By Lynn Janes

The Village of Santa Clara held a regular meeting October 23, 2025. Mayor Arnold Lopez called the meeting to order. Mayor Pro Tem Albert Esparza and Trustees, Olga Amador, Peter Erickson and Ralph Trujillo attended.

The council approved the agenda, past meeting minutes and department head reports. Lopez said he would allow10 minutes comment from Tom Caddel and Ken Tappan. On the agenda some wording needed to be changed. The prospectors would be a sponsorship and not a donation and the action committee will be an increase in help to the fiesta.

Mayors report

Lopez said they have been trying to plan for the new year. The new brush truck will be picked up. It had been a long time coming.

Public comment

Tappan has requested a 12 foot cut of a curb for a new driveway. He had put in a carport recently and would like straight access to it. The fire chief and code enforcement had looked at it and didn't see a problem. The carport sits right next to the home. It will be put on the next agenda as an action item to approve or disapprove.

Caddel wanted to point out that the person in the street with signs having his name on it he had not condoned. He had not approved it and didn't know he would be doing it. He did agree with some of the things on the signs. Caddel also had an issue that no one had shown up to the forum. He knew that Esparza would not be there, but Erickson had said he would attend. Caddel told him he should have called to let them know he could not attend so it could have been canceled. "It could be perceived you guys don't want to debate me." He continued to address the mill levy and the state would already be adding 4 mills. He went over what that would be costing the people. The school will also be asking for a bond. He had also been told the county assessor would be reassessing property and that alone would make the property taxes increase. He didn't feel the figures that village had put out would be correct. He again wanted to point out he had not been part of the signs that this person had put up. Esparza thanked him.

Raul Turrieta wanted to interject something concerning the valuations. He had talked to Caddel. The county will be doing a reappraisal of properties in Santa Clara. "That does not mean the property taxes are going to go up for that value because we just deal with valuation." He continued to go over all the information he had shared with Caddel, and the history of the valuations done in Santa Clara. Grant County has been one of the lowest in the state. Turrieta continued his explanation of how the bonds and rates work. He also let people know they could qualify for some exemptions.

Turrieta had come to speak on the Tamal Fiesta coming up. It would take place at Fort Bayard, and they had over 1,500 people participating last year. He praised how amazing Santa Clara looked now. "I appreciate all you have done here."

The council approved the donation of sick leave to Bianca Martinez, court clerk, for maternity leave. Lopez said the courts will stay open that eight weeks and the girls in the administration office would be stepping in. He also thanked the employees that had donated that time to her.

The council approved the water development project agreement with Freeport McMoRan Chino Mines, Inc. This will be the same agreement they had last year, and this will be a renewal. Sheila Hudman, village administrator, said the agreement times have been kept short so the funding agencies will move quicker. They had received funding the previous year for design and rehabbing a well.

The council approved the amendment to task order number three for the Oak Street bridge and roadway improvements. George Esqueda, Stantec, went over the project and costs and qualification for a match waiver. The total project budget will be $718,000. He had provided the council with the full documents of costs. This project will be for design, survey, environmental certification and the hydraulic modeling of Cameron Creek. Lopez and Esqueda discussed timelines for actual construction. It will be a couple of years out for construction.

The council approved amendment one to task order four concerning the 2024 colonias water system improvements. This funding must be used by November 2026. The scope of the work will be the design and construction/rehabilitation of wells. This task order is for the existing production well plus the tanks and reservoirs. The village has two 10,000-gallon tanks at the booster station and two reservoirs. This project will be an 80 percent grant from the New Mexico Finance Authority with a 20 percent loan component. The construction for this will begin in the summer of 2026 and complete in  November of 2026.

The council approved the sponsorship for Grant County Prospectors for Grant County Days in the amount of $500. This was something they started last year. A large sign will be made showing all the sponsors at the legislature.

The council approved increasing the amount to the action committee for the Tamal Fiesta Y Mas car show to offset the cost of trophies. In the past Norman Castrillo, car show organizer, has paid for these out of his pocket. He will be bringing in vehicles from all over.

Resolutions

The council approved resolution 2025-36 certifying the current assets for the fiscal year 2024-2025. Hudman said this was the same as last year, but they had added 17 additional assets. They must add anything purchased in the amount of $5,000 or more in tangible funds. The village had purchased the fire truck, paid for the Bell Street project and some other things.

The council approved resolution 2025-37 first quarter transfers. Hudman explained those.

The council approved resolution 2025-38 first quarter budget adjustments. Hudman explained those.

The council approved the proclamation declaring November 8, 2025, the official Tamal Fiesta Y Mas. This will be the nineth one the village has hosted. The fiesta celebrates local Hispanic culture through food, music, performances and more. The event this year will honor two dignitaries of Grant County, legend Bill Acosta, radio host and Dr Doug Dinwiddie, Fort Bayard Historical Society president.

Turrieta had a rundown of all the events that would be happening and thanked everyone involved. He hoped they would see at least 2,000 people this year and said they had made changes to the parking to make things easier.

First regular meeting to be held Thursday November 13, 2025, at 6:00 pm
Second regular meeting cancelled due to Thanksgiving holiday
The next meeting in December will be December 11, 2025

Meeting Adjourned