Tuesday’s Corrales Village Council meeting took place almost entirely at ground level. Or street level, if one prefers.
The council approved a new policy governing road paving, repair and maintenance procedures for the village. Corrales will now use a 10-point classification system — based on safety, traffic volume and other factors — to decide where fresh asphalt gets placed.
The ranking of priorities will also include a mechanism that keeps important projects from languishing on the village’s infrastructure capital improvement plan (ICIP) list as new needs arise.
Another provision calls for dirt roads to be eligible for paving consideration once certain criteria are met, including 60% of the residents on such a road signing a petition requesting paving.
Village Administrator Melanie Romero told councilors Perea Road immediately met that threshold. Residents of Perea Road, which is prone to washing out during heavy rains, have vocally criticized the existing process.
Councilors and speakers during the Corraleños Forum also touched upon last week’s placement and prompt removal of aggregate material on a dirt lot in central Corrales. As the body discusses updating the village parking ordinance, the matter of adequate commercial parking has frequently come up.
Mayor Fred Hashimoto had the material removed a day after it was placed on the Gonzales property, across the street from the Village Administration Complex. He told the Corrales Comment that a parking lot requires a site development plan, architectural and engineering design and other steps be taken.
Councilor Zachary Burkett equated the work done there to maintenance efforts, saying he and colleagues have long discussed filling holes in the lot and how it could be used for parking in the future. Councilors are planning bathrooms nearby.
While the property is not officially a parking lot, visitors to that part of town have been known to park there.
“I’m not sure putting (in) damn gravel requires a site development plan,” resident Bob Eichhorst said. “Gravel is gravel.”
The council defended staff actions in the matter, criticizing residents’ vitriol in emails to councilors.
The New Mexico Department of Transportation, Romero said, is studying the feasibility of placing four-way stop signs at four intersections along Corrales Road. Romero said the department will seek a resolution of support from the council for any projects it proposes.