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| Benton and Davis |
One bidder with an open heart (and wallet) plunked down $5,000 for a dinner for eight at Santa Fe's renowned Compound. We won't say their name or the politicos might try to sign them up as a fundraiser.
But we digress. The wheelhouse is flooded with news and we're going to bail it out.
Two hot potato issues go before the ABQ City Council for debate today making for a closely watched session even if final action is not expected on both.
Allowing homeowners to construct casitas on their lots to help with the housing crunch and asking voters to change the city's form of government from a strong mayor to a weak mayor with a city manager are the two biggies.
Let's go to architect and Councilor Ike Benton, the dean of the Council who has been there since 2005, for analysis and insight since these are proposals that could have a lasting impact on ABQ's quality of life. First, his take on the casita plan supported by the Mayor but not all nine councilors:
Much attention has been paid to provisions to allow duplexes and secondary dwelling units (SDUs) in R-1 zones. I always saw accessory dwellings as a very small outlier in the effort to help increase density and affordability, yet they have always been the most feared. I proposed them years ago; there was a huge neighborhood outcry, particularly among very privileged neighborhoods, and it was shot down by the Council majority. Once again, most of the debate seems to be around them. R-1 is sacrosanct, yet nationally it has come to have hurt us. What was once a well-intentioned separation from noxious uses evolved into a means of segregating rich from poor and the primary reason for unsustainable urban sprawl.
Critics say the casitas could cheapen the housing environment in the city.
STRIPPING THE MAYOR
Now to the proposed change in city government that has been in effect since 1974. Council dean Benton opines:
New mayors can come in and want to reverse much of what was started by a Mayor or Council before they arrived. It’s often frustrating from the Council side when projects are not expeditiously implemented.
But Councilors are not necessarily good administrators either, and the Council makeup changes every 2 years. Even an excellent hired Manager will have to answer to 9 bosses. There is more chance of an unelected administration bureaucracy becoming entrenched.
I am more interested in pursuing a City-County consolidation into a Metro Government, paired with some changes to the legislative-administrative structure. This was last attempted in 2003 and deserves another look. The model has been implemented in Nashville/Davidson County and Miami/Dade County, among other major metro areas. The proposed Middle Rio Grande Housing initiative is an example of how to overcome the type of inefficiency resulting from duplication of services by the City and County. Remember that City taxpayers fund over 70 percent of the County Government.
Well, the architect hit the nail on the head. His mention of consolidating the city and county governments is the first we've seen in the debate. It's been 20 years since consolidation was rejected by voters. As Benton said, it's time for "another look."
MAYOR MOVIDA INSIGHT
We asked Councilor Pat Davis, a two term veteran, for analysis on what to watch for today when it comes to that proposed historic change in the manner in which the state's largest city would be governed:
The City Charter requires us to have two hearings on any potential Charter amendment. The first one was held at first reading last month. This week is the first meeting where it could receive final action. If the sponsors do not feel they have the 6 votes to place it on the ballot, the sponsors could attempt to defer until either of our meetings in August if they feel like more time would help their case. According to the city clerk, the resolution must be passed no later than the end of August to be on the November ballot.
Okay, thanks Councilors. We've got our seatbelt strapped on.
The Council meets at 5 PM today. It can be viewed on GOVTV on Comcast Channel 16 and is also streamed live.
STANSBURY VOTE
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She sided with the radical left and was the only member of the delegation to do so. It looks less likely she is aiming towards a statewide run with that vote because economic issues play far better than environmental issues. I wonder how her new constituents in Lincoln and Torrance counties feel about it? Unquestionably a default would be far worse for New Mexicans than the deal that was struck.
Stansbury's reasoning:
She didn’t agree with the cuts this bill will make to environmental and COVID-19 relief programs, the new working requirements for SNAP and Food Stamps, and the fact this bill will restart student loans payments.
Stansbury says it wasn’t an easy vote to cast.
“Look, the final bill passed with 314 votes. We knew as a Democratic caucus that we could not allow our country to fail. I think every single Democrat was prepared to take a hard vote in either direction, whether you are somebody who voted for the deal at large, or voted for the bill itself — it was an equally hard vote,” Stansbury said.
The vote may not have been a winner statewide but the ABQ district is still progressive despite the addition of some rural (and lightly populated) conservative areas.
A statewide race may or may not be in Stansbury's future but what is right in front of her is her '24 re-election bid and that won't be hindered by her debt ceiling vote. In fact, she still has no announced Republican opponent.
TRUJILLO RESIGNS
ABQ Dem state Rep. Christine Trujillo, 69, says her health and age are the chief reasons for her decision to resign her District 25 Mid NE Heights seat at the end of June.
Archbishop Michael Sheehan, who led the Archdiocese of Santa Fe through one of its most turbulent and difficult periods and who helped shepherd sweeping social justice measures into law, died Saturday at 83. Archbishop John Wester, who succeeded Sheehan in 2015, eulogized him:
The Holy Father wanted me to come to help a church in difficulty. I had to remove some priests who had done terrible things, apologize to people and seek more vocations to the priesthood but I was convinced God was going to bring us out of it.
Trujillo, a retired teacher who had an 11 year run at the Roundhouse, was a backer of education funding and efforts to curb domestic violence.
She co-sponsored a measure this past session that prompted fiery criticism from some conservatives but made it into law. The measure requires that tampons and other menstural products are made available in school bathrooms.
Trujillo ran unopposed in 2022. The five member BernCo Commission will name a replacement to fill the remainder of her term. Our insiders say that will probably come in August.
District 25 is lower to middle income and prime territory for what Dems call "working families." It is solid Dem so no R's need apply, although it can be expected that progressives will push for a candidate similar to Trujillo while moderate Dems will seek one of their own for the seat.
House Speaker Javier Martinez will be a key behind the scenes player in the replacement debate which means the moderates will have their hands full.
ARCHBISHOP SHEEHAN
Archbishop Sheehan’s peaceful departure brings to an end a remarkable journey that spanned over eight decades, during which he selflessly guided countless individuals on their spiritual path and worked tirelessly to uplift the lives of those in need. . . He leaves a legacy that will continue to inspire future generations.
Allen Sanchez, president of CHI St. Joseph's Children, recounted how Sheehan--who served as archbishop from 1993 until his 2015 retirement--was a key player in many landmark legislative achievements including repeal of the state's death penalty, repeal of the tax on food, advancing the cause of using the state's Permanent School Fund for early childhood education and successfully opposing efforts to repeal driver's licenses for undocumented immigrants.
House Speaker Javier Martinez said on Twitter:
As the head of [New Mexico's] Catholic Church for many years, he was in the middle of the biggest policy wins for working families. Godspeed, amigo.
Some of Sheehan's most important work came early in his tenure when he took over a church under a shadow from a sex scandal involving his predecessor as well as sex abuse cases involving Catholic priests. He remarked in his later years:
The Holy Father wanted me to come to help a church in difficulty. I had to remove some priests who had done terrible things, apologize to people and seek more vocations to the priesthood but I was convinced God was going to bring us out of it.
According to Gallup about a third of adult New Mexicans are Catholic making the state the 9th highest in the concentration of Catholics.
Archbishop Sheehan, born in Wichita Kansas, was a priest for 50 years.
THE BOTTOM LINES
In our first draft on the award of $53 million for low income housing units in the metro area from the NM Mortgage Finance Authority we did not report that the money was in the form of federal tax credits, not state funds.
And there you have a rare June monster blog, kids. Is the pool now open?
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(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2023
(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2023