Rehab center in shuttered Days Inn could open by new year
John Dunn Bridge reconstruction faces delays
After kicking off their regular meeting on Tuesday (Nov. 15) by approving a heartfelt certificate of remembrance for former Taos Mayor and Councilor Eloy Jeantete, who died Nov. 6 at age 94, Taos County Commissioners heard reports with updated timelines for the completion of the John Dunn Bridge and the opening of a treatment facility in Taos for individuals with substance use disorders.
Rehab
Although the timeline is still up in the air, Jeff Lymburner, chief operating officer for the yetto-be-named drug and alcohol treatment facility planned for the shuttered Days Inn, told commissioners that he is confident that the business, an expansion of the model followed by Darrin’s Place in Española, will open on a limited basis by January. Darrin’s Place was named in memoriam after one of Lymburner’s colleagues, who Lymburner said ultimately “couldn’t resist the pull of drugs and alcohol” and succumbed to a fatal overdose.
County Manager Brent Jaramillo noted that Chris Madrid, community development director of the North Central New Mexico Economic Development District, “brought us this opportunity.”
“They took a run down facility that was literally drug infested. If you walked in there there’s needles everywhere — and now it’s serving community members” in Española, Madrid said, expressing his confidence in Lymburner and the project.
Jaramillo noted that the facility received a Community Development Block Grant to renovate its future home at the former motel located at 1333 Paseo del Pueblo Sur.
“We did put roughly $1.5 million into the purchase of the facility, so we’ve very comfortably met the funds-matching requirement” for the grant, Lymburner said. “But, right now, what we’re hoping we can do is open the facility on a limited basis well before all those renovations are complete. We think to serve this community, frankly, it would be crazy not to get on with it.”
Lymburner told the Taos news that the company has recently made headway with the various building and fire inspection processes that have contributed to the delayed opening, which was originally planned for as early as October.
He noted to commissioners that the facility would, at first, only accept “Medicaid-based” insurance, which he said would be in the interests of the most underserved people in Taos County. Rainbow Bridge
Although several bridge projects were discussed at Tuesday’s meeting, the most high-profile of them was the John Dunn Bridge over the Rio Grande west of Arroyo Hondo. Reconstruction work began in August, but the original projected completion date of November has been delayed due to a number of factors, according to Jason Silva, deputy county manager.
Because of “rain issues” and equipment and materials issues, as well as harder-than-anticipated bedrock that anchors the bridge pilings, work likely won’t be completed until the end of December, Silva said.
“They’re having to go down a little deeper than normal; a lot of that rock was a little bit harder than expected,” Silva said. “Now, [with] the weather, concrete and getting the crane down there, there’s going to be some challenges. We’re looking at Christmas, would be the completion date.”
Peñasco news
The commission also heard several public comments that requested the county ramp up its cooperation with a firewood distribution program in the Peñasco area.
Bonifacio Vasquez, president of the Santa Barbara Land Grant, outlined the firewood project, which benefited from timber cut during fire suppression operations related to the Calf Canyon–Hermits Peak wildfire. Portions of the wood have been stranded in a county-owned yard in Rodarte while insurance liabilities and other details are being worked out.
After noting that District 5 Commissioner Candyce O’Donnell had originally “located 700 cords of firewood decked at Bear Mountain” earlier this year, Vasquez reported that the Carson National Forest “gave 300 cords of this wood to the Santa Barbara and Las Trampas land grants, 200 cords to Picuris Pueblo, and 200 cords to Mora County. As of this last Sunday, we have processed, delivered or provided firewood from Bear Mountain to approximately 170 people.”
Vasquez said that the Taos Community Foundation provided initial funding to engage a forestry company that will process the remaining timber, but asked the county to pony up $30,000 to process 167 cords of fuelwood ($20,000) and deliver 200 cords of firewood ($10,000) to elderly and homebound members of the Peñasco-area community. He also requested that Taos County provide insurance coverage on its end for the wood processing work in the county-owned yard.
With regard to alternative funding sources, he said, “I have been told there is no revenue in the state, and the U.S. Forest Service has not made a final determination on dollars for this firewood project.”
Public commenter Neal Thielke expressed his support for the wood distribution program. Later in the meeting, O’Donnell asked the county’s legal counsel, Randy Autio, “Regarding the insurance for the [county] road yard in Rodarte, what’s the normal amount, $1 million?”
“The key issue is these folks are going to be coming in and doing an activity that could result in injury to someone on our property,” Autio said, confirming that $1 million “is the normal” amount of insurance in such circumstances.
Vasquez indicated that he would like a signed agreement “by the end of this week,” but commissioners gave no indication of their support.
In other Peñasco news, County Manager Brent Jaramillo reported that the county had received the grant agreement by which $3 million in capital outlay funding courtesy of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham will flow to the dilapidated Peñasco Community Center, which is in dire need of repairs.
With the exception of District 2 Commissioner Mark Gallegos, who joined Tuesday’s meeting by the GoToMeeting app but only voted on a motion to certify the Nov. 8 general election results, commissioners voted to approve the grant agreement.