Capitol staff maintains the round house during the session – Santa Fe New Mexican

Although they usually do not receive individual recognition, legislative leaders regularly praise the collective group of people working in the round house.

“Special thanks to the staff and all the people in the building,” said Senator Michael Padila, D-Albuquerque, at the end of the Senate session on Friday.

“I will not start naming the groups, but I thank you for all your help by keeping trains working on time, all the staff in the whole building,” he said.

Shawna Casebier, Director of the Legislative Board Service, which is the establishment of an agency for the preparation and legal research of the legislature, but also controls the security, care and maintenance of the round house and surrounding property, said that people working in the building, are essential.

“Our incredible team of staff from year -round and sessions works tirelessly, often behind the scenes to keep the capitol safe, clean and welcoming for lawmakers, staff and thousands of visitors every day,” she said.

“Their dedication is an integral part of the operations of this 60-day session and it is an honor for me to work with similar hardworking and dear people,” added Casebier.

Construction superintendent Rafael Baka called his 52 staff “the best”.

“I’m just so blessed to work here because I work with the best of the best,” he said.

Every day, Claudia Diaz, 51, registers between 7,000 and 9,000 steps in his work in the round house.

But during a legislative session, its number climbs to 25,000.

“Sometimes more than 5,000 people come to Capitol for a day,” she said in Spanish.

Diaz, who has worked in the Capitol’s Test Service for more than 16 years and is now a leader, said the increase in traffic during a session means that she and her colleagues need to strengthen their game from cleaning toilets every 15 minutes Until regularly until regular wipes of the door handles and other surfaces and emptying trash bins.

She and her colleagues are proud of maintaining one of the most emblematic buildings in the country clean.

“Tourists say,” This is the most clean capitol we have ever visited, “she said.

While maintaining a round house is her main priority during the day, Silva said her own housework sometimes occupies a background, especially during a session.

“When I get home, I can barely go,” she said.

Diaz, who speaks English but is more comfortable in his native language, said he enjoyed the excitement that comes with a legislative session. But her job would be too demanding to cope if the building buzzes with so much activity all year long, she said.

“If it was the whole year, I don’t think I would survive,” she said, laughing.

As a technician of the leading plant in Capitol Miguel Mora, 43 years old, he said his job was to make sure that everyone in the building was comfortable.

If it is too hot or too cold or there is a problem with water, Mora is the person to solve the problem.

“Here are our laws and preservation [lawmakers] It is convenient and on the road to maintain the government to work effectively, ”he said. “We love to think that [plant technicians play a] Quite an important obligation and we have a lot of pride in our duties. “

Mora, which carries a thermometer gun, wherever it goes, constantly monitors the temperature in different parts of the building.

“Most of the time we work very minimally in employment; there are not many people in the building for much of the year,” he said. “But for both [a 30-day or 60-day session]This is a hive of things that happen. This is the most challenging during the session, when obviously people are flooded into the building. It is as if the circus that comes to the city in a sense, so we just want to make sure that all our operations are in order. “

Mora said the round house, which has four levels, has recently undergone a “huge upgrade” of the heating and cooling system, which improved the temperature of the building.

“Like anyone who has been in Capitol, he knows it’s too cold or too hot in most places and we have made a wonderful new upgrade, so we hope to minimize all the problems that move forward because it is far more – Effective, “He said.” It was a great upgrade, expensive, but in the end it will support people more comfortable. “

Mora has been working in the round house for eight years and said he is still learning something new about this unique building. “

“I have a very unique relationship with the building,” he said. “I really love the building. It becomes like part of your family in a sense. … It’s just a great place to be able to live your daily nine to five. I am never too distracted to come to come, for To come to come to come working on Monday morning.

Here’s how Daniel Koyne, 71 -year -old, emergency medical technician, describes his role in Capitol.

“We are equipped … to deal with almost any type of emergency medical attention,” he said.

“People have needs and you have equipment, medicines and skills that can handle these needs, so you just take care of people,” he said.

Koyne, who works only in the Capitol during the legislative sessions he has done since 2018, said he and his colleagues are dealing with a wide variety of medical problems, from slipping and applying to poor digestion.

“We have not yet had a birth, but we are equipped to deal with it,” he said. “We have obstetrics on the spot.”

In addition to processing emergency conversations in the building, including a heartfelt case during the first two weeks of the session, Koyne said that he and other first responses have a “discreet group of people who come every day to check their vital life” on advice their doctors.

“We will check their blood pressure, check their blood sugar, their heart rate, their oxygenation, all this on a daily basis,” he said.

Coyne said he and his colleagues are the most busy in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

“We had the task of doing all the fork tests in the building so we usually have three [emergency medical services] Staff staff every day, ”he said. – We will do fork testing, quick testing, now on request. “

Coyne said that streptocter throat was “the only thing that seems to be in a trend” at the beginning of this year’s 60-day session.

“We have had a number of cases from this in the last few weeks,” he said. “This is not exponentially high. I think we had four cases – and poor digestion. But it always looks high here.”

The 38-year-old AJ C de Vaca has always been a practical type of person who has been useful in his role as the supervisor of the Capitol crew.

“Our main job is landscaping,” he said.

But C de Vaca said the six -member crew handles various tasks, from clearing snow to removal of garbage.

“We are really like the spine of the whole capitol [Legislative Building Services] Department, ”he said. – Our work responsibilities change throughout the year. As just before a session, [we were] moving furniture. We created offices. Almost everything that needs to be done, they call us. “

C de Vaca said he started working with the Grounds team for the first time as a trainee in high school more than 20 years ago.

“When I graduated from school, there was an opening and they called me for an interview,” he said. “The school ended this way on Wednesday and I started full time on Monday. I’ve been here since. It’s a good place to work.”

C de Vaca said his beloved part of the work is that he is never boring.

“I can make a schedule for the week and it won’t pass because there is always something,” he said.

C de Vaca said he and his crew are proud to make sure the Capitol’s sites are well maintained and look nice for both residents and visitors.

“My boys are hardworking and I really appreciate them,” he said. “This is the effort of the team.”

Kenny Chacon, 35 years old, never goes to bed late.

As one of the security staff in the Round House, Chacon said he was always alert, which means good night, as his work is the “safety and security” of people in the building.

Chacon said he and his colleagues are constantly “checking the premises” to prevent any security gaps.

“The biggest thing right now is [monitoring our metal detectors]Just make sure there is no weapon in the building, “he said.

While firearms are banned in Capitol, he said some knives were not.

“If they are folding knives and they are no longer than four inches, they are allowed,” he said.

Chacon said that members of the New Mexico State Police were intensifying their security efforts during a session, which, in his opinion, makes legislators and the public feel even more favorable.