22 Days and Counting…

 …Because when politicians are loudly proclaiming their virtues, prudent citizens need to avoid distractions and keep both eyes on the money. 

The practice of opening town meetings with prayer began in 2022 with the new form of town government; what have we seen since then?

• They promised us transparency, yet the only Town Commission meeting minutes currently posted at the town website for 2022 are for July 13 and November 22.
• What happened to the minutes for other Town Commission meetings in 2022?
• There are old minutes from 2016-2021 available, and regular postings appear to have resumed in 2023. 
• Even more curious, as recently as 2025 there were still quite a few minutes from 2022 available which seem to have disappeared.  
• The one agenda/packet currently available for July 13 shows a future agenda item listed as “Budget Adjustment Requests (BARS) for FY 2022”
• BARS are legal, but it is not recommended practice that they be pre-planned and done in batch lots. 
• We can see from examining minutes from later years that BARS transferring money from the JPA for other uses did not clearly state the place from which the money was being transferred.
• This begs the question of why Commissioners failed to ask what was going on.
• Former town officials have tried to fix the starting date for the raid on JPA funds in late 2024, but is that accurate? 
• Did the BARS anticipated for FY 2022 lay the groundwork for the shell game used to raid the Fire/EMS JPA?
• Was it an accident that from 2022-2025 the town routinely gave excuses for why it could not fulfill IPRA requests for financial information or simply failed to acknowledge others?
• Is it any surprise, then, that Santa Fe County has asked for explicit language for payments in the ratifying ordinance for the new JPA?

26 Days and Counting…

 Because if you are wondering why the Fire/EMS JPA funds were diverted, it’s at least partly because of over-spending in several areas which are being hidden from the public on the basis of attorney-client confidentiality. 

The latest Town Commission agenda and packet (June 9, 2026) has been published and it lists three closed sessions; two for personnel and one for ongoing litigation.  

30 Days and Counting…

 …Because when you find that bread dough is over-proofed you can punch it down and try again, but only a couple of times. Eventually a decision is required: Either settle for flatbread that’s lost its savor, or compost the mess and start over. Edgewood has reached a similar decision point. 

The Commission Manager form of government as manifested in Edgewood is barely functioning.

• It appears that we are facing yet another imminent failure (or possibly sabotage) of the proposed new Fire/EMS JPA.  (See the letter from the SFCo attorney in the packet for tomorrow’s special meeting.)
• Despite the best efforts of the town staff  to untangle a mess not of their making, they fell short of delivering a balanced budget as required by state law. 
• The Town Commission seems to have been either unaware (or unwilling) to take responsibility for doing its part of the job: making the final round of changes needed to achieve a balanced budget.
• The revolving door among the town staff shows no signs of slowing down.     
• Meanwhile, the town’s PR machine continues to churn out good news.  

32 Days and Counting…

 …Because even the scanty early minutes available at the town website reveal the extent to which newly formed Town Commission made a habit of governing by a series of dodgy Budget Adjustment Resolutions, law-fare, and closed sessions. 

• When the money to cover legal fees and vanity projects started running low, someone’s covetous eyes landed on all that money which had been budgeted for the Fire/EMS JPA. 
• From there it was an easy step to concoct excuses as to why that money should not be going to the county when the Town Commission had its own ideas about how to run the town. 
• The Fire/EMS JPA is arguably the single most important of the town’s budget items because Edgewood has neither the tax base nor the institutional depth required to provide Fire/EMS services on its own. 
• The arrogance displayed by town officials in imagining that the town could not only stiff Santa Fe County by not paying for services received, but could duplicate services in a matter of months is astounding.  
• The collapse of the JPA has, at least for now, served as a wake-up call to Edgewood citizens to start paying more attention to town government. 

33 Days and (Still) Counting…

 …Because while this latest step of publishing the ordinance and announcing the date for its public hearing takes things in the right direction, we still don’t know where the money that should have funded the Fire/EMS JPA was spent. Nor do we know who authorized the change in policy and why that change was never publicly announced.

• The official town explanation thus far has been that the failure to announce the policy change was due to legal reasons falling under attorney-client privilege regarding pending litigation. 
• However the letter from the New Mexico Department of Justice shreds that reasoning.  [Letter can be found in the Commission Packet posted at the town website on pp. 23-26 of the packet.]
• Common sense also applies: while it is not yet established exactly when the policy change was made or who authorized it, we do know roughly when payments dropped significantly, and that happened well before Santa Fe County filed its lawsuit.  

35 Days and Counting…

…Because while the town made progress at last night’s meeting and the timeline for final approval of the enabling ordinance for the Fire/EMS JPA works in theory, there are still several steps remaining as well as some unanswered questions. 

• The devil is always in the details: The text of the proposed JPA ordinance has not yet been made available for public inspection, and it appears that there were at least two versions. 
• The version which will be put out for public notice later this week is shorter than the original. 
• It remains to be seen how Santa Fe County and DFA will view the second, shorter version of the JPA Ordinance, although it appears to have addressed the concerns of both Commissioners Brennan and Murillo. 
• On a related note; while there was great progress made during last Friday’s budget workshop, there are strong indications that the town’s projected income for the next fiscal year are overly optimistic.  
• The town will submit an interim budget for 2026-7 that while better than previous years, does not fully address some important spending issues. It remains to be seen how DFA will respond.
• Public comments were interesting, and the “bit dogs” continue to bark loudly. 

37 Days and Counting…

 …Because the town government is in dire need of more oversight by a wider section of Edgewood voters. 

It came as a surprise to the staff and Commissioners that their proposal for commencing quarterly budget reviews was not deemed adequate by former Mayor Bob Stearley or former Interim Mayor and Town Councilor John Abrams. 

• Apparently not one current town official present at the May 22, 2026 budget workshop was aware that prior to the Glorious Revolution of 2022, all of Edgewood’s Mayors and Town Councils reviewed spending during the second meeting of each month.
• The second meeting was chosen because, by that time, most of the bills for the month had already been paid, and trends on both income and spending could be closely monitored.
• That practice allowed for corrections before the budget came undone.  
• Even more shocking: The information made available to the Town Council was published at the town website along with the Town Councilors’ packets beginning in 2008 and continuing through 2021with the exception 2012-2013 when the town website sat idle for about a year. 

39 Days and Counting…

…Because the love of money is the root of all kinds of troubles, and it now appears that the town has been doing some serious over-spending for several years. The raid on the Fire/EMS JPA funds is beginning to look like only one symptom of a far larger problem.  Expect to see more discussion at the May 26 meeting.

Two Budget Meetings Scheduled for Friday

For those planning to attend the budget workshop on Friday May 22, 2026 please note that the Town Commission Workshop is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m. 

A. WELCOME AND CALL TO ORDER

1. Roll Call (by Town Clerk or designee)

B. DISCUSSION

1. FY26 Budget Recap

2. FY27 Budget Discussion

C. ADJOURNMENT

There will be a follow-up public session beginning at 4:00 p.m. which is described as follows:

Members of the Town Commission may be present and participate in a Staff Led

Budget Information Session at:

May 22, 2026

4:00PM

Edgewood Town Hall

Commission Chambers

171A NM Rd 344

Edgewood, NM 87015

43 Days and Counting…

…Because the clock continues to go tick, tock, tickk, toook, and judging by the names being floated as Mike Rariden’s replacement the town clock, which has been out of beat for several years, is not getting better.

• Meanwhile, an agenda for Friday’s 1:00 pm budget workshop has been posted while we wait for publication of the Ordinance needed for ratification of the new Fire/EMS JPA.
• The workshop agenda features a recap of the current budget and projections for the upcoming fiscal year.  
• I will be watching to see whether/how much the town proposes to spend on repairs and upkeep for several previously paved/chip sealed roads which are in need of work.  
• If the money budgeted for the Fire/EMS JPA has been used for padding other department budgets for the past several years, there might be some actual participation from the Commissioners this year as some painful adjustments may be necessary.  
• In other news, there have been multiple cancellations of  auxiliary boards’ meetings as the town focuses on the JPA restart and the budget. 
• It’s not all bad news, though. The carnival, sponsored by Sun Valley Rides,  is coming to Edgewood not once, but twice as part of the town’s  Rt. 66 Series which also features a busy summer schedule called Saddle Seeries Youth Rodeo sponsored by East Mountain Cowboy Church. 

“Where did the $10 Million Go?”

Former Edgewood Town Councilor and Mayor Pro Tem, John Abrams, found some interesting anomalies when looking into the town government’s performance on road improvements. In this follow-up letter submitted to nm.news, he asks some important questions. (Be sure to scroll down and read the two comments on his follow-up letter.)

Some historical context: In the run-up to the change of government, mail-in ballots-only election, the town government was the target of lawsuits, numerous IPRA requests, and allegations of financial wrongdoing by various proponents of the Commission/Manager form of government. In spite of the lawfare and vicious personal attacks launched against Former Mayor John Bassett, Councilor and Pro Tem John Abrams and Councilor Linda Holle, the audits were successfully completed, and IPRA requests were handled in-house. The numerous lawsuits which appear to have been intended to cripple the Mayor/Council government were only partially successful. 

Fast forward to 2025: the Commission/Manager government dissolved into factions almost immediately upon taking office in 2022, there is currently neither a Manager nor an Interim Manager in place, the town is not processing IPRA requests in a timely way, the audits are still not satisfactorily completed, and lawsuits continue to multiply.

In modern parlance, there seems to have been a whole lot of projection going on. For those who prefer dealing with local government issues within a framework of Christian values, it’s called sowing and reaping; sowing the wind and reaping the whirlwind. 

Campbell Ranch Minor* Subdivision Hearing Scheduled for May 15, 2025

The Town Commission remanded the November 2024 “minor” subdivision approval to the P&Z Commission with a list of items which it wants addressed. Based on the meeting packet posted at the ToE website, it looks as though the public notifications have been done more systematically this time. 

*There really is no such thing as a minor subdivision. Subdivision approval (along with the required schedule for construction of improvements) is the point at which zoning concepts become reality. The road to substandard development usually begins with lax subdivision regulations. In Edgewood, calls for allowing/expanding minor subdivisions start off with tear-jerker anecdotes about grandma and grandpa gifting land to family members. The reality? More often it’s a developer trying to cut costs. 

Groundhog Day: Edgewood Style

What if Rita Loy Simmons, Chuck Ring, Sherry Abraham, John Abrams, and John Bassett supported the acquisition of EPCOR and Thunder Mountain Water Company assets for a very good reason? Most of us pay substantial amounts of state and federal taxes in various forms. State and federal governments re-invest some of that tax money into community owned water and wastewater systems; other towns in NM have taken steps recapture some of that money to benefit their citizens. Why should Edgewood not do the same, particularly since EPCOR management has made it clear that it sees no advantage to making improvements to water quality? 

What if Edgewood could offer EPCOR and Thunder Mountain customers a better deal? EPCOR's infrastructure is an aging patchwork which will eventually require extensive replacements/improvements; how will EPCOR (or a succeeding for-profit entity) pay for the improvements and preserve their profit margin other than by increasing rates?

The image of a locomotive on fire speeding into the abyss is a curious choice on the part of the CORE postcard author. Why the hurry? EPCOR certainly knows the value of it's assets. Does it fear that the assessor's report will cause some wavering in it's two solid “no” votes? What if the 2A supporting councilors who succumbed to to EPCOR's “shock and awe” campaign were to wake up and understand that eminent domain and firearms have a lot in common; neither are inherently evil and both are tools which can be used for good or ill.

CORE is holding out the promise of a new form of government which will wave a magic wand and make any laws the public doesn't like disappear. It's not a promise they can deliver, but who cares? If they get their hands on the levers of power, they can always plausibly plead legal exigencies for their failure to perform. The group backing CORE has let its mask slip enough to lead me to conclude that this isn't just about John Bassett. It's the same group that did whatever it could to prevent former Councilor and Mayor Bob Stearley from crafting a water policy for the town. Bassett and EPCOR weren't part of the picture then so there is obviously something else in play. I suspect it's nothing particularly earthshaking only some sad, tired Boomers who are afraid if Edgewood grows too much they won't be the big fish in the little pond anymore. This isn't the first time the town has inexplicably shot itself in the foot when it had a breakthrough opportunity.  

I've been looking back to the first announcements about the town's decision to look into acquiring EPCOR and its Thunder Mountain assets. Setting aside all the conspiracy theories and character assassination which is churned out in regular installments by the newly minted [EP]CORE group I'd like to put out a series of questions to consider-especially for those who plan to attend their rally on Thursday:

1. What has this supposed watchdog group done in the past 20 years; why did they suddenly rise up and begin to strain gnats whilst having quietly swallowed many camels for two decades?
2. When do they plan to offer actual facts to support their numerous allegations? 
3. If John Bassett and his family intended to make a quick buck off the wastewater plant why haven't they taken advantage of the access along Church Road which has been available to them for the past 10 years?
4. Why has the group dropped EPCOR's slick corporate PR and reverted to crude agitprop which employs a narrative voice which will be familiar to anyone who remembers Edgewood's tumultuous early years?
5. Why have they revived the questionable practice of grooming unsuspecting, well-intentioned church members to spread their message?
6. Has the group been infected with a virulent strain of Bassett Derangement Syndrome, or is this just a mutated version of an older sickness that pre-dates John Bassett's tenure as mayor and EPCOR's purchase of Edgewood Water Company?
7. EPCOR's infrastructure is an aging patchwork which will eventually require replacement/improvement; how will EPCOR or another for-profit entity pay for the improvements and preserve their profit margin?
8. Why has EPCOR kept its assets separate from those acquired from Thunder Mountain?
9. The public/private partnership between Clovis, NM and EPCOR has been touted as a better solution than a takeover; would the proponents of such a partnership be willing to tax residents to pay for water improvements as Clovis is doing?
10. Edgewood is largely dependent on Hold Harmless funds for revenue and that source will eventually end; how will the town replace that income?
11. While many have said over the past 20 years that they are in favor of using economic development to make up the shortfall, when it comes to actually doing what's required the consensus always falls apart; can the town prosper on a property tax base augmented by retail GRT?
12. The first town government promised citizens to pursue economic development before property taxes; has that consensus run its course?  

Agendas for upcoming July meetings

Links to files posted at the town website's Agenda Center:

The P&Z preliminary agenda for July 5, 2016 has been published.

P&Z has scheduled a workshop on July 11, 2016; agenda to be posted soon.

A preliminary agenda for the Town Council's next meeting of July 6, 2016 is also available.

The Town has published an agenda for its quarterly budget review workshop on July 16, 2016. 

The Town of Edgewood website is under construction!

During the past few weeks, old pages have been taken down in order to audit the content and links while new information has been added.  The time-frame for completion of the work is 3-5 months.  One of the most welcome changes is that the Agenda and Minutes Center now contains Library Advisory Board and Parks & Recreation Committee meeting information in addition to Town Council and Planning & Zoning information.  

For those who are following the budget process, I have been told to watch for the posting of budgets from years past as well as interim documents for FY 2016-17 as they become available. The new Budget page contains a timeline of this year's budget adoption process and a link to the New Mexico Department of Finance & Administration. 

In the past, there has been some confusion about how the alert system at the Town's website works. There is a general alert system for breaking news, but there are other features which allow users to select e-mail or text notifications about areas of particular interest. You can visit the Notify Me page for more information. 

Infill Annexation hearing:

The Municipal Boundary Commission will hold a hearing on Friday, April 22, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. in the Edgewood Community Center to consider the Town's request to bring more land inside its boundaries.  A copy of the map showing proposed infill is available at the Town's website. 

Agenda and packet for the July 25, 2015 special council meeting

The agenda and packet for tomorrow's special meeting is now available for viewing/downloading from the town's agenda center.  A copy is also available on Drive.  Note the budget adjustment on p. 4 of the packet (a 22 page PDF) which includes an increase of $40,000 for legal expenses. 

1.   AGENDA
2.   RESOLUTION 2015-13 Final Budget FY 2015-16
3.   BUDGET REQUEST RECAPITULATION
4.   CHANGES MADE BETWEEN INTERIM AND FINAL BUDGET
5.   RESOLUTION 2015-14 FINAL QUARTER FINANCIAL REPORT
6.   ITEMIZED FUNDS (pp. 6-17)
18. QUARTERLY REPORT INFORMATION (Bank accounts)
19. RESOLUTION 2015-15 BUDGET ADJUSTMENT
21. NOTES FROM COUNCILORS ON WASTEWATER ORDINANCE

New agendas published for May 9 and May 13:

The agenda for the May 9 budget workshop has been posted; it appears to be identical to the version originally posted for the cancelled May 2 meeting. An agenda for the May 13 regular council meeting has also been published at the town's website. This meeting had been scheduled for May 6 but was cancelled. The latest version of the regular meeting's agenda differs somewhat from the original. I will post a link to the council packet as soon as it is available.  

The May 5, 2015 P&Z meeting was also cancelled, but so far no date has been set for the next meeting. [Edited to add that the next meeting has now been advertised and an agenda published for May 19, 2015. One item on the agenda is a review of the Governmental Conduct Act Compliance Guide which is published by the office of the New Mexico Attorney General.]

Budget workshop and regular council meetings have been cancelled:

The May 2 special meeting (budget workshop) has been rescheduled to May 9.  The May 6 regular council meeting has been rescheduled to May 13. 

Second budget workshop May 2, 2015

An agenda for the second budget workshop of the year is available for viewing/downloading from the town website.  A copy has been placed on Drive. The meeting is scheduled for Saturday, May 2, 2015 at 10:00 AM in the Edgewood Community Center.