By Lynn Janes

The Village of Santa Clara held its regular meeting September 9, 2021. Mayor Richard Bauch called the meeting to order and led the Pledge of Allegiance. Mayor Pro Tem Albert Esparza, and Trustees, Olga Amador, Arnold Lopez, and Peter Erickson also attended.

They approved the agenda for the meeting and then approved the minutes of the previous meeting held September 9, 2021 with one minor change. On new business the second item concerning a mobile home, the manufactured home brand is a Solitare and not a Clayton.

Village trustees approved the minutes for the last meeting, August 31, 2021, and department reports.

Mayor's Report

Mayor Bauch said that in the past few weeks he had met with the police chief, officers, district attorney and the sheriff concerning the new laws the legislature had passed. Specifically, Qualified Immunity and what it means for the community. He said it has been a big learning curve for him to understand all of it but has gotten a lot of information. The police chief and officers feel they understand all that is needed to make the adjustment. They must be more thorough and involved but it would be ok. The sheriff offered help any time it was needed. He said it would be quite a change statewide but at the end of the day it was probably an improvement. He announced the meeting Representative Luis Terrazas was having at 5:30 pm that evening and invited everyone to attend along with him. He also announced that they had official notification on the funds to proceed with the project on Bellm Street.

New Business on the Agenda

#1 Code Enforcement Officer Rebekah Russell requestedl to install a 2021 Clayton 18x76 manufactured home at 1013 Jasper Street on the vacant lot. The homeowner has a purchase agreement with the landowner. A trustee asked if the home met the requirements of the village. Russell explained that being a new manufactured home it met all the requirements because it was HUD approved. She went on to explain that prior to 1976 they were considered mobile homes and didn't have HUD approval but after that they were called manufactured homes and were built to HUD standards. The request was approved.

#2 Russell also asked to install a 2021 Solitaire 28x60 manufactured home at 405 Sage Street. It will replace an existing manufactured home. The request was approved

#3 Russell made a third request to install a 2021 Solitaire 28x64 manufactured home. Russell said it was replacing the home that a vehicle struck while back. Mayor Bauch said maybe they needed to put boulders around it this time. The village had put up concrete blocks for residents before to protect their homes. The request was approved.

#4 The village needed to approve the bid for Fowler Brothers to do the demolition of 511 and 513 Fort Bayard Street in the amount of $11,824.53. Other bids received ranged around $15,000. Mayor Bauch expressed sadness at having to demolish an adobe building but added there was no choice because it had been left to deteriorate too far. The demolition would include all removal of debris and could be done within two weeks of approval. The demolition was approved.

Old Business – none currently

Resolution 2021-30. Every year a resolution is made for the ICIP (Infrastructure Capital Improvement Plan) to look at and accomplish in the next year. The top five this year are as follows.

#1 The village has monies to develop outdoor recreation for the village. Mayor Bauch saw Pump Tracks in Arizona and wants to put one here for the older kids. He says they are quite popular in Arizona. They are tracks that are like rollercoasters for bikes. He proposed taking over an area by the elementary school that is currently owned by the school but maybe they could gift it to the village or trade. The village would take over maintenance. It would be beneficial to the school for the kids. A baseball field that could also be utilized.

#2 The village received $300,000 for Copper Trails to put in walking paths. This will cover the planning but will need another $300,000 to implement it.

#3 Santa Clara will apply to Freeport McMoRan for a commercial building for economic development.

#4 Since the village has a budget for outdoor recreation and equipment, they want to put in trash bins, bathrooms, benches, etc. at Fort Bayard.

#5 The village wants to move around some departments. A vacant lot by the post office can be used, because the current building the police station is in is larger than needed. They want to put a modular building in the vacant lot for the police department, a better location. The public library is too small, move them into the police department building, giving them room to grow and being closer to the school for the kids.

The council agreed these were all good ideas and approved them. Amador ask a few questions about the Pump Track, was it like a skateboard park? Bauch said yes. One other council member interjected that maybe a walking path could be put around the Pump Track. It was mentioned how much the public in Silver City used the track at the school. Trustees dicussed the baseball field and whether they should install grass. They considered artificial grass.

Proclamations - none currently

Ordinances – none currently

Public Comments – none currently

Closed Session was held and followed by Open Session again.

Hiring, Raises, Terminations were discussed. Mayor Bauch brought up again as in last meeting about hiring another person for maintenance. It is not budgeted for this year but in December they would be halfway through the fiscal year and could maybe swing it. He said he didn't want to act on it now but in a few months. They used to have four maintenance people and a supervisor. When things got tight, they had to let one go and never refilled the position. This person could primarily do grounds keeping at all the village properties like the splash park, cemetery, etc. plus repairs where needed.

The second regular meeting of September will take place Thursday September 23, 2021, at 6:00 p.m. and then the first regular meeting of the month on October 14, 2021, at 6:00 p.m.