To The Editor:

There has been a lot of discussions on the curbside recycling program agenda item as to its implementation that was not approved by council. I want to set the record straight as to why I did not approve such a program through an ordinance.  First and foremost, I made it clear in council that curbside recycling was coming, next year or the year after, but because it was a burden on the customer to pay for the service, I believe it should be the right of the customer to have an opportunity to vote for it through a referendum.

There were additional reasons for my decision:

1: The city was going to pay for the costs upfront and then amortize the initial upfront costs over...

Editor,

When the Longest Walk 5--”Declaring War on Drugs” arrived in Gallup (NM) on March 17 and 18, 2016, I didn’t know how many people knew what was taking place, although, even as this historic event has come and gone, the war continues here as it does in every community along their way to Washington, D.C. which began on the Barona Band of Mission Indians Reservation in San Diego County, southern California on a 3.500 mile spiritual journey.

Here in Gallup, the drug of choice is everything under the sun but alcohol seems to gethe most attention and this is reflected in the costs of operating a detox center that is the proverbial (regional) money pit, quite literally.  A...

Editor, Gallup Sun:

The letter to the editor from Brett Newberry struck a nerve.  The City certainly is not keeping up with infrastructure.  It appears to me that several factors are involved.  A clear lack of direction as Mr. Newberry pointed out is obvious. This combined with the Gallup one-percent – the golfers – getting their share first and also an attitude of provincialism by entrenched locals.

There is such a thing as “opportunity cost”. If a community spends all its extra cash on recreation it will not have enough money to fix the street when repair is needed. For this example I will use street repair and storm drainage, but the same could be said for water or sewer...

Letter to the Editor:

Recently I attended an economic development roundtable in Santa Fe sponsored by the Greater Gallup Economic Development Corporation (GGEDC). Many of the presenters were some of the experts in our State related to various issues including economic development, education, infrastructure, and health. I had the opportunity to discuss these issues with many people from the Gallup area. The general consensus was concern regarding the direction and future of Gallup. I feel that Gallup has reached a tipping point in where we are going and how are we going to get there.

I have lived and worked in the Gallup area for over 35 years. This community has been very good to me...