PRIORIZATION

McKinley County prioritizes projects based on needs identified by County staff and the residents of McKinley County.  The priority list is ultimately presented by the County Manager and approved by the County Commission.  These projects can be generated through the County's Comprehensive Plan, past Infrastructure Capital Improvement Plan (ICIP), strategic plans, Department priorities, the budget process, and from public input meetings and Commission meetings.

 

Public input is requested through public hearings conducted in Spring and Summer.  A recent condition based on the County's Non-subdivision Road Policy is that all projects need to meet for road projects to be listed as a active or top priority is that express right-of-way needs to be held by a non-Federal public entity.

 

Project Priority Level #1:  The projects determined to be of the highest level priority are projects that have completed a high number of project readiness criteria, including planning, design, clearances, or other pre-construction work has begun.  An investment of time, resources, and/or funding have been contributed including the solicitation or securing of matching funds for a phase of the project.  Also included are projects of urgent need that need to be fast=tracked to address a critical need, health, and/or public safety issue.

 

Project Priority Level #2:  The next priority level included projects that are mandated, in need of attention, or strategic projects to advance the quality of life and opportunities of residents.  Some readiness factors have been completed however the projects need funding or are not top priorities at this time.

 

Project Priority Level #3:  This priority level includes projects for which right-of-ways are being sought, surveys being done, lack land ownership, or are building projects which are in the development phase where architectural plans are under development. Some projects are of lesser priority at this time but will increase if not addressed. Projects for later years are to plan and prepare for construction, repair, maintenance for current facilities, and purchase or replacement of infrastructure equipment that has met its useful life span.

 

The County also includes project ideas and concepts that need to be developed and fleshed out, but are congruent to long-term trends and needs of County residents. 

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Projects by Type (Internal Vetting Processes)

Fire & Rescue Investments have been prioritized by the Fire Tax Advisory Committee funded by the quarter percent Fire Excise Tax and the NM State Fire Protection Funds for new buildings, equipment, and upgrading of existing facilities.

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Road Projects are prioritized annually through recommendations by the County Road Superintendent, which are reviewed and approved by the Commission.

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Water and Wastewater Projects are annually reviewed by the County's contracted engineer, who advises the County Water Board on readiness - most of these projects are contained on separate ICIPs by the individual water association. However, the County does support them in Santa Fe and Washington, DC, and has engaged a regionalization project to help increase economies-of-scale to promote long-term sustainability for these small systems. The County supports the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project and is also supportive of the improvement and development of water and wastewater facilities for all water associations, communities, and user types.

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Economic Development and Health Care projects are usually vetted on a case-by-case basis by the County Manager, County Commission and outside consulting agencies.

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County Facility Improvement and New Building Projects are usually vetted and planned by the County Manager and Commission, based on recommendations from the County's Facility Manager.

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County Facility Improvement Projects (for non-County operated building) are usually vetted and planned by the County Manager and Commission, based on recommendations from the County's Facility Manager and the third-party entity and its staff.  These include Ramah and Thoreau Senior Centers, rural health centers, hospital, Community Pantry, and several others.

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Regional Projects are extremely important to the County, as we recognize catalytic projects like Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project and the four-laning of US491 only get accomplished through partnerships and a number entities coming together to advocate for their development.

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The County project collection and prioritization process is a 365-day process. There are many avenues in which projects get incorporated on the County's ICIP:

1. Projects or concerns voiced at County Commission meetings,

2. Meetings with the County Manager on potential or pending projects,

3. Meetings with County staff, and

4. Projects that are sponsored by area Legislators.

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Below is an example of a project prioritization matrix that can need compare projects across the various project types.