January 1, 2014

Page 1

Start 2014

POSTAL PATRON U.S. POSTAGE PAID MAILED FROM RUIDOSO, NM 88345 PERMIT NO. 9 PRESORT STANDARD

with a

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WEDNESDAY, JAN. 1, 2014 • W W W . R U I D O S O F R E E P R E S S . C O M • VOL. 6, NO. 1

50 cents

What’s

happening

Happy New Year!

January 1

Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club at IMG

Live Stand-Up Comedy Series with professional comedians performing every Wednesday night at Inn of the Mountain Gods. 7 p.m. 575464-7053, Innofthemountaingods.com. $5 admission, must be 21 or older.

Through January 10 Christmas tree recycling

Schoolhouse Park, Sudderth Dr., next to the public pool. Drop off trees inside the orange fencing. Do not put trees in trash compactors, dumpsters or on the street. After Jan. 10, the trees will be mulched and the mulch will be available at Schoolhouse Park for residents to pick up. Sponsored by PNM, the Village of Ruidoso, Ruidoso Parks and Recreation, and Greentree Solid Waste. 575-257-5030. Free.

Reflecting on the past year in Lincoln County

The rise and demise of public transit Uncertainty over the future of Lincoln County Transit colored news headlines. LCT has been without a director since the end of October and has run consistently in the red for much of its five-year existence. The city has had to subsidize it from the general fund, and outgoing Finance Director Terri Mosley stated the transit system is currently $18,341 in debt. The options for hiring a new director are few, as City Clerk Carol Virden pointed out the obvious lack of funds to even advertise the open position.

Public transportation is at a crossroads and running on fumes. The service has a loyal and growing customer base and is recognized by elected officials and many of its citizens for its value yet funding remains the transit services greatest challenge. There is a general consensus that the existing system “has to grow” or will not survive, and that is probably true. The service agreement between the Village of Ruidoso and the city of Todd Fuqua/Ruidoso Free Press Ruidoso Downs states that established Ruidoso Downs resident Sharon Monk, right, gets her bus stops should be agreed upon and card punched by driver Emma Martinez as a regular rider signs should be installed. of Lincoln County Transit.

Big money for big water projects

January 4

Terrain Park Competition No. 2

Ski Apache, Highway 532/Ski Run Road, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. Try your skills in our terrain park competition located at the bottom of the mountain on the gondola lift line. Compete for prizes, medals and bragging rights. 575-4643641; www.skiapache.com

January 7

Eugene Heathman/Ruidoso Free Press

Grindstone at its lowest point during drought conditions.

From Idea to Business: PreBusiness Workshop

Small Business Development Center at NMSU-Alamogordo, 2400 N. Scenic Drive, Technical Ed SBDC Bldg, Room 103, Alamogordo, 9 11 a.m. Designed to give participants the tools you need to start a business legally and profitably. Includes information on assistance and resources available at the local Small Business Development Center. 575-439-3660; www. nmsbdc.org/alamogordo/ showevent.html. Free.

MORE listings MORE articles MORE photos MORE sports MORE awards

Find MORE at www.RuidosoFreePress.com

2013 NMPA No. 1 weekly newspaper website

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During the next 20 years the village of Ruidoso and its citizens need to invest at least $50 million in water utility infrastructure with a combination of water customer rate increases, possible bond funding, state and federal assistance. The endeavor will be one of the largest combined capital projects in village history in an effort to supply the villages water needs for the future. The drought and impediments to collect runoff have forced the village to almost entirely rely on well production to serve a fulltime population of approximately 10,800 people. Village officials have been scrambling to capitalize on drought conditions, meaning an empty Grindstone reservoir, to raise approximately $4.5 million to apply a sealer for the dam which at

full capacity can store 30 percent of the village water supply. Village staff has been exploring financial options to meet the costs of water production and ongoing infrastructure repairs while council considers at least $14 million General Obligation Bonds to fund total water line replacement in some areas. With Phase 5 water conservation methods currently in place, the village is considering proposed rate increases to encourage conservation and cover additional operational costs associated with extensive and daily repairs to water lines. A new $29.4 million reservoir proposed during a September council meeting downstream from the current Alto Reservoir and duck pond would replace the existing reservoir for part of Ruidoso’s intricate water supply needs.

CYFD successfully re-opens youth correctional center at Fort Stanton

The state-owned property, formerly known as Camp Sierra Blanca, is located near Ranches of Sonterra subdivision and historic monument Fort Stanton. The New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD) announced the naming of its new juvenile center near Ruidoso. The new facility was named Lincoln Pines Youth Center. Fifty jobs, $2.5 million in salaries were brought to facilities. For the first year, up to 24 “medium risk” boys, ages 14 through 17 will be housed behind a fence and, according to Ken Pifer, deputy director of facilities, will be supervised 24 hours a day.

Several Ranches of Sonterra citizens voiced their concerns during last year’s meetings, due in part to a break in which occurred in Sonterra when juveniles escaped the facility in 2007. With local entities such as the Upper Hondo Soil and Water Conservation District offering to give juveniles work should the facility reopen, residents are still concerned for citizen safety and security. Representatives from Fort Stanton, recently designated one of only 11 national conservation areas, expressed their anxiety about a detention or correctional facility opening less than a mile away from the fort.

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Photo courtesy of Sue Hutchison

Lincoln County Commissioner Tom Battin views an aerial map of the proposed return of a youth corrections program near Fort Stanton during a public input meeting.

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