City gets low rate on CSF bonds

The city of Santa Fe will pay less interest on its loan to purchase the College of Santa Fe campus than it had originally anticipated. Last week, the New Mexico Finance Authority sold $29.6 million in bonds to facilitate the loan and secured an interest rate of 5.73 percent that it will pass on to the city, according to George Willford, a financial consultant for the city. An earlier analysis predicted the city would get an interest rate of between 6 percent and 7 percent.

"The market has really moved in favor of the city," Willford told city councilors Wednesday.

Santa Fe will owe the NMFA annual debt service payments of about $2.2 million, with the final payment expected in 2036, he said. A lease for the campus is expected to generate about $2.35 million each year.

The City Council decided to buy the 61-acre campus this summer after the school closed its doors because of financial challenges. Laureate Education Inc. is now running the school and leasing the campus.

Rail Runner links to Balloon Fiesta

Visitors to the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta will be able to use a special service offered by the New Mexico Rail Runner Express for the popular opening and closing weekends.

Passengers can ride the train to the Los Ranchos/Journal Center station, where they can hop on a shuttle bus that will take them right onto the Balloon Fiesta field.

A news release strongly suggested purchasing tickets online. Organizers suggested buying a Rail Runner ticket at www.nmrailrunner.com, then visiting www.balloonfiesta.com to buy a combined round-trip ticket for the shuttle from the station to Balloon Fiesta Park and for entry onto the Fiesta grounds.

The 38th annual Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, billed as the world's largest hot-air balloon festival, with 600 balloons expected this year, is scheduled to run from Saturday through Oct. 11.

Anti-DWI effort snags suspects

An anti-DWI operation in the Española area Saturday involving three checkpoints and a "saturation patrol" netted eight drunken-driving arrests, the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office said Wednesday.

About 45 officers from state, city, county and tribal agencies took part in the effort, which included checkpoints on U.S. 84/285, N.M. 76 and N.M. 68. The saturation patrol was conducted on N.M. 30, a news release said.

About 690 vehicles passed through the checkpoints, and 13 of the drivers were checked for possible impairment. In addition to the eight DWI arrests, one person was charged with possession of marijuana. Another 60 received citations for offenses such as open-container violations, not using a seat belt or no child restraint.

Santa Fe County Undersheriff Robert Garcia said it was the largest multicheckpoint operation in the county and that similar operations are planned for spring/summer of 2010.

Two women injured in tussle

Two women received minor injuries early Sunday after they were shot during a fight at an apartment complex parking lot, according to court documents.

The two women told police that they were walking across the parking lot of the Cedar Creek Apartments, 3991 Camino Juliana, about midnight when a silver Dodge Avenger sped though the lot at a high rate of speed, according to a search warrant filed Tuesday in state District Court. The female driver of the Avenger yelled at the women to get out of the way, while one of the women took umbrage and made a comment back, the document states.

The driver of the car pointed a .22-caliber handgun at the woman who made the comment. The woman then grabbed the gun, and the two wrestled for the weapon. The gun went off, hitting the woman who made the comment on the palm of her hand and her friend in the upper arm, the report says.

The driver of the Avenger then drove to the back of the parking lot and the two other women followed. Another physical confrontation ensued, during which a male passenger in the Avenger retrieved a shotgun from the trunk and pointed it at the two women, who left on foot, the report states.

Police later found a shotgun, a cell phone and ammunition in the car, the warrant says. The warrant did not specify who owns the Avenger.

Police arrest man after pot seizure

Santa Fe police say they seized 5 1/4 pounds of marijuana on Tuesday and arrested a 24-year-old man with previous drug charges.

Timothy A. Wood of 612 Paulin St. is now in the county jail on an alleged probation violation.

The police said the bust came after a two-week undercover investigation and that the drug's street value is $30,000 — $357 an ounce — but declined to say where it was found.

In June 2008, Wood was arrested on charges of battery and several drug violations when police found him in possession of heroin and a large quantity of psilocybin mushrooms after he was involved in a fight at The Lodge at Santa Fe. The charges are not yet resolved.

In September 2006, Wood, then 21, was detained on suspicion of being a minor under the influence of alcohol at an Allsup's on Cerrillos Road. Police handcuffed him and put him the back seat of a patrol car, but he managed to get into the front seat, drive the car away and escape. The car was found later in the South Capitol neighborhood. Two days later, Wood turned himself in and was arrested on several charges, including possession of psilocybin mushrooms and marijuana.

Watershed burn halted temporarily

Santa Fe National Forest fire managers halted a prescribed burn in the Santa Fe Municipal Watershed on Wednesday because of winds and higher humidity, but it may resume today if weather conditions are right.

Burning conditions will be evaluated this morning on site, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

Crews are attempting to burn 850 acres of piled, thinned wood in the watershed before the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta begins this weekend. Crews finished burning a swath around the northern perimeter and hope to burn the interior using ground crews and aerial ignition from a helicopter.

For daily updates regarding ongoing prescribed burns on the Santa Fe National Forest, call 877-971-FIRE (3473) or visit the Web site at www.nmfireinfo.com.

Community seeks help with water

Residents in a subdivision that has run out of water near Las Vegas, N.M., are asking Gov. Bill Richardson for help.

El Creston Mutual Domestic Water Users' Association voted Sept. 14 to declare an emergency and ask the governor and San Miguel County to provide drinking water to the 16 homes south of Las Vegas near Romeroville that have recently lost their well water.

The association said some of the families have been hauling water from a nearby campground and driving into Las Vegas for showers. Among the residents are low-income people and veterans.

The association is asking for help from the state to develop a local water supply and distribution system. The association said wells began to go dry last summer as Las Vegas pumped from a nearby municipal well field.