New Bosque Farms clerk, Michael Limon, passionate for public

BOSQUE FARMS — The new clerk/administrator for the village of Bosque Farms knew he was facing a challenge when he walked in the door this spring.

Conflicts between the previous clerk/administrator, Vernon Abeita, and village employees led to Abeita resigning from the position and several key employees either leaving or being terminated.

“I knew there was a lot of turmoil during the tenure of the last three clerks,” said Michael Limon, who stepped into the position in late April. “I knew them a bit and they were very passionate about the legacy and history of the village. I had heard so much about the village from (previous clerk) Gayle (Jones). She was a key mentor to me. I thought if I could turn things around and get things going, it would mean a lot to me and honor my mentor for all the hard work she put into the village.

“Seeing what was happening in Bosque Farms reminded me about what I love about this job — helping the community, protecting employees and doing things the right way.”

Even though the village was missing employees such as a planning and zoning officer and wastewater operator, Limon said the situation gave him the opportunity to build his own team.

Limon said the current staff — both old and new — is passionate about their community, their home.

“Almost 100 percent live in the village, and want to repair that relationship with the public. Yes, there was turmoil and turnover. They want to make sure to maintain the reputation of the village and its motto, ‘Preserving Rural America.’ They don’t want to see services dwindle because of one bad apple or one terrible scenario.”

Limon began his career as a public servant in 2016 when he was hired as a temporary office worker for the city of Sunland Park. He worked in the purchasing department, handling the city’s purchase orders. He then moved to a position in the clerk’s office, where he took on the task of public information officer.

“There was a lack of communication from the city administration. The public felt the employees were hiding information. They were doing the best they could with the technology they had,” he said. “I was asked to help bridge the gap and get information out. The first years were exciting; a lot of the work I did was geared to public outreach.”

After seven years with Sunland Park, Limon left the city as its deputy clerk to take the clerk’s position in the village of Tijeras in 2022. During his time in Tijeras, Limon said he accomplished two things he was very proud of — a social media policy and an employee handbook that established a formal salary schedule.

“The social media policy was the first of its kind in the state. It was in regards to how political officials operated in a capacity separate from the (village),” he said. “The policy made sure elected officials set up their own social media pages separate from the city. It was the same for employees. Their thoughts and opinions are not part of the city’s. It kept free speech intact for the employees and officials and, at the end of the day, protected the city and clerk’s office.”

Prior to establishing an employee handbook, employees with the village of Tijeras received raises whenever officials felt like awarding them.

“By giving them a salary schedule, employee reviews, a lot of employees there are now at healthy rates. There’s transparency in job descriptions and who is responsible for what,” Limon said. “That was a big joy for me.”

While he originally studied music education with the plan to become a professor teaching trumpet, Limon said he ended up in the career path of clerk because he always wanted to be involved in community work.

“I’ve always cared about local government and community. It resonated with me,” he said.

As the day-to-day operations of the village smooth out, the clerk/administrator said one of his first priorities will be a thorough review of the village’s master plan and determining what direction the current administration wants to take.

“I’ve found that when local government strays away from its master plan, or doesn’t have one, when they start skipping from project to project, the budget can’t support the projects and funds grow short,” he said. “The second priority — and it’s a near dead tie with the first — is to begin addressing ordinances that hinder and keep the village outdated.”

Limon explained job titles are tied into ordinances, which he says is not providing flexibility for employees and how they can grow in these positions.

“We need a more modern and workplace friendly handbook for the village to make onboarding and offboarding easier and avoid some of the personnel issues that occurred in the last couple of years,” he said.

In his public-facing capacity, Limon said his job is to let the public know what the vision is of the mayor and council.

“If I’m not around, I’ll be doing my best to communicate through email and phone to keep communications open,” he said. “I want the public to know I’m not just a name and title that wears a suit on Thursdays. There is a person behind the glasses. Questions will be answered.”