McKinley still one of NM’s top jobless counties

New Mexico’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 6.8 percent in February 2017, up from 6.7 percent in January and 6.6 percent a year ago.

In McKinley County, the unemployment rate for February was 9.5 percent and in neighboring Cibola County, about a 55-minute drive from Gallup, the unemployment rate for February was 8.6 percent. The unemployment rates for both McKinley and Cibola counties were down a little from January, with McKinley’s rate at 9.7 percent and Cibola’s rate at a former 8.8 percent.

The unemployment statistics are one month behind due to the amount of time required to compile them, officials with the New...

New chief plans upgrades for the department

MILAN – Like the set of “True Detective” or “The Streets of San Francisco,” the Milan Police Department headquarters is reminiscent of a police headquarters from a 1970s-era TV police show.

Despite cramped headquarters, the roughly dozen cops make it work. While the new Chief of Police Pat Salazar takes note of functional aesthetics of the MPD, he’s focusing his energy on boosting morale and bringing the staffing count to 15 full-time officers.

In a way, Salazar has come full-circle. He got his start in law enforcement in Milan in 1995, working there for five years alongside a K9 working dog Themis.

Salazar also hails from...

Sacred Wind wires the Village of Milan, Grants

The hot Internet access technology that delivers connection speeds many times faster that dial-up phone connections over the same type of wiring, made its way to the Village of Milan and Grants late last year.

Broadband is the new “thing” in those parts of Cibola County. Users can talk on the telephone without breaking their Internet connections.

“(Broadband) is simply high access speed to the Internet,” John Badal, chief executive officer at Sacred Wind, said.

Sacred Wind installed the service at an undisclosed price.

“Download capacity, or speeds, enable customers to retrieve files, information and videos,” Badal said...

LAS CRUCES – Local television networks throughout New Mexico and southwestern Texas will begin broadcasting a series of “Aggies Winning Choices” public service announcements promoting awareness and education about the dangers of binge drinking and encouraging smart decision-making and harm-reduction techniques among college students.

The project, funded by a NCAA Choices grant, will deliver harm-reduction messages to college students with the intention of reducing the incidence of binge drinking. Binge drinking is when a man consumes 5 plus drinks or a woman consumes 4 plus drinks in a two-hour period.

Last year, over 1,825 college students died from alcohol-related injuries...