Thank you to Robert and Patricia Jacquez with the Carlsbad Community of Hope Center for stepping up Monday night and making sure that Carlsbad’s homeless residents have a warm place to wait out the bad weather. The Community of Hope has always come forward to assist during times of need since they opened in 2016. The center is located at 1314 S. Canal Street and you can call them at 200-1377 for more information. It’s a faith-based shelter which also focuses on services such as helping individuals obtain proper paperwork, so they can look for jobs and sign up for programs.
Thanks as well to other groups who have stepped forward to assist our homeless and transient population such as Carlsbad Transitional Housing, Faith Hope and Love, Carlsbad Municipal Schools, the United Way of Eddy County, Lifehouse and many others. Homelessness is one of those very complicated problems requiring multiple approaches, and our local organizations have had to adapt.
Overall storm forecasts continue to estimate somewhere between six and 12 inches of snow for Southeastern New Mexico. The brunt of the storm will affect Southeastern New Mexico through Wednesday, so we are not done with this yet. As of Tuesday morning, we have received positive reports about everyone driving carefully and safe roads.
This week’s storm will also affect COVID testing sites, according to a press release by the New Mexico Department of Health. Clients who have already registered will receive a phone call and text message about closures. Tuesday’s testing at Carlsbad and Artesia’s clinics are both listed as postponed and will re-open based on the weather. Please visit the NM Department of Health web page for updates. We were informed of 25 new positive COVID-19 cases on Monday afternoon for Eddy County and there were 13 inpatients with COVID-19 reported at Carlsbad Medical Center.
We receive a number of calls each day from local businesses trying to understand the various COVID rules and restrictions. We will always do our best to answer everything we can, but sometimes we may also refer you to the state for more information. The New Mexico Restaurant Association has put up a helpful FAQ about recent policies put in place. You can read it here: https://www.nmrestaurants.org/covid-19-reopening-faqs.
Reminder: MFA’s COVID-19 Housing Cost Assistance Program can help pay your past-due housing payments if you are experiencing a financial hardship because of COVID-19. This page contains all of the information you need to determine if you qualify for assistance and includes instructions on how to apply for the program. For more information, please visit https://www.housingnm.org/static/covid-assistance. Applications will be accepted from 8 a.m. November 2 through 5 p.m. November 13 only.
Sincerely,
Carlsbad Mayor Dale Janway