ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT
JULY 2009
Most of June was spent on working
to get bid packages together for the various water projects and discussing the
needs of the system. Late in the month,
I received an e-mail from the New Mexico Finance Authority stating that the
Bernalillo County Metropolitan Water Authority had appealed their project award
and thus put on hold all the water projects in the state. Their appeal will be heard on July 29, 2009
and then the NMFA will finalize the awards.
I think the chances of a change in our budget award are small. The money, however, does not come from ARRA
funds (Stimulus funds), so there is no need to contract the money before the 1st
of September. We have requested bids for
the Village core tank and water lines as the engineering on that project is
complete. As of the date of this report,
the only item left to accomplish on this project is obtaining the easements and
deed from the
We will have the bid opening for the replacement storage building on the 1st of July and will present the winning bid to you for your approval. This building will be a metal building and built this summer for use this ski season. The core water lines will be built this summer/fall and we may have a loop system in the core. I don’t think we will be able to build the tank this year as the construction on the ski slope has to end by October 15 to prepare for the ski season. We may also try to award the bid for the Kachina tank this year and put in some preliminary lines for it, but it too is dependant upon acquisition of land and easements. It is remotely possible that it can be built this year as we don’t have the October 15 deadline, just the winter freeze and snow deadline.
Another project we are trying to do this year is some minor equipment upgrades to the treatment plant. The main one is to add a centrifuge press to treat the sludge. With this press, we can keep up with the flows, have a dryer product and not use as much water as the belt press uses. Decreasing the use of water will allow us to maintain the flows without completely filling the sludge tanks. Some valves need to be replaced as well as some electrical parts. All will be done locally as we can get to them. The centrifuge is an expensive item, but will last a long time and if we build a new plant in the future can be used in that structure. We also need to install a community lift station in Kachina, but will put it off to next summer.
I also met with Luis Reyes concerning some ongoing issues. I think we will be able to get the line over the Beaver Pond moved, probably underground, within the next few months. We also need to work with the Forest Service regarding the line near the ruins of the old Twining Hotel. Note the picture of the hotel in the office. I wanted to apply for stimulus funds to bury three phase power from the cattle guard up. He said he is willing to agree to it, if I can get the funds and the Forest Service agrees. Qwest has also expressed an interest, but I think my first stop is the Forest Service.
Financing of all these projects will consist of legislative funds, loans, grants and insurance funds. We will need to address the issue of assessments, especially for some of the Kachina work. The need to pay the Federal government for the sewer treatment site has not been addressed as we wait for the amount they may say it is worth. We are also talking about acquiring more land so that the Village owns all the land that the main sewer is under. Cost is going to be a determinative factor, but it would give us greater control over our lines.
The office remodel continues. Our next phase will be to improve the stairwell before winter sets in. Then we will attack Don’s office and Vanessa’s office. We will probably put new sheetrock on the ceilings and recess the lighting. These small projects are being done on a time available schedule. We did not get any new summer employees from the Summer Youth program. We did hire two young men for temporary work, splitting their time between the office and the field. They have already gone through the J.R. Ramming trail and cleaned it up. We will be painting the benches and adding some pea gravel to the trail. They are also shredding old paper and preparing files for storage. We are trying to set up a scanning program for agendas and minutes for the Council meetings and the P & Z meetings.
In July, I’ll
be accompanying Rich and Don at their depositions for the