[Editor's Note: This is part 4 of a multi-article series on the Commission work session on April 11, as well as on the regular meeting on April 13, 2023. This continues county reports.]
By Mary Alice Murphy
Beginning the rest of county reports at the Grant County Commission work session on April 11, 2023, Internet Technology Director Adam Baca said he and Specialist Robert Hood continue to implement the managed network switch equipment. "We are wanting to create network separators, so that not all computers can see all the other computers, but only those in their department, so if a virus is detected, it doesn't spread to everyone. After we are done with these projects, we will go to the Detention Center. We want to implement server infrastructure once we have the networks in place. We will do the network vulnerability scanning slowly after we finish the managed network process."
He said he did a walkthrough at the Grant County Veterans Memorial Conference Center with Director Romeo Cruz. "We want to bring in a group to assess the audio and visual and make recommendations. Romeo and I will review them. The plug-ins are worn out. We plan on upgrading and adding in new screens and microphones."
Although Road Supervisor Joe Grijalva was not present, he had a report in the commissioners' packets. His report stated that blade men are on routine maintenance; road crews continue to address complaints as they come in; and they have been doing road shouldering and patching where needed. Washouts on Turkey Creek Road have been repaired, and blade men will blade the road on routine. The work on installing the warning light on Airport Road is on hold due to fiber optic and utilities on both sides of the road. The department also awaits a location for installing a Tyrone bus stop. Special projects to be completed in the future include two low water-crossings on Noonday Canyon Road, which will require lifting sections of the road and setting culverts. Chip sealing will begin in June.
Emergency Manager Justin Gojkovich was not present due to training.
His current projects include continuing to address flooding damages from August 2022. He also continues to attend Thursday New Mexico Acequia Association meetings to discuss avenues of help on repairing damages. FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Administration) also holds technical assistance calls to assist with projects. The New Mexico Department of Transportation has completed debris removal from the acequias that applied for the help. 100 percent of acequias who applied for the grant got checks. For future projects, Gojkovich plans to work on the hazard mitigation plan, intends to seek grant funding for radios, and continues to assist with the flood recovery.
Gojkovich's report stated that the IPPW (integrated preparedness plan workshop?) is due April 29. It is the county's multi-year plan to be eligible for potential funding from the state and/or FEMA. He has already submitted the 2023 EMPG (emergency management performance grant?) application.
He noted that he continues to need support from the Commission, the county manager, FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security.
The final work session report came from County Manager Charlene Webb. She reported she is finalizing the EWP (emergency watershed protection) agreements with the Grant Soil and Water Conservation District and the NRCS (Natural Resources Conservation Service). "I have asked for the second April work session to be a special meeting so that we can assist the Grant County Regional Dispatch with a New Mexico Finance Authority application to fund replacement radios and consoles. I am targeting mid-May for the compensation plan completion. We are going through the budget, so we can present it to you, so you have time for thoughtful consideration. Linda and I are trying to be creative with what revenue sources we have and restructuring those. We need you to have an open mind as we come at you with them, and as we continue to meet all the challenges we face with infrastructure, staffing that has been cut over the years, as well as being able to deal with the results of our compensation plan to see where our employees are. One thing I did not include in my report, I will go through here. I did not see where the governor vetoed any of our capital outlay projects, so we have been able to receive $1 million for the crisis intervention center at Tu Casa. A key piece of that is getting the consultant in here to tell us what we need to do and how the building has to be modified to incorporate it into that facility to run 24/7. We got $75,000 for the Fairgrounds improvements; $325,000 to go toward the Gila Community Center construction; $500,000 for the Sheriff's Office vehicle and security system purchase; and funding for the HMS (Hidalgo Medical Services) Gila Senior Center, which will go through us, for a vehicle purchase. There are also numerous awards to the ditches and acequias to give them a little more money to help with repairs. I will prepare a report and email it to you on any legislation that directly affects the county. I think we fared well this year. New Mexico Counties succeeded in shutting down some things that could have been difficult for us to swallow and got some things through that needed to go through. Considering the way the last few sessions have gone, I think this was a very good session for us."
District 4 Commissioner Billy Billings asked: "What is the difference between the $325,000 you talked about for the community center and the $400,000 that Randy talked about?"
Webb replied that: "We had to apply for capital outlay of $325,000 long before the congressional directed funding. We had to apply for both, and we applied for the congressional funding before we knew we had this award. With the $325,000, as soon as we get the agreements, we can move forward. If we also get the $400,000, hopefully we can move forward with everything the community has asked for. The federal funding has been submitted, but we won't know for sure until later in the year, because it happens with the federal fiscal year."
The next article will go into the work session review of the regular meeting and the decisions made at the regular meeting on April 13, 2023.
For the previous articles, please visit https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/77696-grant-county-commission-work-session-held-april-11-2023-part-1; https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/77752-grant-county-commission-work-session-held-april-11-2023-part-2; and https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/77762-grant-county-commission-work-session-held-april-11-2023-part-3 .