Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Council considers more Cuba Road-area work

Argen Duncan El Defensor Chieftain Reporter

During the first of three public hearings on the issue, the Socorro City council discussed applying for a Community Development Block Grant to continue work in the Cuba Road area.

The hearing for public comment was held during the Monday, Aug. 18, council meeting in City Hall.

Finance Director Mable Gonzales, who lives in the Cuba area, spoke for residents and asked that the city apply for money to continue drainage work. The area flooded during heavy 2006 rains.

The city used the last cycle's Community Development Block Grant to pay for an improvement plan and is beginning work with the funds left.

Gonzales was the only member of the public to bring a request.

Utilities Director Jay Santillanes said requirements to receive a grant include holding at least one public hearing, doing a project in an area with at least 51 percent of residents having a low to moderate income and finishing the last grant project by the November deadline. Also, the project must be one the public requested.

Santillanes said the whole city doesn't meet income requirements according to the last census, so city officials would have to survey a particular smaller area to determine if it met the standards.

"The areas of application are community infrastructure," Santillanes said.

The utilities director named such areas as housing, drainage and property acquisition.

Entities can ask for up to $500,000, and applications are due in January. Decisions on funds are made in the spring.

Santillanes said the committee members who award the grants like phased projects, but one phase must be complete before an entity applies for another.

Mayor Ravi Bhasker said the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has about $14.8 million for small towns. They usually get the requested money if they meet the threshold.

Entities rank higher for more public hearings, bilingual hearings, completed engineering work and matching money, Bhasker said.

Another hearing is planned next week.

Also, the council awarded a bid of $344,600 to Salls Brothers Construction of Albuquerque for the beginning of drainage work in the Cuba Road area.

Santillanes said the engineering is done for Phase I and $500,000 of work beyond it. He also said the state Department of Finance and Administration would approve the work.

Cody Sipes of Dennis Engineering Co. said the business had never worked with Salls Brothers, but he contacted references and didn't find anything negative. The project will have a 60-day substantial completion, and then a final completion date.

At the meeting, the council also awarded a bid of more than $71,000 to Salls Brothers for drainage work on Bullock Avenue at the intersections of North Ake Avenue and B Court.

Santillanes said the intersections were prioritized in terms of need of repairs.

"Those were the worst areas," he said of the Ake and B Court intersections.

The utilities director said the Cuba-area and Bullock projects would take place during the same period, with stress on the Cuba work so the city could meet the deadline to apply for another Community Development Block Grant.

aduncan@dchieftain.com

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