11.7.3.030 Findings

The Council hereby declares that:

(a) the Pueblo de San Ildefonso has invested in its Wastewater Collection efforts and continues to see the need to upgrade its current and outdated facility; and

(b) the project has sought and received funding, had preliminary engineering completed and generally accepted as a Wastewater System that would be Regional in Santa Fe County (County); and

(c) the County would need to be a major party and owner in the System to include the County providing the coordination and funding construction of the collection system infrastructure throughout El Rancho which would connect to the regional treatment plan; and

(d) the Preliminary Engineering Report (PER) developed between 2016 and 2018 is built around this concept of a regional wastewater system that will serve the homes and the tribal buildings of the Pueblo de San Ildefonso (approx. 130 connections) and the homes of El Rancho (approx. 600 connections); and

(e) the PER, as developed, entails a $54M project, of which the County would be required to contribute $40.6M for their portion of the collection system, plus whatever portion would correspond to the County via a cost-sharing arrangement for the construction of the proposed wastewater treatment facility at the centrally located Blue Dove site; and

(f) other County obligations would include any analysis and review so as to insert the project into their priorities; and

(g) eventually, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the County and the Pueblo would be required, similar to that between the County and the Pueblo of Pojoaque for the development of their wastewater treatment plant; and

(h) the MOU, would have cost-sharing commitments as well as roles and responsibilities of each party in the regional system as it did in the Agreement with the Pueblo of Pojoaque; and

(i) the PER assumed comprehensive participation by the County including the County achieving all governance hurdles and the negotiation of the MOU; and

(j) until the County executes its full responsibility toward the system, the cost of design, construction and operation of a treatment facility will be borne solely by the Pueblo; and,

(k) an alternative would be to break up what is referred to as Phase 2 in the PER into two sub phases, 2a and 2b; with 2a focused on sending wastewater collected from the homes and businesses of the Pueblo South area, currently on individual septic systems, directly to the existing lagoons, and 2b would entail construction of a force main up to the Blue Dove site once the County executes its governance responsibilities; and

(l) the Pueblo system will include certain basic engineering consideration toward a Regional System and the Collection System for the Pueblo which could largely remain as designed for either a regional treatment plant at the Blue Dove site, or a treatment facility adjacent to the existing lagoons that serves Pueblo residents and Pueblo businesses for now; and

(m) Pueblo leadership understands the auspices upon which funding and support has been given by the New Mexico Legislature and the executive toward a Regional System; and

(n) in building a current system, the Pueblo intends to abide by the spirit and execution of a Regional Wastewater System with such allowances as described above; and

(o) Pueblo leadership understands that a streamlined approach of a system for Pueblo residents and businesses is needed until full County participation.