With President-elect Barack Obama proposing hundreds of billions of dollars in aid for infrastructure projects across the country, government entities in Rio Arriba County are scrambling to get in line.
Española Mayor Joseph Maestas said he understands that Obama’s plan could provide between $600 billion and $775 billion nationwide, and the funding would be available in a “use it or lose it fashion.”
It’s intended to fund projects that are ready to go and could be completed within two years, he said.
Just before the holidays, city administrators quickly put together a wish list for a survey by the United States Conference of Mayors (see sidebar).
Maestas said he focused on the city’s established plans and priorities.
“I didn’t want to get too pie-in-the-sky,” Maestas said.
Because of that, at least one of the listed projects (the renovation of Industrial Park Road) already has funding from the state. Others are relatively modest, like $300,000 for a new fire engine and $250,000 for lift-station improvements.
When the City Council discussed the list Dec. 18 (after its submission) Councilor Alfred Herrera called the situation a catch-22. Governments don’t usually draw up engineering plans unless they have money available to build something, so there aren’t many unfunded projects that are designed and ready to go, Herrera said. He cited the North McCurdy road-enhancement project, which made the list.
“It’s not designed,” Herrera said. “It’s not really ready to go.”
Acting City Manager Veronica Albin said she raised that issue with the North Central New Mexico Economic Development District, and was told that jobs created by a project’s preliminary phases — such as engineering and surveying — can be included in proposals.
Herrera said to take advantage of the situation, the city should consider using existing funding to plan and design priority projects.
“Otherwise, we’re gonna find ourselves behind the eight-ball, similar to how we are today,” Herrera said.
Maestas said the details of Obama’s plan are still under discussion, but there will likely be a “big fight” over how the money is disbursed. Mayors will want the money to go directly to cities, without the state acting as a pass-through fiscal agent, he said.
“We’re asking for direct funding,” Maestas said.
County Priorities
Rio Arriba County will have a list of stimulus projects ready in the coming week, County Commissioner Elias Coriz said.
“We are finalizing our priorities for ongoing projects, mostly bridges and road projects up north that we’d like to get funded,” Coriz said. “We’ll send our priorities list to the New Mexico Association of Counties, and they will pass it up to (the National Association of Counties). We’ll finalize that by the first week of the new year.”
Each county will lobby for their proposed projects, Coriz said, but counties are ultimately at the mercy of the state.
“The funding comes to the state,” Coriz said. “Then state agencies like the (Highway Department) distributes the money. The state makes the (final) projects priorities list.”
County Commissioner Felipe Martinez said the Health Commons, which is in its first phase of construction, will be a priority project on the list and noted the County also needs to totally replace two bridges on a school bus route near Cañones.
“We have projects ready to go,” Martinez said. “We have a bridge that needs repair on County Road 142 where it crosses El Rito Creek. That will go out to bid in the next few weeks. We also have money for a County Archive Center that is appropriated but we haven’t spent the money yet.”
Asked why the County tends to design and plan projects for which the Commission has not yet secured funding to complete, commissioners said there is usually no other choice.
“The problem is that our budget is not large enough to allow for us to appropriate the full amount for all projects,” Martinez explained. “We have so many projects in all three districts that securing the necessary amount is not always possible. We don’t have all the money (that would be required). Also, we go after state funding, and typically — especially this year — our projects won’t get the full amount (requested). So we have to go back and get more funding in subsequent years.”
Martinez added that state capital outlays come with strict requirements.
Caught Off-Guard
No Española School District administrators had heard of federal dollars available for school capital projects until asked by a SUN reporter Dec. 18.
“Where do we sign up?” Superintendent David Cockerham asked. “No, seriously, can you find out?”
District Projects Manager Paul Salas said the District could use additional funding for the long-delayed Alcalde Elementary reconstruction, renovations at Velarde and Hernandez elementary schools and wastewater treatment systems at several elementary schools.
Both administrators said the District has yet to get a start in applying for funds.
City Requests
President-elect Barack Obama is proposing an economic stimulus package that would provide hundreds of billions of dollars in federal aid for infrastructure projects. Projects are supposed to be “ready to go” and capable of completion within two years.
The city of Española submitted the following wish list:
• Incubator building for economic development — $2 million, 60 jobs
• Replacement fire engine — $300,000, 0 jobs
• Railroad Avenue extension and realignment with Española Main Street — $1.5 million, 40 jobs
• Industrial Park Road reconstruction and drainage improvements — $3.5 million, 105 jobs
• North McCurdy Road surface and storm drainage enhancements — $5 million, 150 jobs
• Improvements to KDCE lift station — $250,000, 10 jobs
• New water storage tank to serve regional water partners for domestic use and fire suppression — $500,000, 15 jobs
• Replacement of water storage tank for domestic use and fire suppression — $500,000, 15 jobs
• Restoration of Well 9 to service by installing horizontal wells — $1 million, 30 jobs
• Water treatment system for uranium contamination — $1.2 million, 36 jobs
• North Prince Drive extensions of water and wastewater services — $2 million, 60 jobs
• Installation of sanitary sewer lines to residents utilizing individual septic systems within city limits — $2 million, 120 jobs
• Replacement of west side sanitary sewer lines, original installation 1950s — $5 million, 150 jobs
Total: $24.75 million, 791 jobs
Nationwide, cities submitted more than 15,221 projects totaling more than $96.6 billion. To view the complete list, visit www.usmayors.org.
The survey is still in progress, and it will join lists being compiled by the National Association of Counties, the National League of Cities and other entities.
“There’s gonna be a lot of wish lists,” Española Mayor Joseph Maestas said.
Maestas said the job-creation estimates included with each project were based on a simple formula assuming approximately 15 new jobs for every $500,000 of project funding.