NMSU seeks millions for renovations on Nov. 7

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A bond question on the Nov. 7 general election ballot would help New Mexico State University continue its quest to update campus facilities. Bond B would allocate nearly $118 million for capital improvements at state colleges, universities and other schools, according to a news release from NMSU, which would get $22.9 million. “Some of our buildings are 50 years old and must be updated in order to best serve the students,” said Ben Woods, senior vice president for planning, physical resources and university relations at NMSU. The university has worked in the past few years to build new dormitories, update historic buildings and improve athletics facilities. Continue Reading

County won’t halt growth, will study flood issues

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Doña Ana County commissioners voted Tuesday against a temporary ban on development in and around arroyos. Recognizing that there have been problems this summer, commissioners did direct staff to study the issue further, according to the Las Cruces Sun-News. Staff will present a report to the commission at its only meeting in December, so commissioners can determine whether they need to change ordinances or policies or improve flood-control infrastructure. Many residents spoke at the meeting in favor of a construction ban, while some in the development community opposed it, according to the newspaper. Commissioner Oscar Vasquez Butler proposed the temporary ban in the wake of this summer’s flooding. Continue Reading

Richardson helping out state Democratic Party

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While he’s refusing debates and visiting the East Coast, Gov. Bill Richardson is also trying to help out New Mexico’s Democratic Party. In an e-mail sent Tuesday to supporters, he announced that he’ll give any contribution that comes to his campaign in the next 10 days to the New Mexico Democratic Party. He’ll also match all contributions, up to $25,000, at a 2-1 rate, which means he’ll raise a maximum of $75,000 for the party. Does this mean the party is starved for cash? Or is Richardson just swimming in money? Continue Reading

While out East, Richardson woos national press

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Gov. Bill Richardson wooed the national press during a breakfast Tuesday in Washington, D.C. The breakfast, sponsored by the Christian Science Monitor, has already resulted in a couple of positive profiles of the potential 2008 presidential candidate. “… he gave reporters a preview of the distinctive campaign he’d run – and how much he’d differ from likely rival Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York,” wrote Steven Thomma of McClatchy Newspapers. “He boasts a decidedly different résumé. He’s arguably more candidate. And he’s definitely funnier.” The Monitor wrote a balanced article that included this statement: “Although he is running for reelection, Richardson felt confident enough to take time out for a swing through several Eastern states to campaign for Democratic gubernatorial candidates.” Richardson told reporters at the breakfast he is confident Democrats will take control of the House of Representatives and a majority of governorships, in part because of frustration over the war in Iraq. Continue Reading

Elections task force releases critical report

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Doña Ana County’s elections bureau suffers from “relatively high turnover, low morale and a lack of organizational cohesion,” according to the highly anticipated election task force report released Tuesday. “The problems have resulted in failure to apply the election code properly, inconsistent training of poll workers, and canvassing delays that have damaged the public image of the election process in Doña Ana County,” the report states. Click here to read the entire report. The highly critical report found problems with almost every aspect of operations and structure of the county’s Bureau of Elections. The task force made several recommendations in the report, including: • the hiring of a qualified elections supervisor. Continue Reading

Richardson to blame for debate falling through

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There may not be a gubernatorial debate this year after all because Gov. Bill Richardson doesn’t want a lot of people seeing it. Richardson had tentatively agreed Monday to one debate at Congregation Albert in Albuquerque on Oct. 15, but insisted that the debate not be televised. When his Republican opponent, John Dendahl, wouldn’t budge on the television issue, the debate fell through. Richardson’s campaign manager, according to the Albuquerque Tribune, said Dendahl would launch negative attacks rather than focusing on the issues, and said such attacks would be a disservice to viewers. Continue Reading

Despite glitches, officials upbeat about first launch

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Though there were some problems, officials were upbeat about Monday’s launch from Spaceport America. “We inaugurated a spaceport today,” said UP Aerospace CFO Bill Heiden at a post-launch briefing Monday night in Las Cruces. “This was not a perfect flight, but it was an overwhelmingly successful launch.” The day began with a failed transponder – a piece of equipment that helps officials find the rocket after it lands. Fixing that problem delayed the launch more than six hours. The launch itself went perfectly, but the rocket corkscrewed and then veered off course shortly after launch, and failed to reach space. Continue Reading