By Roger Lanse

District 1 Councilor Cynthia Bettison, at the Mar. 16 meeting of the Silver City Town Council, summarized her trip this week to attend the National League of Cities conference in Washington, D.C., where New Mexico Municipal League officials met with New Mexico’s congressional delegation or their aides. The first priority Bettison talked about was transportation. The current administration requests an 80 percent match from municipalities and counties and only 20 percent from the feds for transportation projects. “Of course,” Bettison said, “The National League of Cities wants it to be reversed. We also want it to come directly to municipalities. We don’t want it to go through the state or through counties where there’s always an administrative fee taken off the top.”

New Mexico’s congressional delegation is also working to protect Community Development Block Grant monies, Bettison stated, as the current administration, according to Bettison, wants to entirely remove those funds from the process as well.

The second priority Bettison mentioned was the census update. The census representative who was at the meeting said, according to Bettison, that the Census Bureau would not be sending to post office boxes but will make sure to contact those post office box holders personally. Bettison questioned this procedure as many living in rural areas will not be available for one reason or another, even if it’s only because the homeowner doesn’t want government employees on their property.

Bettison said the census official stated the bureau is in the process of hiring half a million census takers for the country, but, according to the Population Institute, there isn’t enough money to hire all those employees.

Bettison’s third priority was the Department of Justice’s request to have citizenship status placed on all census interviews. Bettison said this is of concern because congressional representation and funding of programs are based on citizen population. Bettison said municipalities could lose out on representation and funding if the census count is done incorrectly.

The last point was the proposal to use southern New Mexico as a fly-over zone for F-16 training and the program’s possible conflict with the National Environmental Protection Act. It seems, Bettison said, that the process to begin the training flyovers is being streamlined to be completed in a year.

District 4 Councilor Guadalupe Cano stated that the first of four community volunteer projects will be in her district on April 14, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and will involve a raised bed garden at the Volunteer Center and park refurbishment in the Birch Hill area.

District 3 Councilor Jose Ray Jr. asked Town Manager Alex Brown if it is legal to place furniture on the sidewalk for people to take away free. Brown said sidewalks are to be kept free from obstructions. Ray stated there will be a flag ceremony at Gough Park on Mar. 28 at 10 a.m. for the raising of the newly installed United States, New Mexico and POW flags. Town Manager Alex Brown said this installation includes lighting for the flags so the flags can stay up.

Ray also stated that the Knights of Columbus in association with the Copper Country Senior Olympics will have prize bingo at the Knights of Columbus to benefit the CCSO. Admission will be $5 per card.

District 2 Councilor Lynda Aiman-Smith reported that more than 400 people attended a recent meeting regarding the F-16 training flyovers. For more information, Aiman-Smith said, citizens can go to a Gila Information Resources Project web site called Peaceful Skies.

Mayor Ken Ladner reminded residents of the Rotary Club’s Murder Mystery Dinner and Fundraiser at the Western New Mexico University Cafeteria on Mar. 16 at 6 p.m. The production will benefit the Silver City Rotary Club Foundation and Scholarship Fund and the Silver City Community Theater. Tickets are $50.

Raul Turrieta stated to council that State Senator Howie Morales is a candidate for lieutenant governor for the June 5 primary.

Council approved two public celebration permit applications for the Tour of the Gila beer garden at 820 N. Bullard Street on Apr. 21, with alcohol service from noon to 7:30 p.m.

A design for a “Welcome to Silver City” sign was approved.

Brown stated that road improvements to Highway 15 and Silver Street will begin on Mar. 26 and that a bid by Southwest Concrete and Paving in Silver City was approved for a sidewalk improvement project on 32nd Street to begin in April of this year.

An application to the New Mexico Department of Transportation Municipal Arterial Program for funds to complete a pavement overlay on 32nd Street between Ridge Loop and Silver Street. was approved. If awarded the project will begin sometime in mid-2019, Brown said.

District Court Judge Timothy Aldrich presented council with a short summary of the 2016 Community Safety Constitutional Amendment. Aldrich concluded that meaningful reforms in the way we distinguish between arrestees we hold in jail before trial and those we allow to remain free until their guilt can be determined can be accomplished only by moving from a money-based system to an evidence-of-risk-based system of release and detention. In other words, requiring bail money for release does not guarantee safety for the community.

Council approved the disposition of certain outdated equipment to the Restore.

Patricia Eiline Kingsley was appointed to the recycling Advisory Committee.