By Linda Burke, Town of Edgewood
There was no denying that complaints over property rights, roads and feeling ignored by the county had become frequent topics of conversation at the Homestead Restaurant, everyone’s central gathering spot. Mike and Debbie Hoy’s cafe, famous for their homemade pies, occupied a portion of the retired Edgewood Schoolhouse, a 1940s-era project built by the community with handmade adobe bricks.
It was the mid-1990s, and in another portion of the old schoolhouse, local realtors Jeannie Rathbun and Ray Seagers talked of Edgewood’s need for an identity to gain county recognition. The idea grew and as more residents engaged, talk moved toward local control and incorporation. Given Edgewood’s history of hard-working, self-reliant homesteading families, it made sense.
The community group included Max Hill, Larry Keaty, Howard Calkins, Frank Lasky and Gary Chemistruck (if you know your Edgewood history, those names will be familiar). The organizers began to coalesce around the idea of forming a town, and bylaws for the Edgewood Community Homeowners Organization (ECHO) were drawn up in the living room of Chester and Nancy Hill in 1997. Planning moved forward in earnest with ECHO hiring an attorney to inform the incorporation process, lively community meetings and door-to-door petition signing.
Not everyone wanted to see a town formed at Edgewood, some were happy with the status quo. As the story goes, opposition came largely from those who already had political influence with county government and others were not convinced the town could support itself. The latter was founded in economic reality since a municipality runs largely on a small piece of the taxes collected on local retail and service transactions.
At that time, Edgewood was home to a couple dozen mom-and-pop businesses and a rickety metal bridge at Interstate 40 that would visibly sway overhead as one drove under it on a two-lane Highway 344. Back then, Exit 187 was where travelers stopped for food and fuel at JT Turner’s Trails West Dairy Queen or Stuckey’s, and Tony Jaramillo’s Service Station offered gas, auto repairs, and friendly chats amongst residents and travelers alike. Of course, the locals knew a John Brooks Market was about a mile north at Dinkle Road, and Radio Shack was just over on Route 66, but to visitors, it seemed quite clear that livestock outnumbered residents in this amiable blip on the map.
What wasn’t so apparent, though, was that Edgewood was home to many Sandia National Laboratories employees. ECHO became an unexpected alliance of ranchers, realtors, and rocket scientists — the perfect mix of landowners and long-timers, orators who could jaw with the best of them to promote potential and undeterred professionals accustomed to project management and regulations.
By 1998, ECHO’s efforts set the stage for an election. With proposed town boundaries based on population density and locals’ desire to be in or out of the town, the Edgewood map was anything but neat and tidy. Yet, it seemed a worthwhile compromise to respect property owners who were not in favor of forming a town and still include the businesses that would be needed to sustain it.
Residents cast their ballots in a tiny building known as the Edgewood Community Center, a name that implied stature where instead stood a humble, thousand-square-foot structure. Cautious excitement hung over the day until a final count of 136-29 revealed that incorporation had succeeded. Edgewood would become New Mexico’s 102nd municipality!
In May 1999, the community again voted, this time to elect the town’s first mayor and council. Unopposed, retired systems analyst Larry Keaty became Edgewood’s first mayor. The first three council seats were filled by Howard Calkins, Chuck Ring and Bob Stearley. The final seat, in true Edgewood fashion, was a cliffhanger — a three-way tie, each with 55 votes — decided the next day in an Old West-style draw for high card. Gary Chemistruck prevailed with the seven of Spades. And so, on July 1, 1999, the town was born — with its first offices in, you guessed it, the old Edgewood Schoolhouse.The Town of Edgewood has grown from 600 initial citizens to more than 6,000 since incorporation. With help from volunteers and local businesses, the town is hosting a summer of celebrations to mark its 25th anniversary. Founders Day, July 1, will bring together past and present town leaders and elected officials from throughout New Mexico to mark the historic town milestone. Details for all events celebrating the anniversary are at Edgewood.com.