Town Council Notes
October 14, 2020
The Marshall reported that it would be Town policy that for Halloween this year, there would be “no congregating.”
Patagonia Union High School has reported two Covid-19 cases recently, one being a student who had recently visited Guadalajara, Mexico.
The Planning & Development Committee reported that Gerry Isaac was still working on a draft of suggested wording changes to the Town’s General Plan, and that it would be brought before the Council when ready.
The Volunteer Fire Dept. reported about 20 incidents they had responded to, 14 of them being medical.
The Senior Center reported providing an average of 35 meals a day, the van service had logged 5632 miles, and that the Center’s volunteer hours totaled 244 in the third quarter of 2020.
The Town accepted Michael Bloomquist’s bid for the previously approved purchase of an abandoned segment of Redrock Avenue. The sale will yield approximately $50,000 to the Town.
October 28. 2020
Marshal Patterson reported his department is receiving impaired driver training. He is in discussion with the SCC Sheriff’s office and the County Office of Emergency Management about responses to the possibility of election-day intimidation by disruptors.
Ron Pulliam, of Borderlands Restoration Network, received Town approval for the revised wording of two conservation easements previously given approval by the Town. One is called the Sonoita Creek Wildlife Area, and includes some Borderlands lot purchases in the Rail X subdivision, and the other is west of SR 82, known as the Lazy RR Easement, on ranchland owned by Gerald & Cynthia Jenkins.
Friends of Patagonia Pool (FOPP) president Karen Riggs explained their path to a more affordable level of operation of the pool than the more thorough aquatic management plan originally considered, and that they’d be finalizing a facility audit. She also was optimistic about FOPP’s quest for outside funding of a portion of the pool operation, which in turn would lower the cost to the Town.
The organization is also considering applying for 501(c)3 status, which would help with fundraising.
Because of holiday schedules, Mayor & Council approved having only one November Council meeting, on November 18, at 7 pm.
Elgin School, Fairgrounds to Honor Veterans
The Elgin School, which has a long tradition of honoring local vets, will be holding a modified Veterans Day celebration on Nov. 10. The school is planning to decorate the fence and have students stand outside, socially distanced, waving flags and banners while playing patriotic music. The school will be passing out bags with notes from the students and baked goods for the community’s veterans as they drive through the parking lot. The event will start at 10a.m. and end at 11a.m. For more information, call 520-455-5514.
The Sonoita Fairgrounds will be hosting a Veteran’s Day Ceremony on Veterans Day, Nov. 11 in the grandstands, starting at 10a.m. Lunch will be served after the ceremony.
Roadwork to Begin in Town
The proposed start date for roadwork in Patagonia is Nov. 2. The work will start at SR 82 and Taylor Ave. One side will be worked on while the other side will be used for traffic flow. This work will continue to the County line and then reverse. The projected time frame to finish is the end of December. Around the first of May, work will resume on Third Ave. to McKeown and McKeown to Taylor with sidewalks and water mitigation.
CNF Planning Local Mine Remediation
The Sierra Vista District of the Coronado National Forest is developing a proposal for remediation work on five mines in the Patagonia Mountains. When that proposal is ready, there will be a period for public understanding and response, probably in 2021.
Clarification
In the article in the October issue of the PRT about South32’s proposed routing of traffic between the Hermosa Mine and Tucson, it was stated that “the company projects that “truck traffic will be less than 10 percent of the current traffic volumes seen on SR-82.” According to South32, this figure represents all traffic to and from the mine, not just ore trucks.