Dates Change, Plan Stays the Same, San Juan River and Navajo Lake to Close

Despite a change of state employee furlough dates Navajo Lake and the quality waters of the San Juan River will still be closed for five days in the next four months beginning with a shut down on Thursday, Christmas Eve Day and again on Friday, Jan. 15, 2010.

Three other days furlough dates have since been changed to allow the parks to close on several Tuesdays in February and March while all other state employees will continue to be furloughed over several Fridays in March, April and May.

The changes were made to allow parks across the state to remain open during busy weekends and holidays.

Yet perhaps nowhere will the impact of the closures be felt more, regardless of the dates,than in the small community of Navajo Dam where virtually every business in town is dependant upon Navajo Lake state park for their livelihood.

The park and its year-round, trophy-class trout fishery draws anglers from all over the world and contributes an estimated $30 million to the state’s economy annually.

But many businesses including fishing guides, fly shops, hotels and restaurants are also being forced to take Christmas Eve day off along with the state’s employees because of the state’s furlough plan.

The park and 34 others across the state will be closed a total of five days in the next four months and any day the river and the lake at Navajo Dam are closed essentially puts locals out of business.

“It’s just plain stupid,” says Chuck Rizuto, one of the longest serving guides on the river and owner of a lodge, fly shop and guide service. “They haven’t even bothered to think about what this will do to our tourism.”

What Rizuto finds particularly galling is the fact that the park will have a skeleton crew on duty on Thursday to keep people out.

And then the following morning on Christmas Day they’ll have another skeleton crew come back in to open the park gates again.

“It just doesn’t make sense,” he says. “Why not just leave it open if they're going to have to these guys down there anyhow.”

And that’s the problem many who work on the San Juan River are having with the state’s furlough plan.

“This is ridiculous,” says Larry Johnson of the San Juan River Guides Association. “If anybody in private business ran things this way they’d go broke.”

Johnson, in a letter to state parks director, Dave Simon, said he understood the state’s need to reduce costs in the face of budget shortfalls.

But Johnson argued that the closing of the state park which includes Navajo Lake and the quality waters of the San Juan River will not only cost the state much needed revenue from lost user’s fees, but also harm local businesses dependent upon park visitors for income.

“I don’t understand why they can’t just keep the park open with a skeleton crew instead of closing it for an entire day,” Johnson said.

That’s exactly what they’re doing in Colorado where state employee furloughs have also been ordered to cut costs due to budget shortfalls.

“Our state parks are a part of everyday life for many people here,” said Deb Frazier, spokeswoman for Colorado State Parks. “And it seemed to us that the best solution was to keep them open with skeleton crews on duty.”

And that’s exactly what Johnson and others on the San Juan River have been lobbying New Mexico’s State Parks to do.

“I’m aware of and share the concerns of the guides and businesses on the San Juan,” Dave Simon, Director of State Parks says. “I sympathize with them but that (skeleton crews) wasn’t an option that was made available to us.”

Simon says after Governor Bill Richardson issued his executive order calling for the
furlough days, his parent agency immediately sought a way to keep the parks open.

Simon says he never spoke directly to Richardson about the furlough plan but that his boss, Secretary of Energy Minerals and Natural Resources, Joanna Prukop, argued his agency’s case for keeping the parks open.

Prukop was unavailable for comment and is slated to retire Dec. 31st.

Simon says his understanding of the situation was that Governor Richardson wanted to reduce the “complexity” of the furlough plan, which is why the state parks weren't allowed to use skeleton crews to keep them open.

Simon says his understanding of the furlough plan was it was designed to maximize savings by having as many state employees off, and their offices closed, on the furlough days.

The plan is estimated to save the state about $11 million while the overall budget shortfall is pegged somewhere at about $650 million.

The governor’s spokesman, Gilbert Gallegos, said the governor’s furlough plan was devised to limit exceptions to the rules but he praised Richardson’s willingness to allow the state parks to close on alternate days to reduce the impact of the shut down.

There were to be few if any exceptions to the plan except for situations impacting the public’s health, safety and welfare, Gallegos Said.

Gallegos declined to address questions regarding why staggered schedules couldn't be employed to allow the state parks to remain open with skeleton crews in place.

"I don’t have anything more to add, except this: Had Governor Richardson signed the budget proposal passed by the Legislature during the special session, the state would have had to close state parks, which would have had a truly devastating impact on local economies," Gallegos wrote in response to questions submitted by Outdoors New Mexico .

The governor's original furlough plan called for most of the closings to fall on Fridays before other holidays thus creating four day weekends for furloughed state employees.

But the original plan came at a great inconvenience to the public.

For instance, a park such as Elephant Butte Lake State Park, which sees upwards of 100,000 visitors over the Memorial Day weekend would have been closed to early birds who showed up on Friday to find a camp site.

Gallegos said Richardson showed “great flexibility” in allowing state parks to change their closure dates to allow the parks to close on Tuesdays in February and March instead, while the rest of the state employees had to adhere to the other schedule.

State parks will be closed Thursday, December 24, 2009, Friday, January 15, 2010, Tuesday, February 9, 2010, Tuesday, March 2, 2010, and Tuesday, March 23, 2010.

All other state offices will be closed Thursday, December 24, 2009, Friday, January 15, 2010, Friday, March 5, 2010, Friday, April 2, 2010, and Friday, May 28, 2010.
(for more info see press release).

But some businessmen at Navajo Dam find the alternate schedule of little consolation considering that any day the river and lake is closed they’re essentially out of business.

“I book some of my biggest trips in March, during the week,” says Rizuto. “That’s when most out-of-state tourists want to come, to avoid the weekend crowds. What am I supposed to tell them, the river’s closed for a day?”

Many Navajo Dam Businesses were equally upset that much of the planning for the closures was kept under wraps and done without public involvement (see related story ).

Sen. Steve Scharer, R-San Juan says the state parks and businesses at Navajo Dam are simply pawns in the governor’s ongoing battle with the legislature over the budget.

“This just another case of his total disregard for the citizens,” he said. “He doesn’t care about them. It’s all about him.”

Scharer said that by closing revenue generating state parks and doing the same to related businesses is counterproductive to the state’s economy and senseless considering the minimal budget savings it produces.

The furloughs are another in a series of moves crafted by Richardson to address the budget shortfall including a state hiring freeze, layoffs of political appointees and suspension of all capital outlay spending including his own $250,000 allocation for habitat improvement projects on the San Juan River at Navajo Dam.

That money was earmarked for a diversion at Rex Smith Wash at Texas Hole to keep silt and sediment from washing into the river and destroying fish habitat.

The Governor's furlough plan comes on the heels of his veto of a legislative budget fix offered during a special session last fall including a 7.6-percent across the board budget cut and a reduction of politically appointed positions within state government.

In the meantime state park rangers will be on duty during the state park closure dates to keep trespassers out and will issue citations if necessary, Simon says.

Anyone convicted of criminal trespass while hunting or fishing could see their fishing privileges administratively revoked for up to three years.

Governor Bill Richardson issued the following press release on Feb. 5, 2010

Governor Bill Richardson Announces State Parks Will  Remain Open During Furloughs

SANTA FE- Governor Richardson today announced that all New Mexico State Parks will
remain open during the remainder of state employee furlough days. Governor Richardson
announced the change after receiving dozens of requests from New Mexico residents, local
municipalities and businesses asking to keep parks open because of concerns about the negative
economic impact closures could have on local economies.

“New Mexico State Parks offer fabulous scenery, a variety of family-friendly activities and are
great tourist magnets that drive economic development in our local communities,” Governor
Richardson said. “This plan will not only enable the state to continue saving money but will keep
our parks open for everyone to enjoy.”

Listening to constituent concerns, Governor Richardson worked with State Parks and the State
Personnel Office to come up with the plan that will still require State Park employees to take
three remaining furlough days. Those employees who are needed to work to keep parks open on
designated furlough days, will be required to take alternate furlough days.
                                                                        ##

San Juan Lock Down - River, Lake to be Closed by Furloughs

Anglers headed up to Navajo Lake State Park for a little fishing the day before Christmas might be surprised to find the river and lake closed to the public due to state employee furloughs imposed by Governor Bill Richardson.

“This is ridiculous,” says Larry Johnson of the San Juan River Guides Association and owner of the Soaring Eagle Lodge.

Johnson argued that closing of the state park which includes Navajo Lake and the quality waters of the San Juan River at Navajo Dam will not only cost the state much needed revenue from user’s fees but also harm local businesses dependent upon park visitors for income.

“I don’t understand why they couldn’t just keep the park open with a skeleton crew instead of closing it for an entire day,” Johnson said in a telephone interview.

Ironically that’s what Navajo State Park employees will be doing the following day when they open the gates back up again on Christmas morning.

The river and lake is also slated to be closed to anglers on Jan. 15, the Friday before Martin Luther King, under the governor's furlough plan.

Johnson said he first heard about the closings from the local state park employees who had been informing local fishing guides and other businesses in the area about the impending closings.

Outdoors New Mexico had heard the same rumors and had been attempting to confirm the reported closings last week but was stymied by a wall of silence from the governor’s appointed public information officers and state agency directors.

Simon, the governor’s state parks director, declined to respond to calls for details about the reported closings and his response to emails was to refer all questions to the governors’ office.

The Governor’s primary spokesman, Deputy Chief of Staff Chris Gallegos, initially dismissed questions about the reported state park closings.

“We have not yet finalized the furlough plan that will be presented to the State Personnel Board which means it is premature to speculate on the impact to state parks or any state services,” Gallegos wrote in a Dec 2, 2009 response to our inquiry.

But by Monday Dec. 7 Gallegos was issuing a press release stating that State Parks would be given a reprieve to allow staggered furlough dates so the state’s 34 parks could remain open during “popular holiday weekends in the spring.”

The press release notes that the furlough plan is still subject to approval by the State Personnel Board.

The board, all governor appointees, is slated to meet Dec. 16, 2009, in Albuquerque at the National Hispanic Center at 1701 Fourth St. SW at 8:30 a.m. to consider the furlough plan, said Sheila Zamora, Board Administrator for the State Personnel Board.

The meeting is open to the public and anyone who wishes to comment on the furlough policy could send emails addressed to the board through her at sheila.zamora@state.nm.us.

The Director of the State Personnel Board, Sandra Perez, also a Richardson appointee, declined to return calls and email messages seeking further specifics about the board’s policy making process.

The governor’s latest furlough plan includes not only the day before Christmas but four other dates in the upcoming year including Jan. 15, March 5, April 2 and May 28.

Two of those dates fall in line with other holidays which effectively create four day weekends for furloughed state employees.

One of those dates is in conjunction with Memorial Day weekend and Johnson had questioned the logic in closing a state park such as Navajo Lake State Park the day before the beginning of one of the summer’s busiest outdoor recreational weekends.

“Imagine showing up to claim a campsite the night before and finding the gates locked,” he said. “It’s crazy.”

Such a closure at Elephant Butte State Park in southern New Mexico which routinely sees upwards of 100,000 visitors on Memorial Day weekend would have wreaked havoc, Johnson noted.

Apparently state parks administrators thought so too, and were successful in sparing themselves such a scenario but not before unchecked rumors and misinformation had already been spread.

Now anglers hoping to get a jump on the yuletide holiday by visiting the San Juan on Christmas Eve are officially out of luck.

Marti Niman, Public Information Officer for State Parks, finally confirmed on Monday that park gates to day use areas on the river at Navajo Dam would be closed on Christmas Eve day but she couldn’t say whether anglers slipping past the locked entrances, some just installed, would be treated as trespassers.

Niman said she hoped to have an official press release regarding the Christmas Eve day closure and others out sometime this week.

The river and lake will also be closed an off limits to anglers on Jan. 15, the Friday before Martin Luther King, under the furlough plan.

Initial reports from state park employees about the closing on Navajo Lake State Park suggested that security guards would be hired to patrol the lake and the river to keep trespassers out because park rangers would have the day off.

All of which drew scoffs from some like Johnson who questioned the logic behind the state’s plan in a Dec. 4, 2009 guide association letter to Simon.

“Does the costs savings of furloughed onsite employees outweigh the loss of revenue, hiring of security officers to prohibit the public’s access to the parks, and the costs of constructing new physical barriers at multiple park access points? ” Johnson asked.

Simon had yet to reply to the guide association’s letter by the time the governor’s office issued its latest press release.

Yet despite the park’s closing, fly shop owner, Ray Johnston of Float and Fish in Navajo Dam, says he will still be open Christmas Eve day.

“That’s my customer appreciation day,” Johnston says.” Been doing it for years.”

The shop will be open as usual and will be serving up free red chile stew, pinto beans and tortillas for customers.

“We usually get a pretty good crowd,” he says. “People come from all over to fish the river during the holidays you know. That’s why I just don’t understand what they (state parks ) were thinking.”

Johnston said he'd have to cancel some fishing trips he had scheduled for Christmas Eve day and will have to do the same for upcoming furlough dates too.

The world class San Juan River brings in thousands of fly fishing fanatics each year to chase big trout on small flies and contributes upwards of $30 to 40 million to the state's economy.

And while news of the state park closure might keep some anglers away, others might see this as an exciting opportunity to sneak down to the river and have the place all to themselves for a change.

In the meantime, Richardson’s battle with the state legislature over a projected budget shortfall of about $650 million continues.

Richardson called the state legislature in special session recently where lawmakers crafted bills calling for 7.6 percent across-the-board cuts to all state agencies and a reduction in the number of Richardson’s politically appointed positions.

Richardson declined to sign the laws and instead offered up his own executive remedies including the furloughs which are expected to produce about $11 million dollars in savings.

Richardson is also laying off 59 state employees holding politically appointed positions, has left another 49 politically appointed positions vacant and had already imposed a freeze on all state government hiring.

This comes on the heels of reports that state government has grown a reported 50 percent during Richardson’s two terms.

Richardson has also ordered a freeze on all legislators’ capital outlay projects not already underway including his own $250,000 allocation for habitat improvement projects on the San Juan River.

That money had been earmarked for use in diverting runoff from Rex Smith wash at Texas Hole, a primary source of silt and sediment coming into the river which many blame for a perceived decline in the fishery’s quality.

Oryx Hunt on Ted Turner's New Mexico Ranch Special Event for a Lady

Photo Courtesy of Diane Gilmore

It wasn’t the kind of story you might expect to hear upon walking into a biker bar like Silva’s in downtown Bernalillo, New Mexico on a Saturday afternoon.

The lady behind the horseshoe shaped bar was running about, talking excitedly and offering up samples of the oryx she’d bagged just a day or two earlier.

On Ted Turner’s Armendaris Ranch in southern New Mexico of all places, she said.

Turner is the largest private land owner in the country and has several big ranches here in New Mexico including the Armendaris, the Ladder and Vermejo Park bordering the spectacular Valle Vidal in northern New Mexico.

And hunting or fishing on one of them would normally be way out of reach for most people, I thought.

But for Diane Gilmore, 54, of Albuquerque, a night of bartending at a National Wild Turkey Federation banquet last winter led her to the remote Turner ranch and a way of life she’d missed for many years.

See, Gilmore, a laid-off computer technician who moonlights as a bartender, used to hunt and fish all the time with her husband of ten years, Vern.

Many times they went fishing with Felix Silva Sr., proprietor of the fabled watering hole in downtown Bernalillo where Gilmore tends bar.

Photo Courtesy of Diane Gilmore

But she lost her passion for the hunting and fishing life after her husband was killed by a wrong-way driver on a highway in Texas during a cross-country motorcycle the pair were taking in 1995.

Gilmore labored on through the years without her partner and best friend until one day her girlfriend, Ann Salmon, invited her out to attend a National Wild Turkey Federation banquet.

Salmon’s boyfriend, Mike Jasper, is the organization’s regional field supervisor and he invited Gilmore back to tend bar at a state leadership conference banquet last January.

“Going to the banquets, I got the itch to hunt again,” Gilmore said.

And that’s where she came across the opportunity to hunt for an oryx, an African native that was brought to New Mexico in the 1970s to develop a herd on White Sands Missile Range for hunting purposes.

The big antelope have done well here due in part to the lack of any natural predators to keep their numbers down, thus hunting is one of the only ways to effectively manage them.

Hunters can apply through the state Department of Game and Fish for a reasonably priced, once in a lifetime license to bag one of the big animals on White Sands Missile Range or they can try their luck at drawing an unrestricted, off range license to hunt oryx on public lands surrounding the range.

And then there’s private land hunting permits issued by the Department to landowners for use on their own property.

Typically those permits are available through outfitters who offer guided hunts to the public for premium price.

Which brings us back to Gilmore who while serving drinks at the National Wild Turkey Federation banquet noticed a bucket full of a dozen custom knives up for auction.

Attached to each knife was a raffle ticket for a guided oryx hunt on the Armenderis Ranch, normally a $3,000 proposition.

“I got all excited thinking about the chance to go after one of those majestic animals,” she recalls.

So Gilmore picked out three knives, plunked down $330 and waited for the drawing.

“I screamed like a maniac,” the New Jersey native says of the moment they called her number. ”It was surreal, my heart nearly jumped out of my chest.”

Gilmore had won and arranged to go on her hunt the following fall.

As the date of the hunt got closer, Gilmore grew more nervous.

“You know how it is,” she said.

Gilmore borrowed Jasper’s .300 WSM rifle and went out to the city’s range for a little practice and found her aim was still true.

And then the day of the hunt finally arrived.

Gilmore had stayed at a friend’s house at Elephant Butte the night before and awoke early to make the drive over to Engle and where the gate to the big ranch stood.

Accompanied by Jasper and Salmon, Gilmore met up with her guide, Amado Hernandez, who gave her an orientation, took her to ranch firing range to check her shooting skills and then they went for a drive.

The group searched the sprawling ranch for several hours before they finally spied a herd far off in the distance.

Upon driving around the base of a small hill to get a closer look they suddenly came across a lone oryx observing them from about 215 yards away.Photo courtesy of Turner Enterprises Inc.

Gilmore got down to see if she could get a shot at her but watched in dismay as she began to walk away.

Guide Hernandez gave a shrill whistle and the animal stopped to look back.

Gilmore took her shot and dropped the big antelope on the spot.

“My friends were yelling `she’s down’ and I was all excited,” Gilmore says with emotion. “This was my first hunt in twelve years and I was smiling so much my cheeks hurt.”

Gilmore says the best part of the hunt had to be after the kill because in all her years of hunting with Vern she knew the real work came in harvesting the animal.

“Amado did all the work,” she says. “That was special,”

Hernandez says he guides about 50 or 60 oryx hunts on the 360,000 acre ranch east of Truth or Consequences every year and remembers Gilmore because she was so ecstatic about her hunt.

“She was pretty thrilled,” he says. “And she did a good job too.”

Gilmore says she’s got a freezer full of good, lean organic meat processed by Gordon Mishler of Mishler Meat Cutting in Williamsburg and has a beautiful trophy mount for her wall on its way from Ken Watkins of High Sierra Taxidermy in Truth or Consequences.

But for Gilmore the best part of the hunt was that it rekindled in her that long dormant passion for the sport.

Jasper says that’s exactly what the National Wild Turkey Federation is striving to do, conserve wildlife and preserve the heritage of hunting.

And making exciting trips like this available is one way to do it, Jasper says.

“To let an average, everyday, person have a shot at a trophy hunt like this is priceless,” Jasper says.

Jasper says banquet auctions like the one Gilmore participated in have allowed numerous men and women around the state to go on such hunts while also raising much needed funds for the organizations’ mission.

And it couldn’t be done without the generous contributions and donations of people like Ted Turner whose ranches not only provide the habitat for many game species but the opportunity to hunt for them too, Jasper says.

The Governor Giveth and the Governor Can Taketh Away

A habitat improvement project designed to reduce silt and sediment and improve fishing on the popular San Juan River has been put on hold in the wake of Governor Bill Richardson’s decision to freeze all capital outlay projects.

“It’s on hold,” says Marty Frentzel, Chief of Public Information and Outreach for the state Department of Game and Fish.

Up until the Governor’s order came down, the department had been working on issuing a formal request for proposals (RFP) for engineering plans to install habitat improvements in the Braids section of the blue ribbon trout fishery and to divert Rex Smith Wash to keep silt laden runoff from dumping into the river at Texas Hole.

The habitat improvement project had been one of Richardson’s own initiatives that he undertook at the behest of local guides last year for which he sought and obtained $250,000 in funding from the legislature.

But Richardson has since become embroiled in a budget battle with the legislature over an estimated $650 million budget shortfall and he has now ordered all capital outlay projects frozen, including his own.

The move comes on the heels of a recent special session of the legislature during which lawmakers crafted bills for Richardson’s consideration that includes deep cuts to state agency budgets and a reduction in the number of Richardson’s paid, political appointees.

In ordering the capital outlay freeze, Richardson says he took exception to the fact that legislators did not make any effort to trim its inventory of taxpayer funded projects.

“I am taking this bold action since the Legislature chose not to cut even one dime of its pork projects,” Governor Bill Richardson said in his October 26 press release. “These pork projects should be the first to be cut before we take any action that affects people.”

Only those projects that already have third-party agreements will be honored as of Oct. 23, the press release states.

The freeze on capital outlay projects will remain in place through the next legislative session in January when the issue can be revisited, the press release concludes.

The press release notes that the freeze applies to all capital outlay projects, including the governor’s.

The freeze came just weeks after the state Department of Game and Fish announced that they would be seeking new bids for the habitat improvement project on the San Juan (see related story ).

The department had declined to hire one of the two firms, out of about six that had been solicited to submit proposals this past summer.

The department decided it would be best to pursue the more formal process of requesting proposals before proceeding.

“The Department determined that a broader solicitation was warranted in order to ensure the best possible outcome is achieved,” Frentzel said at the time.

The Braids and Rex Smith projects were called for by a working group of San Juan River stakeholders during a meeting earlier this summer.

Funding for the projects came as controversy raged over the perception that fishing conditions on the river had declined due to low flows implemented by federal operators of the dam over the last decade to accommodate endangered fish downstream.

It now remains to be seen whether funding for the habitat improvement projects will be reinstated or if after more than a year of behind-the-scenes political lobbying, intense public debate and other efforts to help the river, have all been for naught.

In the meantime, Governor Richardson is taking public comment before making any decision about the cost saving bills the legislature sent him during the special session.

Richardson has until Nov. 12 to make his decision.

And while he decides, the Albuquerque Journal reports that the state budget has grown more than 50 percent under Richardson’s watch. The state now has 24.5 state workers for every 100 in the private sector, compared with the national average of 16.22. About 400 state workers were added to the state’s payroll last year alone at a cost of $1 million every two pay periods and 468 political appointees have joined Richardson’s administration during his two terms, the Journal reported.

To register your views on the budget situation email the governor at Special.session@state.nm.us.

Or call the Governor's office at 505-476-2210.

You can also write a letter and send it to: Office of the Governor, 490 Old Santa Fe Trail, Room 400, Santa Fe, NM 87501.

To visit the Governors website go to www.governor.state.nm.us

State Seeks More Bids for San Juan Habitat Improvement Projects

State Game and Fish officials have decided to seek additional bids for engineering services before proceeding any further with long-awaited habitat improvement plans to the trophy-class trout fishery at Navajo Dam on the San Juan River.

The department solicited and received proposals this summer from two firms to develop engineering plans for a runoff diversion at Rex Smith Wash and in-stream habitat improvements in the “Braids,” both areas located just above “Texas Hole.”

The two projects were called for by a working group of San Juan River stakeholders earlier this summer after the state legislature, last winter, appropriated $250,000 for the habitat improvements on the San Juan at the request of Governor Bill Richardson.

The funding came as controversy raged over fishing conditions on the river due to low flows implemented by federal operators of the dam over the last decade to accommodate endangered fish downstream.

The department solicited bids from about a half-dozen engineering firms to do the engineering work and received proposals from two firms interested in performing the job, said Marc Wethington, the San Juan’s Fisheries Biologist for the state Department of Game and Fish.

After review of the two proposals, department officials decided to seek more proposals through a formal request for proposals process

“The Department determined that a broader solicitation was warranted in order to ensure the best possible outcome is achieved,” says Marty Frentzel, Chief of Public Information and Outreach for the state Department of Game and Fish.

Frentzel declined to elaborate on the decision.

One of the firms that applied was Freestone Aquatics of Littleton, Co. in conjunction with Goff Engineering of Durango, Colo.

They submitted a bid to do the work for close to $62,000.

Freestone Aquatics is owned and operated by a couple of fishing guides who formed their own company in 2006 to do fish habitat work, according to information contained within their proposal and posted on their website.

It was noted in Freestone’s proposal that they had done a preliminary analysis of the San Juan River this summer on behalf of the San Juan River Foundation, a non-profit organization recently formed to raise money in support of habitat improvement and other projects on the river.

The foundation’s president is Bubba Smith, a San Juan fishing guide widely credited with drawing Richardson’s attention to the river and for working closely with state Game Commission chairman, Jim McClintic.

Freestone Aquatics referenced its preliminary work with the San Juan River Foundation in describing their work experience, stating in their proposal that “Freestone Aquatics is involved in a large scale restoration project on one of the premier gold-medal tail water fisheries in the West.Working with the San Juan River Foundation and the state of New Mexico, Freestone has been asked to provide expertise in managing this high profile, high use fishery.”

The statement goes on to say that “Freestone Aquatics employees are currently in the data gathering and design phase that will eventually be applied to this highly valuable fishery. Installation of Freestone-designed structures will function to transport sediment resulting in the recovery of thousands of square feet of macro invertebrate habitat.”

Freestone Aquatics is not currently working for the state of New Mexico in any capacity with regards to the San Juan as may be inferred from this statement in their proposal, said Lance Cherry, Assistant Chief of Public Information and Outreach for the state Department of Game and Fish.

The low bid for the project came from Riverbend Engineering, a river restoration firm with offices in Albuquerque and Durango, Colo., who submitted a proposal in partnership with Aquatic Consultants of Albuquerque.

They offered to perform the engineering services for just under $50,000.

Riverbend Engineering also provided reduced cost engineering services for the in-stream habitat work recently completed in the Cottonwood Campground area of the San Juan River, Wethington said.

The firm was not involved, though, in the oft-criticized habitat improvements done below Simon Canyon a few years ago, he said.

Those were designed by the Army Corp of Engineers, Wethington said.

An angler fishes during the summer of 2008 among the much maligned but highly effective habitat improvements installed below Simon Canyon.

Riverbend’s partner in their proposal is Aquatic Consultants which has been involved in numerous projects throughout the state including trophy sport fishing and commercial fisheries management projects at Cow Creek Ranch on the Pecos River, Don Imus’ ranch near Las Vegas, N.M., and Isleta, Sandia and Eagles Nest lakes.

Paul Cassidy, founder and president of Aquatic Consultants, was the state Department of Game and Fish’s Northwest Area Fisheries Manager for 11 years before leaving the department to form his own firm.

A new request for proposals for the Rex Smith and Braid’s habitat improvement projects is forthcoming and these firms may apply again, Wethington said.

In the meantime, the department awaits the outcome of the upcoming special session of the state legislature called for by the Governor to consider the state’s $650 million budget shortfall.

Frentzel said the department is not anticipating loss of the previously appropriated funds for the San Juan projects but noted that the any funding decision rests with the state legislature and governor.

One suggested method of covering some of the state budget shortfall includes recouping previously appropriated capital outlay funds that have yet to be spent.

However, Linda Kehoe, Capital Outlay Analyst for the state’s Legislative Finance Committee tells Outdoors New Mexico that the San Juan River’s funding appears safe for the time being.

“We’re not looking at those (from last year) right now,” she said. “But I would suggest that they (NMDGF) get a plan and start spending because as soon as this next session starts, we’ll be looking again.”

Even under a worst-case scenario, the San Juan projects appear to remain a priority.

“The Department views these projects as important,” says Frentzel. “And (we) will have to evaluate our budget situation and ability to move forward on them should the current funding be lost.”

And in the future, the department may have an additional revenue stream to rely upon rather than the generosity of the legislature to complete projects on the San Juan River.

Frentzel said the department is in the process of drafting proposed legislation, as directed by the state game commission, to authorize an additional habitat stamp for those who fish the quality waters of the San Juan River.

That idea came out of public discussions last spring regarding ways to improve fishing conditions on the San Juan River (see related article).