The Truth or Consequences City Commission approved a contract City Manager Gary Whitehead presented at the Feb. 26 city commission meeting that will temporarily solve the city’s lack of a water and wastewater director since January, when Arnie Castaneda retired.
Jesse Cole was contracted part time. He was the city’s water and wastewater director from 2019 to 2022 before resigning. Before that he worked as the City of Elephant Butte’s water and wastewater director.
Whitehead explained that the city is required by state law to have someone on staff with a level three certification to operate the city water system and someone on staff with a level three certification to operate the city wastewater system. Cole has level 4 certification in both water and wastewater systems operation.
A recent study by the state’s Legislative Finance Committee report, “Policy Spotlight: State-Funded Projects,” noted that towns in rural areas, such as T or C, have difficulty finding and hiring the required certified operators. This is one reason rural areas have widespread water and wastewater compliance and management problems. The study suggested pooling certified operators who would oversee regions or more than one town.
Cole’s contract states he will work 10 days a month. Seven of those days will be onsite for at least six hours each of those days. Three days will be offsite.
His duties include overseeing compliance with New Mexico Environment Department and U.S. Environment Protection Agency rules, including reporting requirements.
In particular, Cole will develop a “work plan to maintain a safe and compliant working environment at the wastewater plant,” the contract specifies.
He will also develop a “monthly training plan for staff.”
Cole will be paid $2,500 a month or $50,000 a year. There is also a provision for emergency call outs at $75 an hour, which must be approved by Whitehead. Cole will be paid a maximum of $60,000 a year, Whitehead said.
“It’s the best scenario for now,” Whitehead said, at less cost than a water/wastewater director’s salary. He is considering whether it might serve the city’s needs better to hire “a public works director—an engineer—who would be an assistant manager, to oversee all the utilities,” rather than hire another water and wastewater director.
The city has struggled to keep water and wastewater positions filled, given the many water and sewer leaks and ongoing stress of call outs to fix them all hours of the day and night.
The city recently hired two wastewater staff, bringing that department up to 100-percent employment. The water department is still down two staff members, Whitehead said, as well as not having a water/wastewater director.
Currently the city has one staff member with a level three wastewater certification, who will shortly sit for a level four. On the water department’s staff is one person with a level one certification who will soon sit for their level two certification, Whitehead said.