Magdalena is taking over the Hop Canyon Fire Station, after a vote of the village council and at the request of Socorro County.

The council approved an intergovernmental agreement between Socorro County and the Village of Magdalena for fire services; the county requested that the village take over the Hop Canyon Fire Station, according to Mayor Richard Rumpf.

Rumpf said that the Magdalena Fire Department is usually first to respond to the area.
Trustee Donna Dawson asked the village attorney if such a takeover was legal since the area is outside of the village limits. Attorney Randall Van Vleck said that it was not illegal for the village to operate outside of the city limits, but they might want to put certain agreements in place so that Magdalena does not stretch its resources too thin. Rumpf, who is also the Magdalena Fire Chief, said that because they are already responding to the area, taking over the station and its assets would not force the village to take on any extra responsibility. The trustees voted to approve the county’s proposal.

Former captain of the Hop Canyon Fire Department and resident of the area, Rich Esposito, congratulated the village for stepping up and taking on the role but said that he worked there for years in difficult conditions which included no appreciation from the community. He also said that the addressing system is “totally screwed up” and that when he was volunteering at the fire station, they tried for years to get it fixed with no success.

In other business, the council discussed and approved the request to use the Lodger’s Tax to pay for advertising.

Public comment included an update about Magdalena Schools from Superintendent Glenn Haven.

Another community member asked why the local shooting range was closed. The mayor responded by saying that the village recently learned through mapping that the shooting range is currently on private property. He said that they would contact the owners of the property and try to get everything resolved because there “is no other location suitable.”

Tamara Bicknell-Lombardi