42 Days and Counting…

 …Because the pendulum of Edgewood’s government swings back and forth, back and forth, back and forth on a regular basis, and town policies trail along in the wake of its movement. 

• In the years after incorporation Edgewood’s Town Administrator/Planning & Zoning Director/IT manager, Karen Mahalick, worked first as a volunteer and later as an employee with several different mayors each of whom had different views of how to interact with Santa Fe County. 
• Despite the changes in town government which came along following each election, she worked with the County on several projects including the building of the fire station on Section 16. 
• By the time of the October 25, 2013 opening ceremony for the Edgewood Fire Station, Ms. Mahalick had been gone from town government for over a year, but her arrival was greeted with cheers and applause. 
• The facility was new and bright; optimism for Edgewood’s future was in the air. 
• The current state of the relationship between Town and County is troubled due in part to intransigence on the part of a few Edgewood residents who have leveraged themselves into positions of power but have no clue how government works in the real world.  

Hat tip to a blog reader’s observation on the current unkempt appearance of the fire station which jogged my memory. 

Hillcrest and Section 16 updates

I've added recent events to the Hillcrest Master Plan page as well as to the page devoted to the Section 16 Master Plan.  Changes to the Hillcrest page include more detailed information about the subdivision and land transfer within Hillcrest to the Town of Edgewood in June and September of 2009 as well as the Town's return of the land in September of 2014. 

Events from 2014 added to Hillcrest and Section 16 timelines:

I have updated the Hillcrest Master Plan and Section 16 Master Plan pages to incorporate events from late 2014. 

New link added:

The following information has been added to the Section 16 page:

October 21, 2002: The planning Commission voted to defer any action on the proposal in order to allow Manzano Mesa to answer several concerns about the scope and nature of the proposed development.

November 4, 2001: After further review, the Commission voted to recommend that the Council reject the proposal.  

Note on yesterday's post:

For a revised version of New school district for Edgewood? please visit the blog I maintain for the Moriarty-Edgewood Students First Facebook group.  The expanded post is called New district or new charter school?

New school district for Edgewood?

Edited to add information and a link:  This post has been expanded and the new version posted on the Moriarty-Edgewood Students First blog. 

Pursuant to ToE Resolution 2014-01, a new group has formed called Edgewood Moving Forward (EMF).  The group has established a web page for introducing its ideas on how and why the school district should be split.  An analysis of the EMF proposal written by members of the Moriarty-Edgewood Students First Facebook group can be read at M-ESF's public blog.

It appears that while forming a new district is the ultimate goal for members of EMF, there is also a parallel discussion about the establishment of a K-8 charter school, possibly with a STEM emphasis.  According to the Public Education Department website, charter schools may be established by local school boards (district charter schools) or by the Public Education Commission (state charter schools). The people with whom I've discussed the charter school proposal seem inclined to seek a charter via the PEC rather than MESD. 

Edgewood Commons Master Plan for Section 16

The final version of the newly adopted Master Plan for Section 16 is now available at the town website.  I've placed a copy on Drive as well. 

New development on the MESD reorganization plan:

Moriarty-Edgewood Superintendent of Schools, Tom Sullivan, read a statement at last night's board meeting about the status of the reorganization plan.  The Public Education Department and the school district have reached an agreement in principle by which PED has agreed to approve the reorganization plan as submitted by MESD.  The school district will, in turn, drop its lawsuit against PED. However, the agreement to settle the dispute between MESD and PED does not prelude independent action on the part of the Town of Edgewood in support of its resolution calling for the immediate formation of a separate Edgewood School District.  

Council Agenda for April 2, 2014

The preliminary agenda is now available at the ToE website.  I will post links to the the packet containing the final agenda when it made available by the town clerk.  Featured on the agenda are two special meetings for April 12, 2014; one is a 9: AM joint meeting of the Council and P&Z to consider changes to the zoning and subdivision ordinances, and the other is a 3:00 PM town hall meeting.  No locations are specified for either of the April 12 meetings. 

The MESD Re-organization plan revisited.

On Monday March 3, 2014 a five page summary of the 191 pages of documentation submitted by the Moriarty-Edgewood School District to the Public Education Department was uploaded to a Facebook group named Moriarty-Edgewood Students First.  The document, which was completed within a week of PED's rejection of the plan, was produced by a group of volunteers; it examines what the group believes to be four inaccurate statements being made about the district's plan to re-organize the school district and rebuts each "myth" with a series of facts.

The group was created on February 26, 2014 at 9:24 PM, and at the time of this blog post it has 384 members. I joined the group on March 1. The group has been active in contacting legislators, public officials, the media, and interested citizens in order to provide information about the district's situation.  It has also organized efforts to invite people to attend tomorrow evening's special board meeting which is open to the public. The meeting agenda is available through the MESD Website. 

• Moriarty-Edgewood Board of Education Special Meeting
• 7:00 PM Thursday March 6, 2014
• Performing Arts Center on the high school campus in Moriarty

More on the proposed school closings (edited)

[Note added on March 6, 2014:  It has been pointed out to me that the proposal sent to the PED calls for re-purposing the school buildings not closing them, and for moving students and most staff members to other schools.] 

It failed to reach the local newspapers in time for publication this week, but the New Mexico Public Education Department (NMPED or PED) has sent a letter to the Moriarty Edgewood School District detailing what it believes to be deficiencies in the district's plans to close Mountainview Elementary and Edgewood Elementary Schools and move 6th Grade students to the middle schools.  In the letter, Secretary of Education Designate, Hanna Skandera, cites a number of factors as the basis for her decision to nix the plan.

Media Advisory from the State Land Office

The State Land Office has released this information about next week's public hearing on the Section 16 Master Plan to be held during the regular Edgewood Town Council meeting. 

The closure of Egewood Elementary is the subject of the first ToE Resolution of 2014

The text of Resolution 2014-01 can be read and downloaded from the town website. I have also placed a copy on Drive. 

Land use in the news 01/15/2014

The Independent:  January 15-21 [Don't forget that if you have an e-sub it's time to renew!]

• Pleas to keep school open but no solutions (page 1);
• Prescribed burn this week (page 1);
• Town of Edgewood paid Advertisement of the General Obligation Bond Election (page 8);
• "I challenge my opponents to a debate" (letters on page 7);
•  Vote yes on bond for animal shelter" (letters on page 7);  
• Cibola County and Hospital board to close deal; Economics put brakes on fracking (Community News Exchange page 9);  
• Sandia Peak reduces skiing (page 9);
• Legal notices (page 14 and continued on page 2): The Town of Edgewood has two notices of public hearings; on February 4, 2014 the Planning & Zoning Commission will hear a request for a minor subdivision creating three lots from 20 acres.  The land is located at 251 Hawkeye Road. On February 5, 2014, the Governing Body will hold a public hearing at which it will consider adoption of the Edgewood Commons Master Plan for Section 16. 

[The Independent is locally owned and operated.  It is published weekly and appears on Wednesdays; the front page of the current edition appears on its website.  The price for an email subscription is reasonable, and I've found the service reliable and convenient.  The e-version includes ads and legal notices in full color with the added benefit of adjustable print size. You can also purchase a regular mail subscription or pick up a single copy for fifty cents at most local businesses if you prefer the paper and ink version.]

Updates to the Section 16 page:

I've added links and filled in more areas of the timeline on the page dedicated to Section 16.

An addition to the Commission and Council Packets

Yesterday, the Edgewood Town Clerk provided a draft version of the conceptual proposal for the Section 16 Master Plan revision.  The Commission will be discussing the document informally since it is not on the agenda for tonight's meeting, but there is an agenda item, "Review of the Master Plan for Section 16 (Edgewood Commons)" on Wednesday's council agenda. 

Link added: First Choice Community Health Care

I've added the First Choice homepage to the links list in the sidebar.  You will find information at the website about general clinic services and policies as well as the Edgewood clinic.

Economic Development Representative Hired by the State Land Office

The hiring of William Consuegra was announced on October 31, 2013 by New Mexico State Land Commissioner, Ray Powell. Consuegra's duties will include helping communities identify economic development opportunities on state lands. 

New Op-Ed from the State Land Office

I'm posting a link to an article published today on the State Land Office website which includes a description of the Section 16 Master Plan revision from the perspective of the State Land Office.  The title is Community Partnerships -- One of the Top Priorities of the New Mexico State Land Commission.  The article was written by New Mexico State Land Commissioner, Ray Powell, D.V.M.

The final meeting designed for public input on the Section 16 Master Plan revision is scheduled for Saturday November 16, 2013 from 10:00 AM to Noon in the Edgewood Community Center. 

Final meeting for public input on Section 16 Master Plan revisions:

The meeting is scheduled for Saturday November 16, 2013 from 10:00 A.M. to Noon in the Edgewood Community Center.