Special Meeting wrap-up for November 6, 2025

In yet another meeting consisting primarily of a closed session, the Town Commissioners voted to (1) advertise the position of Town Manager for 14 days with extensions made if needed. They also (2) voted to reject an offer to settle the Berg lawsuit, and instead maintain the town’s “neutral” status. The Berg matter, which involves former Town Commissioner Jerry Powers, is one of two major legal messes in which the Town Commissioners have voted to spend public funds to meddle in private lawsuits. Town government has no business taking sides in HOA disputes. That goes double when one or more members of the Governing Body are parties to the dispute. This one could and should have been taken off the town’s books. If it continues past January 1, 2026 the expenses and trouble will only increase. (3) No action was taken on appointment of an interim manager which usually means that the Town Clerk becomes the statutory official in charge of administrative matters. 

We were warned; five town managers in four years.

Former Mayor John Bassett called this one as soon as the change of government scheme was announced. By the end of 2025, the Commission/Manager government will have racked up five Town Managers in its first four years of existence with at least two, and as now seems likely, three interim managers. The two managers hired as regular appointments resigned unexpectedly. Finding someone willing and qualified to take on the job will be difficult: Edgewood’s Commission/Manager government has justly earned its reputation as a bad employer. 

Voters were promised something new and better. What we got was cronyism on steroids and a revolving door in the town office. When the going got tough, three of the original five Town Commissioners jumped ship. However, with some new faces on the Commission, a measure of stability appears to be returning. Whether or not the tentative improvements will continue depends on the outcome of tomorrow’s election.  

Town Managers to date:

1. Kay Davis: Former town administrator appointed as interim following the swearing in of the five new Governing Body Commissioners pending hiring of a permanent manager.
2. Scott Sensanbauer July 25, 2022-November 2022
3. Jerret Perry-Acting Manager appointed upon the dismissal of Sensanbauer (November 2022-July 2023; served as interim pending the hiring of a permanent manager.)
4. Nina McCracken was appointed in July 2023. She was the town’s longest serving Manager to date at the time of her resignation on October 28, 2025. 
5. Appointment of an Interim Town Manager to be discussed at the November 6, 2025 Special Meeting of the Town Commission. ETA: In the absence of a Town Manager or formal appointment of an Interim Manager, the Town Clerk or that officer’s designee assumes responsibility for taking on the Manager’s role. It appears that the Town Commission does not intend to hire a Manager or formally appoint an Interim Manager until after the new Commission is sworn in.  

Special meeting of the Town commission called-and cancelled

 The state of disorder continues. Make of it what you will. 

August 16, 2025 Town Commission Meeting Summary

The meeting lasted just over an hour and a half and can be viewed on YouTube. It was more or less routine with the only remarkable information coming from several “asides” during the course of the meeting:

• Commissioner Murillo, who was appointed to fill a vacancy, announced that he will file as a candidate in the upcoming election. 
• Clerk-Treasurer interviews had been conducted earlier in the day and were reported to have gone well; the interim Clerk announced during the meeting that she had withdrawn her application. Instead, she plans to remain in her current position.
• The AYSO storage shed at Venus Park was approved with some adjustments following admonitions from the Town Manager about making the project compliant with state law. (Unlike in the town’s early years, no “wigs on the green” moments erupted at the mention of “anti-donation” considerations.)
• The latest scheme for organizing the Parks and Recreation Department is to separate responsibilities between two employees with one to focus on parks and the other on trails.  
• There will be adult beverages available at the upcoming Labor Day Bash. The vendor who appeared before the Commission suggested scaling back multi-day celebrations due to attendance patterns.  
• The Lodgers Tax Advisory Board recommendations were approved with little discussion. I cannot say with certainty exactly what was done as the specifics of the applications were not made available to the public.  
• The Commission approved payment of certain unspecified legal fees. Apparently this was the result of the policy allowing Commissioners to freelance on obtaining legal advice. Commissioner Anaya offered to pay it himself, as it was he who had incurred the expense.  The Town Manager informed the Commission that either way, the situation will eventually show up as a finding on an upcoming audit. So, the taxpayers will foot the bill for Anaya’s individual legal research. Anaya had announced his intent to file for re-election at an earlier meeting.  
• Yet another proposal for access to Section 32 has been abandoned. However, don’t despair: town staff has been instructed to look for another option. This is another example of the town’s history of annex it now; we can sort the details later.  
• The roads update item was deferred: presumably this would have been where the public heard an explanation of the more than 400 K paid to Albuquerque Asphalt. (The supporting documentation in the packet shows vendors and amounts paid out. I found no information on income for the same period.)
• This meeting, originally scheduled for August 12, was delayed because the agenda was not posted in a timely manner. The ostensible reason for moving meetings from Wednesdays to Tuesdays was to allow more people who attend Wednesday Night Bible Study/Prayer meetings to attend town meetings. Given the fact that only a handful of people routinely attend town meetings, it might be time to return to a more sensible schedule. This would allow more time at the end of the week prior to regular meetings for agendas to be finalized and more complete packets published.
• The Commission will be hosting an appreciation BBQ for employees just as preparations for the next elections are getting underway. Despite the good intentions, the timing is not ideal. Given the ominous rumblings on social media, Commissioners should be ready for threats of complaints filed under the Governmental Conduct Act. 
• The multiple ongoing investigations hinted at earlier are still ongoing. It appears that tactics similar to those used against the Mayor and Town Council from 2019-21 are coming into play again with rapid-fire complaints to the state about finances along with attempts of various kinds to intimidate employees and other town officials.

 

August 16, 2025 Special Town Commission Meeting

The meeting originally scheduled for August 12 was cancelled: a packet for Saturday’s special meeting is available at the ToE website. The home page contains a link for watching those meetings which are live-streamed.  

Items of interest on the agenda

• Payment of legal fees: There are several items which may pertain to this agenda item in the bills paid section of the packet. (Six results can be found using the search criterion “P.C.”) 
• Draft Minutes for the Special Meeting of July 24, 2025: (Campbell Ranch Subdivision Appeal. The draft appears to have been prepared by legal counsel.)
• Draft Minutes for the Special Meeting of August 7, 2025: (Town Manager and lease negotiations for Section 32; the minutes indicate that Commissioner Milligan’s reason for not participating in the first two of the three listed closed session items is related to a tort claim he has filed against the Town,)
• Private property lease negotiations for access to Section 32: (This item did not appear on the published agenda for August 12; ongoing negotiations may have been the reason for rescheduling.)

Page Update: Campbell Ranch

I have updated the Campbell Ranch page to incorporate dates with brief descriptions of the latest decisions by Edgewood’s Town and P&Z Commissions. You will find a link to the Order of Decision signed on July 31, 2025 posted at the Town of Edgewood’s website. I would encourage anyone who wishes to keep a copy for future reference to save the document promptly as content at the town’s website tend to appear and disappear without notice. 

This usually happens after elections make significant changes in the makeup of the governing body as newly elected town officials often try to leave their mark on the website in the mistaken belief that the changes will be easy. Given that four of the five Town Commission positions will be on the ballot in November, expect more changes following January 1, 2026. Save any town documents of interest before that date. I have posted a summary of the decision in an earlier post.  

Today’s special meeting on the Campbell Ranch subdivision appeal hearing.

I don’t see any updates or changes to the packet or schedule at this time. The meeting still appears to be scheduled for 3:00 pm, but I see that the YouTube placeholder thumbnail says 4:00 pm.  I’ve looked at the options for overflow viewing, and the town has made some attempt to accommodate the public. 

Whether or not it is adequate is another matter. The town has had at least since July 2, 2025 when notice of the hearing was posted to adjust the schedule. Did no one in the Planning Office think to consult the town calendar to see if the overflow room was available either then or since? Why was notice that the room would be unavailable posted only this week? 

The town’s planning director, Brad Hill, frequently cites his past work experience at the NMAG’s office when instructing the public, the Town Manager and the Town and P&Z Commissions on matters pertaining to to Open Meeting Act compliance. It appears that the town is relying on his expertise for managing this hearing as well. 

Upcoming town meetings

There will be a joint meeting of the Edgewood Governing Body and the Planning & Zoning Commission on October 17, 2016. The only substantive item on the agenda is a training session on parliamentary procedure.

A preliminary agenda for the Edgewood Town Council meeting scheduled for October 19 has been published as well.

Please visit the Agendas & Minutes Center at the town's website to obtain the final October 19 agenda and meeting packet which should be available by October 14th or 15th.

Today's special council meeting agenda

The agenda for today's special council meeting scheduled for 1:00 pm today is available at the town website, and a copy is also available on Drive. 

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.

April 11 budget workshop & April 15 regular Edgewood Town Council meeting

The first budget workshop for FY 2015-16 is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. tomorrow (April 11, 2015) and will be held at the Edgewood Community Center.  The meeting agenda is available at the town website.  I didn't find any information posted there today other than the agenda. 

The information for the next regular meeting of April 15, 2015 has not been posted in the agenda center although paper copies of the agenda have been seen in the usual places around town. I do not expect the latest GRT report to be available in time for the meeting since it's usually dated on the 16th or 17th of the month.

It appears that an unsuccessful attempt has been made to upload a partial audio file for the April 1, 2015 Town Council Hearing.  I will contact the Town Clerk on Monday to find out more about the audio and the council packet information. 

Budget workshop

Edgewood's first budget workshop for FY 2016 is scheduled for Saturday April 11, 2015 at 10:00 am. Location TBA.

Upcoming Edgewood Council Agendas:

The agenda for the Saturday January 17, 2015 Town Hall Meeting is available for viewing/downloading in the Agenda Center at the town's website.  The preliminary agenda for the regular council meeting of January 21, 2015 is also available.  Copies of the special meeting and regular meeting agendas are available on Drive. 

The latest (maybe) draft Subdivision and Zoning Ordinances:

I was able to get copies of the draft Subdivision and Zoning Ordinances which were provided at the April 26 joint Council/Commission workshop because John Bassett was kind enough to share what he received from the town in reply to his IPRA request. The meeting focused on proposed changes to the Zoning Ordinance. 

However, please note that this draft does NOT contain the suggestions made durung the April 26 meeting. (The Subdivision ordinance changes were the focus of an earlier joint workshop and, therefore, the items discussed at that meeting should be reflected in this latest draft.) The mayor made a number of suggestions regarding different zone categories on April 26; one important change which was discussed was the possibility of creating mini-master planned areas. There was also discussion of the location within town boundaries in which adult themed businesses would be allowed as a permissive use. 

Check back often for updates which I'll post both as regular entries and in the sidebar at the upper right side of the page! 

Council packets from last Saturday's budget workshop:

I was able to obtain paper copies of the handouts during the budget workshop, but am still working on getting the latest draft versions of proposed ordinances.  I've scanned and uploaded the budget documents to Drive. 

Town Hall Meeting Saturday Afternoon!

The Town of Edgewood's governing body will hold a special council meeting Saturday April 12, 2014 at 3:00 pm in the cafeteria of the Edgewood Middle School.  The agenda can be found at the town website's agenda center, and the paid advertisement in this week's Independent reads as follows: 

"CITIZENS WILL BE GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO DISCUSS ORGANIZATION OF A SCHOOL DISTRICT."

Four new agendas published:

Joint meeting of the Council and Commission to review proposed changes to town ordinances:  Saturday April 12, 2014 at 9:00am in the Edgewood Community Center.

Special meeting of the Edgewood Town Council: "Organization of a School District" Saturday April 12, 2014 at 3:00pm in the cafeteria of the Edgewood Middle School.

Joint meeting of the Council and Commission for ethics training:  Wednesday April 16, 2014 at 5:30pm in the Edgewood Community Center. 

Regular Council Meeting on Wednesday April 16, 2014 at 6:30pm in the Edgewood Community Center.

Town hall meeting location announced:

Town Hall Meeting
Location: Cafeteria of the Edgewood Middle School
Time: 3:00 PM
Date: Saturday April 12, 2014

The town clerk is working on the exact wording for the meeting's agenda; I will post the link when it's available.

Two special meetings scheduled by the Town of Edgewood for Saturday April 12, 2014:

Saturday April 12 at 9:00 am: A joint meeting between the Council and P&Z at the Edgewood Community Center to discuss proposed ordinance changes.

******

Saturday April 12 at 3:00 pm: A Town Hall meeting regarding formation of an Edgewood School District: Location to be announced. Edgewood Middle School Cafeteria.