We would like to congratulate Ken Ahrens as being selected as the new chief of the Carlsbad Fire Department. Ahrens had been serving as Assistant Fire Chief since 2021. He was first hired here in 2010 as a Firefighter/EMT and later served as a Staff Development Officer and Fire Marshall before his promotion to Assistant Fire Chief.
Ahrens replaces former Chief Rick Lopez, who retired at the end of the year. Lopez first joined the City of Carlsbad as a Firefighter/EMT-1 in 2003, and we wish him the best. We know Chief Ahrens will do an excellent job and look forward to working with him in this important position. Recently, Chief Ahrens brought several trainees by City Hall to visit, and we’re thrilled to see the Carlsbad Fire Department continuing to draw excellent employees.
Openings for the City of Carlsbad are posted at https://cityofcarlsbadnm.com/employment-opportunities/ and we hope you’ll take a look every now and then.
We also have a new administrative assistant in the Mayor’s Office in Wanda Aguilar, who is taking the place of Cheyenne Methola. Many of you know Wanda from her time serving as Assistant Director of the Riverwalk Recreation Center. She has been a great member of the City’s workforce for a long time, and we look forward to working closely with Wanda.
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Are you interested in the downtown area? The Pearl of the Pecos Arts and Cultural Districts is holding a public input meeting from 4:30-6 p.m. Jan. 19 at the Carlsbad Museum, 418 W. Fox Street. The meeting is open to members of the community to share their thoughts and ideas on how to improve the arts and cultural resources in the downtown district, but feedback for the community as a whole is also appreciated.
The meeting is part of the district’s cultural economic development plan, feedback and discussion from this community meeting will help shape the content of the plan. If you are interested in more information or have ideas to share but unable to attend the meeting please contact Kat Davis, 575-628-3768 or email director@pearlofthepecos.org
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On Tuesday night, the Carlsbad Cavemen varsity basketball team beat Artesia, 62-49. The Cavemen are now 8-6 for the year. They play Los Lunas on Jan. 7. The Cavegirls beat Artesia, 52-41 on Tuesday night and now hold a 12-2 record. The Cavegirls will play Portales on Friday. The Cavegirls are currently ranked 7th in the state.
Sincerely,
Carlsbad Mayor Dale Janway