Signpost ECRWSS NEW MEXICO a N I NDEPENDENT L OCAL N EWSPAPER S INCE 1988 • VOL
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SANDOVAL PLACITAS PRSRT-STD U.S. Postage Paid BERNALILLO Placitas, NM CORRALES Permit #3 SANDOVAL Postal Customer or COUNTY Current Resident SignPOSt ECRWSS NEW MEXICO A N I NDEPENDENT L OCAL N EWSPAPER S INCE 1988 • VOL. 31 / NO . 2 • FEBRUARY 2019 • FREE IVEN Lente tapped to lead House D ILL water, agriculture committee —B ~BILL DIVEN When the Legislature convened on January 15, Rep. Derrick Lente found himself with greater respon- sibilities and a new title: committee chairman. Lente, a Democrat from Sandia Pueblo whose district includes much of Bernalillo, now heads the House Agriculture and Water Resources Committee. As such, he'll be riding herd on statewide Derrick Lente bills with local implications like those dealing with domesticated and wild horses. "It's an honor to be in your second term and be named to chair a committee," Lente told the Signpost. He's also finding out being a committee chairman carries a lot of extra work, he Newly elected Sandoval County officials (from left) Commissioner Katherine Bruch, added. Commissioner Michael Meeks, Assessor Linda Gallegos, Probate Judge Charles Aguilar and He succeeds Rep. Bealquin “Bill” Gomez of Doña Ana Sheriff Jesse James Casaus await being sworn into office during ceremonies on December 31. County who lost the Democratic primary to Raymundo "Ray" Lara. Lara went on to win the November election and now holds a seat on Lente's committee. County pulls out of enforcing Lente, an attorney, raises alfalfa and Black Angus cattle. He resigned his position on the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District Board of Directors to avoid potential conflicts of inter- private property covenants est with his legislative position. Chairing the MRGCD board ~SIGNPOST STAFF for several years was a good crash course for leading the com- After spending 95 minutes on a zoning January 17 commission meeting. "This is mittee, Lente said. appeal that still may take a judge to sort something it's not even legal for us to do… The big change this session is having Democratic Gov. out, Sandoval County Commission Chair- It's us enforcing the HOA ordinances, and Michelle Lujan Grisham working with the Democratic Legisla- man David Heil had one wish. we can't even do that." ture after eight years of Republican Gov. Susana Martinez's "Get us the heck out of CCRs," he said in By Signpost deadline, no lawsuit had been administration. That led to creating what has been dubbed the a tone both friendly and exasperated. "This filed in the Placitas case. "rocket docket," a revival of bills from past sessions passed is insanity." In other action, on January 17, the com- with bipartisan support only to be vetoed by Martinez. On January 17, his wish came true. mission's sole meeting for the month: Among those is Lente's House Bill 250 requiring public and CCRs would be the covenants, condi- • Commissioners re-elected Heil to a sec- charter schools with significant Indian populations to identify tions, and restrictions. They accompany ond year as commission chair and elected ways to close educational achievement gaps. An identical bill land and home sales and subdivision devel- Commissioner Jay Block vice-chair. last session passed the House 44-21 and Senate 34-5 with Mar- opments and tell purchasers what they can • Newly elected Commissioners Kather- tinez calling it an unfunded mandate in her veto message. and cannot do. Regulations can cover ine Bruch of Placitas and Michael Meek of The bill, as proposed, directs the schools to apply for state, everything from home appearance and Rio Rancho were welcomed to the panel federal, and private grants aimed at Native American and at- landscaping to whether you can have an • The county's independent auditor risk and disadvantaged students. outdoor clothesline or a pet pig. reported the 2017-18 fiscal year audit was Among Lente's other bills, he's expecting controversy over A homeowners' association (HOA) board filed with few problems beyond a major renaming Columbus Day as Indigenous Peoples Day, although is often is the first referee in CCR disputes. debt not being properly recorded. "The it wouldn't affect observance of the national holiday here. A But being based on civil contracts, conflicts findings are the fewest we've had in many memorial he's sponsoring would request the State Transporta- that can't be resolved amicably may end up years," said Farley Vener, president of the tion Commission rename the U.S. Highway 550 bridge over the in District Court. accounting firm Hinkle + Landers, P.C. Rio Grande in Bernalillo to the proper name of one of the In the December case that irked Heil, the • By a 3-2 vote commissioners authorized town's early Italian residents. commission ruled against the Anasazi a letter of support for House Bill 53 cur- In 1955 the predecessor of the commission, at the request of Trails HOA and in favor of homeowners rently pending in the Legislature. If the Legislature, named the bridge for George Rinaldi Sr. wanting to use their Placitas home for approved, the bill would phase in, over although a formal dedication with a plaque didn't occur until short-term vacation rentals. three years, a $100 annual fee paid by pet- 1986. The plaque has since disappeared. Sandoval County, however, is, or was, food manufacturers for each label variety of The Rinaldi family has told Lente that the first Rinaldi in one of the few New Mexico counties to put food and treats sold in the state. New Mexico was only called George because people had diffi- itself in the middle of that contentious Money raised would underwrite animal culty with his given name. So, if all works out, the bridge process. That role is a holdover from a shelter spay-and-neuter programs across recently widened to six lanes will be known as the Giovanni model ordinance the county adopted in the state. Proponents said the fee, if passed Giorgio Rinaldi Bridge. 1988. on to consumers, would cost them $2 a year Lente said his capitol office in Room 313 is open to visitors, "It's interesting that this was hid away while opponents argued it would drive up and he can be reached at [email protected]. from past history in our Comprehensive the cost of spay-and-neuter procedures. —continued on page 5 Zoning Ordinance," Heil said during the Read the Signpost online at www.sandovalsignpost.com PAGE 2 • FEBRUARY 2019 • SANDOVAL SIGNPOST • SERVING THE COMMUNITY SINCE 1988 CONTENTS OPENING SOON . Up Front—1 Sandoval Arts—20 Business—7 Health—22 Around Town-9 Calendar—24 Real People-10 Senior Center—25 Night Sky—12 Youth-26 CORRALES Public Safety—13 Animal News—26 Gauntlet—16 Classified Ads—28 History-19 Stereogram—31 HEMPORIUM ART (by local artists) MAIL: CBD (for people & pets) Signpost, P. O. Box 889 Placitas, NM 87043 HEMP (clothing & oils) PHONE: (505) 867-3810 WEBSITE: www.sandovalsignpost.com & MORE EMAIL: [email protected] CALENDAR: [email protected] ADVERTISING: [email protected] DEADLINE: Open Daily 9:00 -8:00 The 20th of each month, prior to month of interest DROP BOX: 505.898.5252 On the wall inside The Merc, at Homestead Village, 221 Highway 165, Placitas, Two miles east off I-25 4484 Corrales Rd, Corrales Exit 242. SIGNPOST STAFF: PUBLISHERS: Barb and Ty Belknap EDITOR / BUSINESS MANAGER: Ty Belknap EDITOR / CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Barb Belknap FEBRUARRYY 2019 NEWS EDITOR: Bill Diven COPY EDITOR/PROOFREADER: Evan Belknap LIZARD RODEO LOUNGE ART FEATURE WRITER: Oli Robbins STARTING AROUND 7 NIGHT SKY FEATURE WRITER: Charlie Christmann MASTHEAD & DESIGN SUPPORT: Gary Priester 1 BILL HEARNE.coountry CARTOONIST: Rudi Klimpert (in memorium) 2 TODD TIJERINAA. AD SALES: Office Staff acoustic blues 7 OPEN JAM. WEBMASTER: Bunny Bowen hossted by DeRangers 8 ALEX MARRYYOL. DISTRIBUTION: Office Staff acoustic blues 9 RICK HAATTFIELD.blues to ballads Sandoval Signpost is published monthly by 14 RONALDO BACCA.flflamenco guitar Belknap Publishing, Inc, P. O. Box 889, Placitas, NM 15 CHILL HOUSE WW/ HILLARRYY SMITH.blues 87043. Bulk postage is paid at Placitas, New Mexico. 16 KITTY JO CREEKK.bluegrass As a local newspaper of general circulation for 21 OPEN JAM.hossted by DeRangers Placitas, Bernalillo, and southeastern Sandoval 22 THE CUMBERLAANDS.folk rock County, we invite readers to submit stories, ideas, 23 RON CROWDER.rock n soul articles, letters, poetry, and photographs of artwork 28 OPEN JAM.hossted by DeRangers for publishing consideration. We welcome advertising of interest to our readership area. Ad and submission 925 S. CAMINO DEL PUEBLO · BERNALILLO, NM TUESDAAYYS IVVAANN RANE.fifingerstyle guitar deadline is the twentieth of the month prior to 505.867.1700 · RANGECAFE.COM the publication month. This issue of the Sandoval Signpost has been mailed to every home in Placitas (2,600 direct-mail), and delivered for free pickup at over forty locations in the Placitas-Bernalillo-Corrales and southeastern Sandoval County area, totalling about 5,600 copies. Copyright © 2019, by Belknap Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. The opinions expressed in articles appearing in the Sandoval Signpost are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the publishers. The Sandoval Signpost is printed with soy ink on recycled newsprint. SUBSCRIPTIONS—--$35/YEAR, 12 ISSUES: dine in or carry ouut Mail address and check to: Signpost, P. O. Box 889, Placitas, NM 87043. Or call the office———505-867-3810 ———to pay over the phone with a credit/debit card or for further information. FR8HOUSE.COM 200 S. CAMINO DEL PUEBLO · BERNALILLO,, NM Sandoval Signpost • Serving the community since 1988 • FEBRUARY 2019 • Page 3 FILL YOUR CART WITH: Boar’s Head Deli Meats Artisanal Cheeses Choose from over 800+ Fine Wines Cold Beer and Growlers and Spirits Fresh Produce and Fresh Meat Sage Bakery Bread Bakery Desserts and other Groceries Located in Homestead Village, just 2 miles east of I-25 at 221 Highway 165 Open 9AM to 8PM • Sundays 9AM to 6PM • (505) 867-8661 SHOP THE MERC PAGE 4 • FEBRUARY 2019 • SANDOVAL SIGNPOST • SERVING THE COMMUNITY SINCE 1988 from page 1 UP -–––Legislature One horse-related bill that may make its way FRONT to Lente's committee was introduced in the Senate by Sen.