By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. The Hatch chile smell is still in the air and the summer still has plenty of weekend left. Rio Rancho and its neighbors pack Aug. 14-16 with free concerts, local markets, community traditions and one of the biggest free family events of the year. Friday:

By Kevin Hendricks and Julian Paras, The Paper. — The iconic dinos and giraffes are getting a new life, and so is a shuttered Albuquerque classic. Scott Salvas, the Rio Rancho brewer behind Brew Lab 101, is resurrecting the long-dormant Putt-Putt Golf and Games course at 5100 San Mateo Blvd.

Submitted by By Adam Prior, Republican nominee for New Mexico House District 44 New Mexico’s doctor shortage is not abstract. It is a family waiting months for a specialist, a senior driving hours for care or a rural hospital struggling to stay open. Medical-malpractice policy affects patients’ rights and whether

By Kevin Hendricks and Julian Paras, The Paper. — U.S. Rep. Melanie Stansbury, a Democrat from New Mexico, toured Roadrunner Food Bank on Aug. 10, warning that federal cuts have stripped food assistance from more than 21,000 New Mexicans, about half of them children, since October. Stansbury said the drop

Submitted by Kevin Shelton, Sandoval County Our community has watched Sheriff Jesse Casaus put the good of Sandoval County and its neighbors ahead of partisanship. The Democratic Party responded by blasting him for endorsing Victor Rodriguez, claiming the sheriff had finally shown his “true colors.” I believe the sheriff made

Corner to Corner by Columnist Diane D. Denish — Recently, I listened to the historical fiction novel The Frozen River, based on the life of Martha Ballard. Her life is chronicled in The Midwife’s Diary, which won the Pulitzer Prize in 1991. From 1785 to 1812, Ballard recorded the weather

By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Corrales’ most unconventional election is in full swing, and this year’s crop of candidates — a rooster, a mini highland calf and a dachshund duo among them — has already raised nearly $4,000 for Corrales Animal Services, the village’s no-kill shelter. Fourteen animal candidates filed

By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Sandoval County high school juniors and seniors have two more weeks to apply for the Junior County Treasurer Program, which now comes with a $5,000 scholarship for each student who completes it. The Treasurer’s Office extended the deadline to Aug. 21 so students returning from

By Rodd Cayton Citing a desire to ensure the community is kept up to date, village councilors in Corrales have delayed an official update to the uniform traffic code. The code had already been posted, but councilors added changes they felt the public should have time to review. Village Attorney

By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Rio Rancho and its neighbors don’t need a headliner to fill a weekend. This one comes loaded with New Mexican tradition, back-to-back Bernalillo concerts and three nights of live music in the City of Vision — plus the smell of green chile in the air.

By Rodd Cayton As law enforcement agencies across the country work to bond with the communities they serve, local departments are offering a variety of ways to reinforce that connection on Aug. 4. National Night Out began in 1984 and takes place the second Tuesday in August in hundreds of

Submitted by Judith Gordon, Democratic Party of Sandoval County Secretary Democratic Sheriff Jesse James Casaus’s endorsement of the Republican candidate for Sandoval County sheriff (Rio Rancho News, July 29) is not a surprising political pivot. It is the inevitable action of a man who openly mocks the values of the

By Rodd Cayton It’s not just another birthday trip to the mall — this time, it’s the mall’s birthday. This weekend, Cottonwood Mall is celebrating its 30th anniversary with a party Friday, three decades to the day the shopping center opened its doors. On July 31, 1996, Albuquerque’s Westside finally

By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Sandoval County Sheriff Jesse James Casaus, a Democrat barred by term limits from seeking reelection, is backing Republican Victor Rodriguez to succeed him — passing over Democratic nominee John Paul Trujillo in a rare cross-party break from a sitting sheriff. In a letter of endorsement,

By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. The New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD) faces a lawsuit following the July incident of a 15-year-old U.S. citizen traveling alone toward the Mexican border. The state agency maintains that its decision to pursue reunification with the youth’s mother took legal precedence, while

By Rodd Cayton A Corrales baby is expected to make a full recovery after reportedly being left in a hot car for hours, police report. The 5-month-old’s father is facing a felony charge of child abuse in the July 20 incident. Police Chief Victor Mangiacapra told the Corrales Comment the

By Rodd Cayton A Corrales resident has been named head of the village’s public school. Albuquerque Public Schools has hired Ryan Kettler, whose career has spanned roles including superintendent, principal, and adjunct professor, as the new principal at Corrales K-8 School. He has worked extensively in area school districts, including

By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Sandoval County has a new Assessor. Commissioners appointed Edward Olona to the post at their July 22 meeting, filling the vacancy left by Linda Gallegos’ resignation amid a controversy over her collecting two taxpayer-funded salaries at once. Olona was sworn in on the spot. Commissioner

By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. New Mexico could leapfrog nearly every other state in choosing the next Democratic presidential nominee. The DNC’s Rules and Bylaws Committee voted Friday to recommend New Mexico as the fourth state to vote in the 2028 primary calendar, putting Hispanic, Native American and border-state voters

By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. New Mexico shoppers could lose their right to know which household products contain “forever chemicals” if a coalition of national trade groups gets its way in federal court. State Rep. Kathleen Cates, D-Rio Rancho, fired back this week with a letter to eight industry associations

By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. The City of Vision keeps the summer rolling this weekend with a lineup that runs from charity bingo to Latin Grammy winners — and the options only get better if you’re willing to make the drive across the river. Friday night: Southern rock, mariachi and

By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — Pueblo governors joined New Mexico’s entire congressional delegation Wednesday to defend federal protections around the Greater Chaco landscape, saying thousands of cultural sites could be at risk if the Trump administration rolls back the current safeguards. All Pueblo Council of Governors Chairman Joey Sanchez

Submitted by Rep. Kathleen Cates, District 44 We live in a time where nearly everything requires an app or an account on a website. But what would you do if you simply couldn’t access the resource you needed? Imagine you log in to a state-run website to update your health

Submitted by Frank James Smith Jr. Every ten years, following the U.S. Census, election district maps are redrawn to reflect population changes. Those boundaries determine who represents us on the Sandoval County Commission for the next decade, making the process one of local government’s most important responsibilities. In 2021, Sandoval

By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper. Horse lovers can now grab tickets to the 2026 Horseshoes & Heels Gala, the annual fundraiser keeping rescued and rehabilitated horses fed, trained and cared for at the Stables at Tamaya. The Nov. 28 gala at Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort & Spa kicks off with