Before a full audience at the village chambers, Mayor Dusty Wiley proclaimed September 18, 2026, Joseph “Jody” Mancillas Day, honoring the longtime Cloudcroft worker and neighbor who died that day. His mother came forward while Wiley read the proclamation, with many of Jody’s family and friends in attendance.
Then trustees got to work, approving every item on an agenda heavy with infrastructure and budget problems left over from previous administrations.
$800,000 for the Wastewater Plant
Trustees unanimously approved up to $800,000 from the general fund to replace and expand the wastewater treatment plant’s (WWTP) aging membranes. Read our full report: https://www.cloudcroftreader.com/p/a-push-to-keep-moving-council-commits
Another WWTP approval: the plant’s control computer runs on 2007-era Windows, and Public Works Supervisor J.J. Carrizal said the plant can’t run if it fails. Trustees awarded the SCADA upgrade contract to Better Industrial Technology Services, the top scorer of three proposals. An existing grant of roughly $400,000 covers the wastewater plant and lift stations. The goal is installation before winter.
Critical Vacancies Filled
The Library Advisory Board finally met a quorum at Tuesday’s meeting, when Gary Truex, Gail Overstreet, and Tracy Machado joined the board by unanimous approval.
Overstreet currently serves on the Village's Outdoor Lighting Advisory Board and recently joined the 2026 cohort for Leadership Cloudcroft (LC).
Before moving to Cloudcroft, Machado served on several nonprofit and business boards and on the Community Development Committee of the City Council in her prior hometown of Highland Village, Texas. She also joined the 2026 LC cohort.
Truex, the preacher at the Cloudcroft Church of Christ, is board president for the New Mexico Rails-to-Trails Association and works at the Sacramento Mountains Senior Center.
Cloudy’s co-owner and 2026 LC alum, Dylan Kincaid, was unanimously appointed to the Planning & Zoning Commission. Read more about Kincaid: https://www.cloudcroftreader.com/p/cloudys-the-store-cloudcroft-has
Trustee John Snook was appointed alternate council representative to the Southern New Mexico Economic Development District/Council of Governments, filling former Trustee Gail McCoy’s seat.
Water: Losses Climb, but Smart Meters Are Catching Leaks
In his department presentation for Public Works, Carrizal said water loss is at its highest level so far this year. The village lost close to 27% of its produced water in September.
The new cellular meters flagged three or four customer-side leaks this week. One was running 6 gallons a minute and was caught within 24 hours.
A thunderstorm knocked out the SCADA monitoring at the Hilltop tanks. Staff are checking the tanks overnight.
All storage tanks are full. Spring flows are tapering off after monsoon season, and the village wells are running again.
Clearing the Backlog
Trustees learned that unpaid back gross receipts taxes from FY23-24 were higher than estimated in August, so that budget line rises from $170,000 to $220,000. The council approved a budget adjustment to resolve the issue. Leftover ARPA money, $135,858, covers part of it.
The council approved closing the defunct corrections fund, with $357.51 moved to the general fund.
Wiley read into the record that the state Department of Finance and Administration moved the village’s FY25-26 budget from conditional to full certification.
In a follow-up call, Wiley said the village is catching up on past-due bills, including penalties, and that more may surface in next quarter’s adjustments.
Upcoming Library Events, Schedule Change
Library Director Sandra Barr proposed closing on Mondays through March, since Mondays often see only 10 or 11 patrons. The change is slated to start the last Monday in October, and the proposal was not on the agenda.
The Pumpkin Roll is Halloween Saturday, October 31, at 11 a.m. outside the library, followed by the Burro Avenue costume parade and Summit Christian Fellowship’s Fall Festival at 1 p.m. on the other side of Burro.
The art show is returning; last year it drew 93 people. This year, there are no rules on size or media.
Barr said Friends of the Library is down to two members and needs volunteers.
Public Safety
After a semi-truck crash on Highway 82 that caused injuries and a road closure, Police Chief Roger Schoolcraft delivered an update to the council. He said a semi-truck carrying steel I-beams crashed after losing its brakes.
Schoolcraft said several people were taken to the hospital with injuries and that he knew of no fatalities.
The road reopened by Wednesday morning, according to NMRoads.com.
Schoolcraft said camera footage helped solve a larceny at King’s Treasure thrift store in the village, and that more theft had occurred at the site. Volunteers patched recent vandalism at the pickleball courts, and the village is working on nighttime security there.
Fire Chief Erich Wuersching reported that the annual fire hydrant flow testing is underway, so residents may see water running in the streets. Public Works was aware of the testing and said the system could support it. Testing was moved up this year to avoid flushing hydrants in freezing weather.
Wuersching also reported that the Tularosa Basin Regional Dispatch Authority, which handles 911 calls, is being restructured after Alamogordo’s exit. He expects the village to start paying again in 12 to 18 months, once a credit it built up from earlier payments runs out.
Contracts
Trustees renewed three janitorial contracts with a 3% increase and fixed a signature page to reflect a lower winter rate.
They also approved an amended James Sewell Ice Rink lease with Southwest Sports Solutions, which clarifies that rent credits apply only to improvements the village keeps, not to the lessee’s own equipment.
Coming Up
A presentation by Artesia General Hospital on a mobile clinic was postponed to next month because of technical problems.
Mayor Wiley said he plans to bring a gross receipts tax increase to trustees at the November meeting.
Trustee Keith Hamilton reminded the room that early voting is open. Election Day is Nov. 3. Vote in Cloudcroft at the High School.
Here’s an Otero County sample ballot:
The next regular village council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, November 10 at 6 pm. See you there.
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