March 13 was “Claudia Phillips Day,” an annual date that has been set aside in memory of this outstanding individual. Claudia was a very active member of the community, and she supported the Carlsbad Police Department, the Battered Families Shelter and the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce, among other groups. She tragically lost her life in October of 2020. We will continue to remember her for her upbeat and positive attitude, for her photography, her summer snow cones and her bike rides. We want her family and friends to know that she is still greatly missed by the entire community.
COVID numbers continue to be in decline in Eddy County. Carlsbad Medical Center reported only a small number of cases over the weekend and a continual low positivity rate. The State of New Mexico reported 6 positives for Eddy County on Sunday and 5 for Eddy County on Saturday. In order to move from “Yellow” to “Green” we will need a “Cases Per 100,000” average of less than 8, which means we want our average number of cases to be less than 5 each day. We will also need to keep our positivity rate below 5%. All of the information we’ve received so far has been good. Please help us continue to keep COVID-19 numbers down so we can continue to move forward.
College update: HB 212, which is Rep. Brown’s bill proposing that Carlsbad’s college go independent, received a 9-1 vote from the Senate Finance committee on Saturday. The bill will now go before the Senate floor for a final vote and then hopefully then on to the Governor’s desk for final consideration. Sen. Kernan’s bill still needs to be heard by the House Education Committee before moving to the floor. The Current-Argus hosted a forum on independence Monday morning, which can be viewed on the Current-Argus Facebook page.
Congratulations to Mary Garwood and Keep Carlsbad Beautiful on a recent selection for the 2020 President’s Circle Award. This award recognizes performance by certified affiliates of Keep America Beautiful in creating clean and beautiful communities. In order to qualify for this award, Keep Carlsbad Beautiful had to meet numerous standards related to anti littering programs. Keeping this community clean and beautiful is an ongoing task, but we’re happy that we have so many dedicated volunteers who are constantly willing to help with cleanup efforts. Carlsbad was also again named a 2020 Tree City USA community by the Arbor Day Foundation in honor of a commitment to forest management. Congratulations to our Parks and Recreation Department and our hard working Tree Advisory Board. This is the 10th Year we have received this honor.
Sincerely,
Carlsbad Mayor Dale Janway