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Mayor Jo Anne Roake has urged her staff to propose big projects for which funds might be requested during the 30-day session of N.M. The legislature began on January 18.
Legislators anticipate unusually large revenues that could be divvied up. Some of those billions would come from federal sources and other dollars from oil and gas production.
The mayor and councilors discussed funding requests at their January 11 meeting when Roake reported that legislators are expecting “literally a tsunami of money.â€
Under those conditions, Village Administrator Ron Curry urged, department heads of Village government should “go big or go home.â€
Among the projects mentioned at that council meeting was full funding for the proposed new gym at the rec center, expansion of the Village’s sewer lines, better broadband service, and conversion of the old Jones residence west of the post office to better municipal use.
That latter site has been indicated for a performing arts center. In mid-January, it was rumored that Mayor Roake would request an appropriation to build a 15,000 square foot facility there.
Not specifically mentioned at that council meeting but perennial projects for which funds are sought include:
- extension of the Fire Department’s fire suppression water lines, perhaps most immediately from a water tank at the top of Angel Road,
- construction of a pathway through the commercial district,
- acquisition of the front three acres of the Gonzales tract north of Wells Fargo Bank, part of which might expand parking for the library,
- construction of parking lot and visitors’ center for Casa San Ysidro Museum,
- purchase of conservation easements on farmland, such as the iconic Trosello field at the north end of the village,
- installation of more solar electric arrays for municipal facilities and
- extending water and sewer service from Rio Rancho into the Far Northwest Sector’s Neighborhood Commercial, Office District, adjacent to the rear of the Rio Rancho Industrial Park.
In past years, Village officials mostly have relied on legislators choosing what to fund from Corrales Infrastructure Capital Improvements Project (ICIP) list.
In 2020, the Village listed the following needs on its ICIP list. It said an estimated $10,740,000 would be needed for municipal projects and upgrades.
The Village Council adopts an ICIP list yearly. In theory, no project gets funded through N.M. Legislature unless it is specified in such a plan. At its September 8, 2020 session, the council approved a plan which gave priority to the following:
- animal services equipment and facilities – $40,000;
- the Thompson Fence Line trail connection – $75,000;
- municipal parking facilities – $100,000;
- fire suppression – $2,155,000;
- residential roads and drainage – $1,225,000.
Farther down the ranked list of projects was:
- computer technology – $75,000;
- wastewater service connection – $1,000,000;
- repair and improvement municipal buildings – $500,000;
- Parks and Recreation improvements – $100,000;
- stormwater and flood hazard mitigation – $1,500,000;
- Corrales Road Pathway Project – $1,510,000;
- firetruck and tender vehicle – $400,000;
- a Vactor truck to vacuum liquids and slurries from pipes, tanks and ponds – $500,000;
- Planning and Zoning equipment – $40,000;
- Upper Meadowlark pathways – $320,000;
- Public Works equipment – $1,000,000;
- Performing Arts Center – $1,000,000;
- Fire-rescue substation for south end of Corrales – $400,000;
- underground utility lines for Corrales Road – $2,000,000;
- reflective traffic signage replacement – $250,000;
- energy saving improvements for municipal buildings – $50,000;
- design and install facilities to comply with Americans with Disabilities Act;
- Casa San Ysidro visitors’ center – $50,000.
Several of those projects have since received the funding needed to proceed. But many have been on recurring ICIPs for years while their rank has risen or fallen as other needs surfaced.