Year in Review: Eddy County's top five stories
Other topics in news caught the eye of Eddy County readers.
Year in Review: Eddy County's top five stories Other topics in news caught the eye of Eddy County readers. Check out this story on CurrentArgus.com: https://c-cargus.co/1R006Eg
Jessica Onsurez, Carlsbad Current-Argus Published 4:33 p.m. MT Dec. 30, 2015
The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in Carlsbad, NM.(Photo: Photo Courtesy of the U.S. Department of Energy)
CARLSBAD -- While coverage on the oil and gas industry was a daily occurrence, other topics in the news caught the eye of Eddy County readers and helped shape debate and action in 2015.
From sports to education, the following are our top five stories of the year, in no particular order.
Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Recovery
Kitty litter became the prime suspect in the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant blowup, when a report from the U.S. Department of Energy said misread notes led scientists to use the wrong brand of litter.
Recovery efforts at the facility were slow going into 2015, prompting some officials to criticize recovery efforts, but WIPP leaders said that the road to full recovery would take time and caution.
Those efforts were multi-layered, from ensuring the function of the hoist in the salt mine, to clearing and cleaning of air filters in the areas where workers reentered the underground mine.
Officials announced in July they would not meet their March 2016 reopening target date even though by November, 60 percent of the underground facility was reopened.
And money for the recovery efforts was a prime issue in the recovery debate. Eddy County is expecting a portion of $73 million from fines given to the Department of Energy by the state. WIPP will receive an additional $82 million to complete recovery efforts under the new spending bill.
In December rumors of strike among WIPP workers were confirmed, but the strike was put off when United Steelworkers reached an agreement with Nuclear Waste Partnership.
The recovery effort is expected to be a lightning rod of a topic in 2016.
CARLSBAD CURRENT ARGUS
WIPP workers accept new contract
New Mexico vs. Robert Earley
A jury found Robert Earley, 33, of Texas guilty of the murder of his girlfriend Emily Lambert after only a few hours of deliberation in April.
A Fifth Judicial District Attorney sentenced Earley to life in prison, the only sentence allowed in a first degree murder/kidnapping verdict.
Testimony by state witnesses, including that of experts in the office of the Medical Investigator, revealed that Lambert was alive when Earley tied a rope around her neck and dragged her about 500 yards to a remote barn where she was found four days after being reported missing.
Prosecutors told jury members that Lambert had been severely beaten and unclothed before Earley struck her over the head with an air pump, killing her.
Lambert, a mother of two, was 30-years-old at the time of her death and had only been dating Earley for a few months prior to her death.
Earley was employed in the oilfields of Eddy County and living in Carlsbad at the time of the murder. Earley's lawyers tried unsuccessfully to convince the jury that the amount of alcohol he had drunk the night of the murder was a mitigating factor in Lambert's death.
Robert Early guilty of murder, sentenced to life in prison
Carlsbad Cavemen Head Football Coach Gary Bradley
Carlsbad Municipal Schools announced in December 2014 that it would be searching for a new head coach to replace then Head Coach Ron Arrington.
Carlsbad junior fullback Mark Sonora dashes to the right side against Clovis junior strong safety Skylar Wadas in the first quarter Friday, Nov. 6. The Cavemen went 1-9 this season. (Photo: Matt Hollinshead--Current-Argus)
In February, Carlsbad Schools chose to rely on New Mexico Football royalty, hiring Gary Bradley.
Bradley is the son of Jim Bradley Sr., and his brother Mike Bradley is head coach of the Mayfield Trojans.
Prior to his job in Carlsbad, Bradley took the Farmington Scorpions to their first state title in over 60 years in 2013.
But Bradley was inheriting a Cavemen team that went 2-8 in 2014, which he admitted had some tough work ahead.
Carlsbad Caveman started the 2015 season on a losing streak that held until late in the season,
Despite several attempts to get the offense up to par with expectations, balancing injuries and moving player positions the Cavemen went 1-9 overall, 1-2 in District play.
However, several late season losses were in win-able games, giving fans and the team hope for next season.
Bradley said at the end of the season that he was looking to Spring 2016 to really pull the team together.
Football notebook: Bradley discusses first win
Jefferson Montessori Academy
What began as a long list of complaints against Jefferson Montessori Academy's CEO Cindy Holguin by teachers in March, ended with Carlsbad Municipal Schools taking control of the charter school.
Holguin, who was accused of creating a hostile work environment and possibly submitting false student counts to the Public Education Department, was placed on leave as an internal investigation was launched.
School principal Julie Jones was also placed on leave, and later the spokeswoman for the group of teachers who made the initial accusations against Holguin was also placed on administrative leave.
In the midst of the investigation, an interim principal was assigned to the school, but budget concerns caused the district to place an assistant principal from another school in the position.
Carlsbad Schools still maintains their administrative position over JMA pending the incorporation of suggested changes, updates to the charter and procedures and policies for teacher discipline.
JMA hired Stacey Frakes at the beginning of the 2015-2016 school year to fill the vacant position, and hopes to turn over control of the school to a newly elected Board of Trustees by January 2016.
JMA forced to cut principal due to extra expenses
Carlsbad development, Water park approval
The development of Carlsbad has had a serious of stops and starts over the year.
In July, the Carlsbad City Council approved a $3 million outdoor water park project which was expected to boost the amount of money staying in the area from tourists.
In December, council members announced that the park would be slightly expanded, going beyond the estimated cost, at a special board meeting. Construction is expected to be completed in May 2016.
Residents also cheered the opening of a Buffalo Wild Wings, though several weeks behind projected opening dates, as well as the opening of three new hotels in the housing strapped city.
Construction on a CVS Pharmacy, however, is stalled by an underground telecommunications cable, whose removal has left the finish date for that project wide open.
Cascade Entertainment LLC, a consortium of local business owners, purchased a portion of the Cascades at Carlsbad in order to move development of the project forward.
Allen Theaters had originally planned to place an eight-screen theater at the Cascades but pulled out, choosing instead to remodel their current location into a six-screen theater. Lucy's Mexicali Restaurant has however, moved forward with plans to put a new restaurant and bar in the development.
The slides that will be constructed for the new Aquatic Complex will feature three different slides. One slid will be more than 40 feet high. (Photo: Photo Courtesy of the City of Carlsbad)
Water park bid will be finalized on Tuesday
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