[Editor's Note: This is part 3 and the final one of three articles on the Grant County Commission special meeting on Aug. 22, 2023.]

By Mary Alice Murphy

The second resolution the Grant County Commission addressed at the Aug. 22, 2023 special meeting featured a discussion on adopting an ICIP (infrastructure capital improvement plan) for each of the county-owned senior centers, one in the Mimbres Valley and the second in Gila.

Planning Director Randy Hernandez said the senior centers are required to do their own ICIPs. "HMS (Hidalgo Medical Services, which manages both centers) has been asked to get this done."

District 1 Commissioner and Chair Chris Ponce said each one has two items on it, one for facility improvements and one for vehicles. "What are the vehicles for?"

Hernandez said he believes the one for Mimbres is for meal delivery to the homebound.

District 4 Commissioner Billy Billings said the centers use transit and meal delivery vehicles.

District 3 Commissioner Alicia Edwards asked: "Didn't they get one last year?"

Hernandez said he wasn't sure if it had ever been received.

District 2 Commissioner Eloy Medina said he thought the Mimbres one was never received.

"Is it in the pipeline?" Edwards asked.

Hernandez noted that HMS had identified a vehicle as the top priority.

Ponce said he would like to know more about what facility improvements they are planning.

Edwards said: "We have a special meeting on Aug. 30 for the election canvass. Can we table this issue until then?"

Hernandez said he would ask for a list of specific facility needs.

"At a minimum, get a written list of both vehicle and facility needs," County Manager Charlene Webb recommended.

"If we have no idea, no say-so, but we have to vote on this with no say-so and no defense at the Legislature, how can we do this?" Ponce asked.

Edwards again suggested tabling it until the Aug. 20 special meeting.

The commissioners moved to table it until Aug. 30, with the intention of learning more about the needs.

Hernandez said he would ask HMS Chief Executive Officer Dan Otero and/or the HMS Senior Centers Coordinator Steve Chavira to attend the meeting and get lists of their needs.

[Editor's Note: Please visit https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/80014-grant-county-commission-holds-special-meeting-to-approve-mail-in-ballot-canvass to find out the action on this resolution.]

In his commissioner report, Medina said he had met with some McKnight residents, with concerns about the river crossing they need to navigate to get out of their neighborhood. "I also sat down with Native Methods on their ability to get into the neighborhood with a helicopter in case of emergency. They need a landing space on the other side of the river. And maybe we need to look at Gila, too. If it's dry, a helicopter can launch a flight, but then they need transportation on the other side of the Gila River."

Ponce said Rep. Luis Terrazas understands the issue, but the problem is that much of the land is owned by the Forest Service, with some land privately owned. "After last year's flooding, we assisted with sending equipment in to help the acequias. We went out with the Forest Service and they helped, too. Maybe we can get the state also to help."

Medina said: "I was disappointed. The McKnight residents were getting tons of rock and the river crossing washed out. It's not just the McKnight Road. My concern is fire or a medical emergency."

Ponce asked how the county can get into private property. "Does the state have more teeth to go on private property?"

Webb said the flooding was a result of the Black Fire last year. "It is a private road to McKnight, with public access, but the county does not maintain it. We need a hard look at how to help those residents."

She said the allocated Black Fire funds are starting to funnel through. "We are trying to be as creative as we can to fund solutions, if we can find solutions."

Medina said a road runs through the McKnight area to get to the forest. "There are easements, too, but the residents can close access. But people can cut fences and cross private properties."

Edwards wondered how many other similar situations can be found in the county.

Medina replied that there are others like it in the Mimbres.

"What is the process for development of an area like that?" Edwards asked. "The landowner sold parcels and a road was created."

Hernandez said it depends on if a subdivision was created. "We do have regulations, but they need to be updated from 1997. A lot of these developments were done in the '60s and '70s."

Edwards noted it's not going to get better.

Billings said some of the developments were from 50 or even 100 years ago. "I'm thinking of LS Mesa. People bought property and thought they would have access. It's about impossible to fix that road. They may be stranded in an emergency. It's about 'buyer beware.'"

Webb said it's a realtor's responsibility to disclose the information about an area. "We need to update our ordinance, but it doesn't deal with things that happened before any ordinance was put in place."

Medina said the residents know that the road is not county maintained, but "they worry about being able to get help when needed."

Edwards asked if NRCS (National Resource Conservation Services) funding can be used to fix a low water crossing.

Medina said a Forest Service fellow had suggestions on working together on labor and funding to fix the crossing so it would not wash out, similar to what had been done in other places in the state.

Ponce noted another problematic area is highway 211. "I heard the Department of Transportation is trying to do a study. You can get around the flooded area but it would take more time to get help when there is flooding."

Billings and Edwards said they did not have commissioner reports.

District 5 Commissioner Harry Browne, in his report, said for wildfire preparedness, the Forest Service has a proposal to reduce hazardous fuels on almost 32,000 acres. "They are going to use mechanical thinning and burning of the slash, as well as the use of herbicides. I realized it was pretty vague, but they are doing it in a hurry to use funding before it expires. The statement they made was that the mechanical use was outside of any area near private property. But they plan to use herbicides through about two-thirds of the area. I submitted comments. They didn't say what herbicides they planned to use, whether they are using foliar herbicides on leaves or what. They are not accepting any more comments. They say they will use anything that is already approved. It's good that they are reducing fuels, so the fires don't get up in the canopy. Maybe we can have some representative come to give a report to us on what they are planning to do."

Billings said he didn't know anything about the herbicide, but supposedly Tucker Looney's mill near Riverside got a permit to remove 700 downed trees to create a significant amount of board feet. "I'm glad they are going to let people get the fuel out and put it to use before it just burns up."

Browne said he supports the reduction of fuels. because healthy grasslands prevent high-intensity fires.

Edwards said she didn't approve the use of herbicides like Roundup. "It won't be good for the creatures, but I guess," she said sardonically, "I guess you could say the creatures are going to die anyway."

Browne said healthy grasslands are a great benefit to a healthy forest, because, "to my understanding that's how it used to be, before human intervention. Grassland prevents tree seedlings from taking root. Low-intensity fire also kills the seedlings, but germinates the grass seed. That's what we want to get back to, but if they're using herbicides on a wide scale, they're not helping grasses establish themselves."

Ponce said up near Lake Roberts, where the Forest Service had done prescribed burns, "it was green with grass way before anything else grew."

The meeting adjourned.

To read the prior articles, please visit https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/80076-grant-county-commission-holds-special-meeting-082223 ; and https://www.grantcountybeat.com/news/news-articles/80099-grant-county-commission-holds-special-meeting-082223-part-2 .