Grants library project loses $400,000 grant

Copyright © 2009
Gallup Independent
By Helen Davis
Cibola County Bureau

GRANTS — City leaders and Grants library supporters were somewhat dumbfounded at the recent news that the proposed new library building project lost nearly half a million dollars to the state fiscal ax.

The library project, which has taken years to pull together, was slated to receive funds from the N.M. Department of Finance and Administration for work on a new Education Triangle Center in the old Alco building on First Street. As late as January the project, with the library as the flagship, appeared to be on track, according the Grants Mayor Joe Murrietta and others knowledgeable about the project.

Murrietta announced the setback at the regular City Council monthly meeting Tuesday and added that the city was looking into recovering the money. He said after the meeting that the DFA had canceled the $400,000 grant along with other grants throughout the state for “lack of use.”

The mayor added that the money only became available to the city in January of this year and that drawing on other money available for the library project, the city had begun work in August 2008 when it signed an architectural contract for preliminary plans.

The grant was originally obtained as capital outlay funds under the guidance of former Sen. Joseph Fidel while he was in office, said Felicia Casados, president of the Grants branch of New Mexico State University.

Casados said the college was the original fiscal agent for the library money because at one time a joint NMSU and city library was under consideration. In January 2008, the college and city began a process to reallot the grant to the city for a city library and educational center.

Losing the money was a matter of bad timing, Casados said, explaining that with cutbacks resulting from the current economic situation projects that are not considered “shovel ready” lost grant funding in the last few weeks. The branch president was not certain why it took a full year for the grant to be transferred to the city as fiscal agent but commented that these things can take that long. “It is no one’s fault,” she said and added that she believes that particular grant is gone and the project should look for another source of funding.

Casados stated that with money from the federal stimulus plan coming to the state, Grants stands a good chance of getting more money if the city can catch the governor’s attention, but indicated that she is unaware of any lobbying or letter writing campaigns in the works.

Grants City Manager Robert Horacek said that city fathers were working on getting the money reinstated or other money earmarked for the library. “Joe and Walter are up there as we speak,” he said in an interview Tuesday, referring to the mayor and Councilman Jaramillo’s visit to Santa Fe to look into the matter.

“The city is going to ask for $500,000 from the stimulus money,” said library Director Jae Luree King. “I am very disappointed (the money) is lost,” she added. King said the library board had no warning, no indication the money was in jeopardy from anyone. The first King heard of it was when she read about the cut in a local newspaper.

In response to talk about the money not being used she said, “We haven’t had a chance to use it. We hadn’t been officially notified it was available.”

The city library advisory board will be discussing the lost grant and strategies for keeping the new library project alive at its regular monthly meeting Friday, said board chairman Marie Connell. She added that design work has already started and the project has some money from a gift grant from Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad, but the entire project will cost about $2 million.

Information: Library Advisory Board regular meeting, 4:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27 at Mother Whiteside Memorial Library, 525 W. High St., Grants. Phone, (505) 287-4793. Open to the public.