(Press Staff Photo by Geoffrey Plant)
Dave Smith of Diamond Dave Services preps the exterior of the Diana Ingalls Leyba Studio and Gallery on Bullard Street ahead of a new coat of paint Monday. Smith’s company, J&J Signs and other contractors are benefiting from a local small business assistance program primarily designed to help downtown businesses make improvements that they otherwise might not be able to afford.
Folks who regularly visit downtown Silver City may have noticed a trend over the past year: new signs popping up on the spiffed-up exteriors of businesses.
Javalina Coffee House, Birdwell’s Vintage Vibes, Lotus Center and the Gila Gallery were among 22 businesses last year that received awards of between $500 and $2,500 through the COVID-19 Small Business Assistance Program, and put the money toward coats of paint, lighting, new signs and other improvements.
By Morgan Lee, Associated Press
The state Supreme Court on Friday upheld a lower court decision allowing the no-bail pretrial release of an 18-year-old with no prior criminal history who is accused of a string of residential burglaries in Albuquerque.
The ruling rebuffs public prosecutors who say risks to the community in the case linking as many as 80 nighttime burglaries in homes where people slept can t be mitigated by electronic tracking devices and supervision.
Justice Michael Vigil announced the court s decision following oral arguments Friday and an hour of private deliberations by the high court. The state failed to argue or prove . that no conditions of release will reasonably protect the safety of any other person or the community, Vigil said. The court will affirm the decision of the district court.
New Mexico s air will be cleaner and free of more ozone equivalent to taking 8 million cars off the road, according to some estimates if new requirements from the state s Environment Department go into effect next year.
The NMED on Thursday announced it was removing exemptions from its proposed ozone rules for low-performing or stripper wells after calls from environmental groups that such “loopholes” would exempt most oil and gas wells in New Mexico.
The rules required operators conduct leak detection at least monthly and repair most leaks within 15 days while maintaining records of compliance.
Emission reduction requirements would also be established for equipment like storage vessels, compressors, turbines. heaters, engines, pneumatic devices, produced water management facilities and others.
Xcel Energy Offers Solar Option For New Mexico Customers
- Associated Press
Xcel Energy says customers in New Mexico now have the option to purchase electricity generated from a solar power plant near Clovis that came online just weeks ago.
A typical residential customer would pay about $10.80 a month more to participate in the utility s solar program. That charge includes the cost of the energy delivered from the solar facility, the cost to integrate that energy into the grid and the cost to market and administer the program.
Customers also would get a credit for the avoided energy costs from using traditional fossil fuels.