Please note: This is an unofficial summary provided for general informational purposes only and is not intended to represent the official board meeting minutes.
The meeting opened Tuesday afternoon at the Lodge with a full agenda and a healthy turnout. The outgoing Board approved the agenda and moved quickly into updates, with the usual mix of business items and community concerns.
One of the main themes (and the topic that kept circling back around) was the dumpster situation. GM Wendy Case explained that Southwest Disposal had temporarily stopped exchanging dumpsters because of a billing mix-up. The invoices TWSD received listed a payment address in Dallas (the company’s headquarters), and that apparently caused a processing delay of about 3–4 weeks. Once staff were able to reach Southwest Disposal by phone, they were told payments should be sent to the Alamogordo office instead. Otis Price drove the payment down to the Alamogordo office, and dumpster exchanges have resumed.
There was also a quick reminder about the after-hours phone line: if calling after hours, it helps to leave a voicemail so staff can return the call.
Treasurer Duckett read the District’s account balances, and the Board approved minutes from the December 9, 2025 Regular Meeting and the January 5, 2026 Special Meeting without discussion.
After all old business was taken care of, they moved on into the transition from the outgoing Board to the new Board.
The outgoing Board vacated their seats and the newly elected directors were sworn in. There was a last-minute change in who would administer the oath, which caused some confusion, but things moved forward anyway. Cesar Ramos (a current candidate for Otero County Sheriff) administered the oath of office to the newly elected directors: Jesse Duckett, Caleb Flora, Joshua McCurdy, Otis Price, and Derenda Robb. The oath signatures were acknowledged and notarized by the board Secretary. Terms of office are based on the November 2025 election results, with the highest vote-getters assigned the longer terms. So according to the Otero County Clerk:
- Otis Price has a 4 year term
- Joshua McCurdy has a 4 year term
- Caleb Flora has a 2 year term
- Jesse Duckett has a 2 year term
- Derenda Robb has a 2 year term
After that, the Board elected officers for the new year. The results announced were:
- Otis Price elected Chairman
- Caleb Flora elected Vice Chair
- Joshua McCurdy elected Treasurer
- Nan Thorell confirmed as Secretary
Quick follow-up note – this came up after the meeting. Questions were raised about whether Mr. Ramos was authorized to administer the oaths of office. Out of an abundance of caution, the District plans to redo the oaths and the officer appointments at a properly authorized swearing-in, so everything is clean and fully documented going forward.
Moving on, the meeting went on to address a few items tied to the Open Meetings Act (OMA). The Board voted to rescind last year’s OMA Resolution 2024/2025-001, explaining that this is a needed step before adopting a new resolution for the current year. That action passed unanimously.
Next was the discussion about meeting schedules going forward. There was general agreement to keep the regular meetings to the second Tuesday of each month, but at 5:00 or 5:30 p.m. (instead of 4:00 p.m.), mainly to help more residents attend after work. There was also discussion about adding a monthly Work Session on the last Saturday of each month at 10:00 a.m. Since the schedule and OMA resolution still needed to be finalized, a Special Meeting was planned for Tuesday, January 20, 2026 to complete the OMA resolution and confirm the meeting schedule.
Two items were tabled:
- Formal adoption of the new OMA Resolution for the year was tabled until the Special Meeting.
- A proposed monthly transfer from savings to checking (to help cover the dumpster bill) was tabled until the next meeting.
That second item sparked extensive discussion, with both Board members and residents talking through the dumpster situation from several angles, not just day-to-day service problems, but also how the costs should be handled going forward. There was conversation about whether the District should continue with the current provider or look at alternatives, and a few people raised the bigger-picture question of whether Otero County might be a better fit to handle solid waste services instead of TWSD. Public comments were received from Josh Ramsey, Tiffany Harter, Tony McWilliams, Steve Schawe, Don Wiklund, and Clark Clement. The Board voted unanimously to table the item for now.
The meeting also included a first reading of proposed bylaw changes. With the Bylaws Committee absent, the proposed changes were read aloud by the board Secretary. That led into a handful of audience questions that touched on the District’s financial pressures including concerns about funds for spare parts, legal costs, and the budget posting. GM Case estimated legal expenses at approximately $25,000–$30,000 and explained that the budget had been posted but temporarily removed for chart adjustments. It was also reported that the District is currently locked out of the DFA site until a treasurer is appointed for the new year.
Before adjournment, Director McCurdy encouraged everyone to work together for the benefit of Timberon despite the challenges that come with being a small community, and that drew applause from the audience. The meeting wrapped up at 5:12 p.m.