By HARRY BURGESS(Part 1 of a 2-part series: Now you see us…now you don’t.)
Part 1. Now you see us…
With the County Fair & Rodeo behind us, regular afternoon rain showers bringing us cooler weather, and students returning to school, it begins to feel like autumn might be just around the corner. For those of us working in local government, however, the shift in seasonal work won’t happen for a few more months. Road work on Central Avenue proceeds, the grass in the parks continues to need mowing, and a variety of new projects are just getting started with programming and design. I thought this might be a good time to recap for residents where we’ve been and where we’re headed by the end of the year.
One of the highlights of this busy summer has been the advent of new Art in Public Places. After having several projects in the works and built last year, 2016 has been a year for art dedications. “Solar Tree” was dedicated in June in the west Plaza of the Municipal Building, and it’s not uncommon to see residents and visitors using the solar power of this unique artwork to power up a smartphone or tablet, especially on a warm, sunny afternoon. The solar panels on the tree “leaves” turn the art into a useful power source for anyone to plug into. “Nexus” was relocated from its spotat the Y entering Los Alamos downtown to a new, more visible home at the Golf Course, with its community room and restaurant “Cottonwood on the Greens” gathering more attention and use this summer from residents and visitors alike.
Coming up soon (Aug. 31 at 3 p.m. at the White Rock Visitor Center) will be the dedication of the beautiful large pottery replicas crafted by the talented artists of San Ildefonso Pueblo – a great addition to SR4 and the White Rock Visitor Center. The roadside pottery displays complement the new bus shelter added this Spring for the Bandelier National Monument shuttles operated by Atomic City Transit. Across SR4, work continues to renovate the White Rock Senior Center, former White Rock Library and Activity Center spaces. When they are completed, they’ll join a list of recent improvements funded and constructed for White Rock as part of the Master Plan for the area.
The White Rock Library and newly renovated Youth Activity Center – two great assets we celebrated just a year ago – continue to see an increase in users, and I hear nothing but great comments from White Rock residents about how pleased they are with these new additions and improvements. Also being considered to add to White Rock’s Pinon Park is a new Splash Pad – it’s one of 11 projects moving through pre-conceptual design right now, along with plans to upgrade and add to the ball fields for Overlook Park. Our project consultant Dekker Perich Sabatini will have drawings of the proposed Splash Pad and ball fields available before and after the pottery dedication on August 31. The entire list of projects – many which include Los Alamos locations too, such as tennis court additions, golf course improvements, a new Recreation Center, Ice rink improvements, new Indoor Ice Rink and new Multi-generational pool – will be featured later onAugust 31 in a public meeting that starts at 5:30 p.m. in Fuller Lodge. I encourage our residents to weigh in now with their feedback. The projects go to the Council at the end of the year for discussion about placing them before voters for funding in a bond election in 2017.
While Western Area paving, Knecht Street road repairs and Central Avenue construction were in the spotlight with motorists this summer,other kinds of construction projects not as visible to the community were underway, too. For example, the next phase of the Canyon Rim Trail is in progress, connecting the first portion of the trail on the south side of NM502 from the fire station to the Smith’s Marketplace. This has been a highly anticipated project and one that the entire community can enjoy, with great views of the canyon and an easy, paved surface designed to accommodate a variety of users.
On a similar note, if you’ve had the chance to explore our trails this summer, you may have come across our Open Space Specialist Eric Peterson and a hard working group of local volunteers, including the Youth Conservation Corps. They just wrapped up work to add several miles of new trails to our already outstanding network, including the Tent Rocks Trail and Deer Trap-Rendija Connector.Finally, a different kind of construction – home remodeling – will get underway this winter on nine homes qualified for assistance under the County’s Home Renewal Program, administered under a contract with the Los Alamos Housing Partnership (LAHP). Funds totaling $195,200 will be leveraged with other state or national sources for LAHP to hire contractors for home improvements ranging from window replacement to exterior stucco and siding repair.
These are just a few examples that demonstrate how Los Alamos County is moving forward in different and exciting ways. In Part 2, I’ll address some of the projects underway that might not be as visible to the community, but which arealso important as we continue to make progress on the community’s long-range goals.As always, if you have any concerns or questions, my door is always open to visit with you. Send me an e-mail at lacmanager@lacnm.us or stop by my office (Suite 350, Municipal Building).