By Lee Ross
Mountain View Telegraph
The Edgewood Town Council is dealing with more tax revenue coming into the town than what was expected when it put together its 2008-2009 budget.
Based on data from four months since Wal-Mart opened its doors, the town's gross receipts tax income from retail and food sales have gone up.
The town's approved budget has retail bringing in $65,000 per month and food at $40,500, but based on recent returns the town may expect $110,000 and $60,500, respectively, Mayor Robert Stearley said at a Tuesday council meeting. The increased monthly revenue may mean an annual increase of more than $700,000, Stearley said.
Before the meeting, Stearley created a proposed budget spreadsheet to spend the extra money. He said his numbers are based on council priorities. In order for changes to be made, the council would have to approve them. No vote was taken Tuesday.
Stearley's proposed adjustments included a possible 2.8 percent overall raise for town employees, delivered on merit, and an additional road department employee to work on maintenance issues such as weed removal.
There was also discussion of a sizable increase in the salary of the town's Clerk/Treasurer Estafanie Muller to bring her more in line with the wages recommended by her job description, according to Stearley. The increase, about 31.2 percent, would take her wages from $46,238 to $60,674 per year.
But he may have worked too far ahead, according to Councilor Brad Hill.
Hill said that because the town is possibly dealing with spending around a quarter of a million dollars, it may be time to re-examine the council's philosophical groundwork, including their priorities.
Stearley noted that he'd organized his spreadsheet in the order of the council's priorities and that the expenditures could be adjusted, but Hill said he still felt the town should take a step back.
"(The budget) is probably the most important thing we do," Hill said.
The council also looked into possible locations for the public library.
John Suda, an alternate for the library advisory board, said the board's recommendation for a new location is an office space on the west side of N.M. 344 and south of Dinkle Road.
In a letter to the town, library board president Dave Nuckols stated that this space, which has 3,800 square feet and appears to be compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, is superior to the other two options discussed by the council: a location in the shopping center at the southeast corner of N.M. 344 and Dinkle Road and the current location on Old Route 66 east of N.M. 344.
Those locations are both have around 2,000 square feet of usable space and are too small for the already-packed library to expand, Nuckols argues in the letter.
Although the town has plans to build a new library on Section 16, which is just west of N.M. 344 and north of Dinkle Road, Suda said allowing for expansion is critical because, once the library is moved, it may stay at that location for some time.
"In my experience at least," he said, "we're looking at probably, realistically, at least 10 years out (for the new library)."
Councilor Rita-Loy Simmons said it may even take longer than that.
The rent on the 3,800 square foot space is expected to be $41,500 per year, compared with the current building's $6,000 per year rent. The mayor threw a possible contribution from Santa Fe County of $20,000 into his spreadsheet on the library, but Councilor John Abrams pointed out that the county's contribution, like many other details, is still not certain.
"I think that moving the library is a very good idea," he said. "There's a litany of 'ifs' ... I have grave reservations on resolving all the 'ifs.' "
Abrams noted that his concerns include the building's compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act was not confirmed, the owner hadn't approved a list of issues the town may want resolved in the building and said there were other uncertainties.
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