COUNTY News:

The Los Alamos County Council affirmed its commitment Tuesday evening to give full support and immediate attention to a new Council goal recently adopted – the creation of the Manhattan Project National Historical Park here in Los Alamos – by setting up a new Council ad hoc committee devoted to the project.

They are looking for representatives from Los Alamos or White Rock who are interested in serving in one of six committee positions that are open: three business community (retail, hospitality, service) and three community-at-large members. These six members will be appointed by the three Councilors serving on the committee (Chair Kristin Henderson, Vice Chair David Izraelevitz and Councilor James Chrobocinski). Other members of the committee not open to the public for application include representatives for Historical Preservation, Chamber of Commerce, LANL and the DOE.

The purpose of the Committee is to identify and review the various issues that must be addressed in order to prepare Los Alamos County for the opening of the Park. Their charge is to advise the Council on the myriad list of challenges and opportunities associated with the development of this park within Los Alamos.

Applicants wishing to be considered for appointment to the Committee are asked to send a one or two-page letter to the Council with their name, address, phone number and e-mail address, along with their employer (if applicable) and any civic organizations or relevant project background. In addition, they are asked to submit information about “why” they would like to serve on the Committee.

Letters may be e-mailed to countycouncil@lacnm.us or hand-carried to the County Council’s office, 1000 Central Ave, Suite 350, inside the Municipal Building. The deadline for letters of interest is 5 p.m. Friday, April 17.

To review the Scope of Work for the Committee that was discussed at the County Council meeting March 31, applicants may visit www.losalamosnm.us and link on the “Manhattan Project National Historical Park Committee” link on the “Projects” page. Applicants are encouraged to address their strengths or expertise in contributing to the accomplishment of tasks outlined in the Scope of Work when submitting their letter of interest, in order to assist Councilors in determining a wide cross-section of the local and business community who could best serve on the committee.

Work on this Committee is expected to be intensive and expedited, and applicants should be prepared to devote a significant portion of time to project meetings and work assignments outside of the meetings deemed necessary because of tight deadlines for creation of the park, which is expected to be open by January 2016.

The Committee is expected to meet frequently over the next nine months and will be led by a County Manager-appointed Project Manager. This employee will be dedicated full-time to guide the work of the committee, work with the Councilors and coordinate with others at the local, state and federal government level, and will be tasked with taking the necessary steps to ensure the successful completion of the project within National Park Service mandated timelines or deadlines.

Because of the workload that needs to be accomplished in a very short amount of time, subcommittees are expected to be formed over the next few months and additional community or County staff members will be recruited or assigned to work on specific tasks on a short duration, reporting their findings back to the primary Ad Hoc Committee, who will then consider all input and report to the full Council with their recommendations.

Applicants not selected for the Ad Hoc Committee may still be called upon to serve on subcommittees and if interested in this option, applicants should indicate their desire to the Councilors when submitting a letter of interest.

All Committee meetings will be open to the public and advertised in accordance with the Council’s 2015 Open Meetings Resolution. Meeting agendas, minutes and progress updates to the community will be posted on the Projects webpage for the new Park, which is expected to be operational by the end of April.

For more information, visit http://www.losalamosnm.us/news/Pages/ApplyfortheManhattanNatlHistlPkCommittee.aspx.