a hotel, as well.
A Titanic Sinking: Google Drones Fly Away
by John Weckerle
In April 2014, your editor and a number of other people received an e-mail message containing very good news: Titan Aerospace, a solar-powered drone startup operating at the Moriarty Municipal Airport – had been purchased by Google, and the project was to stay in Moriarty. As reported in the Mountain View Telegraph less than sixteen months later, Google abruptly announced its decision to abandon Moriarty and move the operation to California, reportedly so that it could better facilitate coordination with its other aviation-related operations. Google leaves behind a $15 million, 60,000 square-foot facility at the airport, and will be repaying a $1 million dollar grant for water and sewer upgrades.
State and local officials, while expressing disappointment, have variously downplayed the negative and emphasized the positive, seeking to find a silver lining in this particular cloud. Governor Martinez was reported to have called the move disappointing and expressed support for the community (KOAT), while U.S. Representative Michelle Lujan Grisham was somewhat more pointed in her expression of disappointment (Albuquerque Business First). New Mexico Economic Development Secretary Jon Barela emphasized that the State would recover its million-dollar infrastructure investment, and noted that the situation leaves Moriarty with assets that “will be able to benefit from water and sewage lines built with the state grant. Barela said the structural improvements ‘can help attract future projects to the state.'” (Santa Fe New Mexican). Moriarty Mayor Ted Hart, quoted in several of the previously referenced articles, characterizes the economic impacts as minimal (and in a direct and immediate way, at least, he may be right) and cited some apparent, though vague, commitment by Google to work with the City to find a use for the facility.
Reactions, at least in the form of responses to news stories, have been varied. Some cite problems with in-state higher education, others point to workforce issues, others mentioned inexperience in aviation and excessive optimism on Google’s part, and still others blame Governor Susanna Martinez (while our positions often do not align with Ms. Martinez’s, we acknowledge that blaming her directly for this one is similar to blaming her for a meteorite strike or the weather. More likely suspects would include the Easter bunny, Godzilla, or extraterrestrials. Or maybe the East Mountain Tea Party.).
It’s clear that much of the general reaction was surprise. Our reaction was two fold: surprise (we were surprised by all the surprise, because we were surprised by Google’s initial decision to operate here in the first place) and something more typical…
A drive to look at some data. We admit it; we’re nerds. Acknowledging that Google’s decision election to move was clearly business-based, we wondered what local factors might have influenced the decision and started to pull some economic data together. As we worked through the data, we recognized that one of our regional economies is clearly in distress.
That’s right; we said one of them. There are, at the very least, two.
Economic Development Association Gets New Web Site
Editor’s note/disclosure: The web sites referenced in this announcement were developed by your editor’s company, WeckTech, but the community web sites have since been discontinued. While WeckTech was an investor-level member of the Estancia Basin Economic Development Association at the time this article was published, the firm has since terminated its membership in EVEDA.
by John Weckerle
The Estancia Valley Economic Development Association (EVEDA) web site has been given a facelift, including a full redesign and short photo slideshows for each of the valley’s communities. Virtual tours have been given a new look and feel, as well. Community web sites developed by WeckTech – Moriarty, New Mexico and the Surrounding Area and Edgewood, New Mexico and the Surrounding Area – have been updated to include the revised links to the EVEDA virtual tours.
Public Service Announcement: Regional Small Business Forum
The City of Moriarty, in cooperation with its chamber of commerce and the towns of Edgewood and Estancia, will hold a regional small business forum on Tuesday, January 25 beginning at 1 p.m. at the Moriarty Civic Center. For more information, see the City of Moriarty announcement.
Winter Storm Dumps Major Snow Load (So Far)
Sedillo Hill camera at 8:33 a.m.
by John Weckerle
Snow is falling heavily here at New Mexico Central headquarters, and has been since sometime during the night. Depending on where we dig, we can see anything from eight inches to a foot. Areas shoveled less than half an hour ago are under two to three inches of snow already. Road reports are not encouraging, and neither are the roadside camera shots from NMRoads.com. Cameras at I-40 & NM 14, and at Carnuel, are iced over, with no image available except for the ice on the camera. The I-40 & Zamora Rd. Camera shows some snow in both lanes, and having looked at two consecutive images, we think it may be getting worse there. The Sedillo Hill camera shows at least some snow in all lanes – and both cameras show snow still falling. According to KOB.com, the following schools in our area are closed:
- East Mountain High School
Senior Meteorological Correspondent Wilson Taking Scientific Snow Depth Measurements
- Edgewood Christian School
- Mountainair Junior High
- Albuquerque Public Schools East Mountain Schools
- Estancia Municipal Schools
- Moriarty-Edgewood Schools
- Mountainair Public Schools
TCPO To Go Transportation and the Estancia and Moriarty Magistrate Courts are also closed. If we’ve missed any schools, we’d appreciate it if our readers would let us know.
Lest the local climate change “skeptics” get too excited, let’s remember that winter storms of this nature (and the frequency with which they’ve been occurring) are typical of El Nino conditions – a warming of surface waters in the Pacific Ocean.
Oh, The Weather Outside…
by John Weckerle
Last night brought us some fairly intense weather here at NM-Central headquarters, with times of snow, freezing rain, thunder and lightning, and high winds. This morning seems dominated by the wind, although weather authorities warn of more potential precipitation before the system has passed. Local TV stations indicate that the Estancia Valley, including Estancia itself, will likely bear the brunt of the storm in our area. The northern part of the state has received substantial snowfall. Here at NM-Central, we’ve received a few inches or so.
NMRoads.com reports that road conditions in the area are (at best) snow-packed and icy. According to KOB.com, Moriarty-Edgewood schools and Estancia schools are closed, and East Mountain High School and APS schools are on a two-hour delay. We have not been able to find any information on Mountainair’s schools. We recommend that our readers stay home if they can, and to those who can’t, please be extra cautious.
Who Will Win The Battle?
Editor’s note: Thanks to Mountainair Announcements for the heads-up on this event.
by John Weckerle
That depends on who plays best – in this Saturday’s Battle of the Bands at Estancia’s first annual Teen Fest. Teen Fest, to be held beginning at 1 p.m. on Saturday, July 25 at Estancia Park in…well, Estancia, of course… includes the Battle of the Bands, a teen art and music festival, and a Guitar Hero competition. For more information, call 384-1092 or stop by the Estancia Town Office.
Teen Fest comes to us via the Teen Outreach Program (TOP), available thanks to the efforts of the good folks at the Torrance County Projects Office (TCPO). According to the New Mexico Department of Health, the TOP is “a school and community-based program designed to prevent teen pregnancy and academic failure, and to promote positive youth development.” There are opportunities for community service, classroom discussions, activities, and developing life experience. For more info, see the TOP flier or contact TOP at 384-1092 or 832-0332.
Happy Birthday, New Mexico Central!
by John Weckerle
It hardly seems possible that, just a year ago today, NM-Central.com sprang into being. A lot has happened over the past year, and we thought it might be entertaining to take a stroll down memory lane, look over our early stories, and see what, if anything, has changed.
Our debut article – Will the Grinches steal Edgewood’s music festival? – discussed the Town of Edgewood’s decision to abruptly cut all its funding for the annual music festival at Wildlife West Nature Park. The pretext for this decision had to do with the Town’s position that funding the event represented a violation of the State anti-donation clause, an assertion that we disputed then and still dispute today. Because the funding was terminated after the Park had signed contracts with the performers, the Park had no choice but to produce the event under its own steam. The community came together and, with donations and other funds raised, the festival almost – but not quite – broke even. The financial strain from this situation, coupled with the subsequent economic downturn, have put the Park in a state of difficulty, and we again ask that people consider making donations at the Park’s web site. This year’s music festival, featuring nationally acclaimed folk performer John McCutcheon, promises to be a top-notch event, and tickets can be purchased in advance on the Park web site. »» Happy Birthday, New Mexico Central!
The Bees’ Knees, And It’s Time For Trees
by John Weckerle
Long ago, in a county far, far away…
…Your editor took first place in the county science fair for his project on bees. I had live bees, posters, and materials, and learned a few things about our great friends and partners of the order Hymenoptera, and wanted at that time to be a beekeeper (but failed to inspire the parents to the same degree) – so you can imagine the little jump of enthusiasm I experienced when I read the latest East Torrance Soil and Water Conservation District newsletter and found that the District is hosting a workshop on raising bees at the Torrance County Fairgrounds on January 30, 2009 from 10:30 a.m. to noon. Now, more than ever, we need to understand how bees make life as we know it possible (no kidding, there) and learn how those of us with a little room and a little time can help keep these incredible creatures working for themselves, the ecosystem, agriculture, and all of us – and maybe get a little honey, to boot. For more information, and to reserve a seat or three, contact Cheri or Kitty at (505) 384-2272, extension 3.
The District’s Spring plant sale has also started, and we recommend getting your order in as soon as possible. For more information and to download an order form, visit the District’s plant sale page.
Mr. Obama May Have To Forget, Ol’ What’s His Name
by Chuck Ring (GadAbout-BlogAlot ©2008)
Quote Freely From the Article — Leave The Pseudonym Alone
Word from today’s New York Times informs that Governor Bill Richardson has removed himself from further consideration or confirmation for President-Elect Obama’s Secretary of Commerce position. »» Mr. Obama May Have To Forget, Ol’ What’s His Name
Solar-Power Incentives — Bah, Humbug!
by Chuck Ring (GadAbout-BlogAlot ©2008)Â
Quote Freely From the Article — Leave The Pseudonym Alone
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
Bacon Fried Is Pork Applied
by Chuck Ring (GadAbout-BlogAlot ©2008)Â
Quote Freely From the Article — Leave The Pseudonym Alone
The Rio Grande Foundation (RGF) has just published their latest piggy booklet
Sneaky Petes With Dirty “Feats!”
by Chuck Ring (GadAbout-BlogAlot ©2008)Â
Quote Freely From the Article — Leave The Pseudonym Alone
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