[Editor's Note: This is the fifth of a multi-part series of articles on the Grant County Commission's work session on May 9, 2023 and regular meeting on May 11, 2023. This article continues with Commission updates from county department heads.]

By Mary Alice Murphy

The next Commission update came from Fiscal Services Director Linda Vasquez at the Grant County Commission work session on May 9, 2023.
She reported current projects including RFPs (requests for proposal) and bids. The first RFP 23-07, due May 8, 2023, addressed Airport engineering services; RFP 23-08, due May 12, 2023, addressed Tu Casa Crisis Consultant Services; RFP 23-09, due June 14, 2023, addressed legal services; and RFP-23-10 addressed External Auditor Services, due May 15, 2023.

The bids including Bid B-23-02, due May 23, 2023 for Truck Bypass widening and culvert replacements; B-23-03 due May 25, 2023, for Airport apron pavement maintenance and slot; and B-23-04, due May 31, 2023 for Little Walnut Phase I.

District 3 Commissioner Alicia Edwards asked if the external audit services RFP was due to the end of the term limit for Krieger, Gray and Shaw. Vasquez confirmed that was the reason.

The next update came from Road Department Supervisor Joe Grijalva.
He said current projects included blade men on routine maintenance; road crew addressing complaints as they come in; road shouldering and patching for the 2023 CAP (county arterial program) and SB (school bus route) roads; as well as a hold on installing warning lights on Airport Road due to fiber optic and utilities on both sides of the road. "We're setting up meetings with Western New Mexico Communications and other utilities to determine where we can safely install the lights."

"We planned to start chip sealing on June 5, but we're having trouble getting hot mix, so we've moved it to the end of June," Grijalva said. "A future special project will involve lifting sections of the road and setting culverts at two low-water crossings on Noonday Canyon Road. As always, we ask for patience and understanding as we work to address work orders."

IT (Internet Technology) Director Adam Baca presented the next update. "On current projects, we were able to work with Western New Mexico Communications to do a cutover of the wireless link to the Detention Center. It is currently running on a fiber optic, but there are still some issues to optimize the project, but the bulk of the work is done. We also worked on providing network connectivity to the new body scanner, making sure it is ready for testing on Thursday. On Monday, May 15, we will start on the county-wide cyber security training. The intent is to increase cyber security awareness for everyone working in the county. This is more formalized. We synced up with a firm the state has been using, so all counties could sign up for free. It is a series of videos, with quizzes at the end of each video for cyber security and safe practices. The videos should be accessible through our regular passwords through our regular Google accounts. We continue with our managed network switch equipment and our server infrastructure implementation. This process will take a while. It will be several months before we get it completed. The intention is to move slowly and deliberately to ensure success. Right now, we're ironing out details of the scope of work regarding upgrading infrastructure at the (Grant County Veterans Memorial) Business and Conference Center, such as additional sound, microphones and screens in new areas of the center. We're determining which pieces we need and which we don't. (Silver City-Grant County Chamber Director and conference center manager) Romeo Cruz is waiting for a quote from a firm in El Paso, so we can move forward with the project."

Baca noted a future project would involve network vulnerability scanning. "This month we began initial conversations with Dispatch regarding secure connections to their new VPN (virtual private network) solution for access to the Dispatch system. This is for the Sheriff's Office to connect securely to the updated computer-aided (CAD) dispatch system. What we've been doing is using old, outdated equipment and this will use new technology so they can securely connect. On May 12, I will attend the New Mexico Regional Broadband meeting in Las Cruces."

District 1 Commissioner and Chair Chris Ponce laughed and said: "It's the first time it hasn't cost us $100 grand just listening to your report. You're getting better."

District 5 Commissioner Harry Browne asked if Baca had a sense of the magnitude of the cost of the new VPN system at Dispatch and who the owner is. He also noted that Dispatch has been looking for a new home for a long time, and he wondered how that would impact this decision.

Baca said the system, too, is old and outdated and has been managed by the town. The new equipment will actually be in the Dispatch office, "but our connecting to it, there is no expense."

"Connecting to Dispatch will only involve power and a cable, so it doesn't matter where Dispatch sits," Baca said. "For us to connect it's basically configurations from one device to another."

Emergency Manager Justin Gojkovich presented his report. He said he had attended the IPPW (Integrated Preparedness Planning Workshop) in Albuquerque where he had accepted on behalf of Grant County a certificate from the Department of Health for all the excellent emergency work done in Grant County during the Covid-19 pandemic.

"I have started the EPMG (Emergency Management Performance Grant)
process," Gojkovich continued. "We also got the Safety Committee going again. (County Treasurer) Patrick Cohn is our chair, (Human Resources Specialist) Renae Calloway is our vice-chair and (GIS Specialist) Daniel Arrey is the secretary. We've had two meetings so far. We plan to have a resolution to you in June for revisions to our plan and bylaws."

"We are waiting on the approval of the Homeland Security application," he said. "This is the first year they have required a narrative, which I completed – about 12 to 13 pages. The project work sheets for damaged and repaired county roads are being processed. Homeland Security came down and met in our office. I think we're just waiting on the forms again. They've kicked them back twice. When they are approved we will get the 75 percent payment to our General Fund, with our 25 percent match, which has already been approved by them for all the in-kind work Grijalva and his team did."

He said he was able to get Grant County on the Region THIRA (Threatened and Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment) and the SPR (Stakeholders Preparedness Review). "Grant County was not on the THIRA signature page, but I managed to get us on it, which will give us more access to state funding. It's regional with Luna and Hidalgo counties."

"Homeland Security had a bunch of people quit recently," Gojkovich reported, "including our representative, so they hired an outside agency, Synergy. The representative got with me last week, and I had to resend all the documentation I've sent since last August, including applications for the $70,000 grant, my participation letters, my 424s, everything, I had to resend. Also the new grant manager has no idea where the documentation went. It wouldn't be fun, if it were easy," he said to commissioner laughter.

He said he was asked to be a Train the Trainer for the Incident Command System (ICS)classes to make such classes more accessible in the southern part of the state for volunteer fire departments, EMS, for state police, law enforcement. "I said yes. We're months away from getting any classes down here. I got with Eloy (Medina, District 2 Commissioner and EMS Director), and I'll get with the Silver City Fire Department to get a CPR class going. I was able to get ICS-300, intermediate training for expanding incidents, and ICS-400, (advanced ISC command and general staff for complex incidents) training down here the last week in July. Anyone interested in the training should get hold of me. They are still getting the details squared away, but these classes are tentatively set for the last week in July. These classes haven't been in Grant County for the past six or seven years. It will be beneficial for people here, so they don't have to drive to Los Lunas, Taos or Farmington."

With no questions, the Commission went into the review of the regular meeting agenda, which will be covered in the next article.

For the previous articles, visit https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/78186-grant-county-commissioners-choose-new-grmc-board-of-trustees-members-051123; https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/78245-grant-county-commission-holds-work-session-050923-part-2; https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/78277-grant-county-commission-holds-work-session-050923-part-3; and https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/78350-grant-county-commission-holds-work-session-050923-part-4 .