Early Christmas Present: Plan To Redo State Fairgrounds Gets Guv Support; A New Tingley Coliseum (Finally?), Plus: Savvy Old-Timers Surround MLG At Fair Announcement, Also: Barela Elected NMGOP Chair

MLG

A couple of early Christmas presents have brightened the season, at least from your blog's perspective.

First there was that somewhat surprising state decision to pump $70 million into satellite internet delivery for under-served rural areas. Second, there was the Governor's announcement that she is throwing her weight behind the idea of relocating the State Fairgrounds and repositioning the land for housing and other development. 

We won't put a bow on either gift yet. Final approval of the $70 million in satellite internet cash is pending but seems likely. As for the fairgrounds plan, MLG gave it a big boost but it needs added momentum to become reality. 

This latest proposal (there have been others) started with the Legislature when they approved $500,000 for EXPO NM to come up with a new master plan. One aspect of the possible redevelopment has been flying under the radar:

Ideas to be considered include: Building a new, modern arena that has the capacity to support large scale concerts and events.

That proposal to finally replace the long out-of-date Tingley Coliseum has been a staple of a long list of needed capital improvements mentioned here since the oil boom started. A new and modern Tingley (the old name is fine) would be especially welcome to the youth of the city and state. They see little in the way of major amenities coming their way and that accelerates the speed at which they depart. (And sparkling new Fair facilities for 4-H youth and other rural interests would be an added plus.)

Maybe next year the early Christmas presents will be having the plans to move the Fair and add a new arena and mixed housing well underway. What say you, Santa?

ERIC SERNA REDUX

Eric Serna (KOAT)

We were surprised to learn from the Governor's news conference that Eric Serna, once a headliner name in La Politica, is now chairman of the Fair Commission. When did he get on there? Well, way back in 2019 when he was appointed by MLG. We must have been hitting golf balls that day.

Serna is an attorney who chaired the NM Corporation Commission for 14 years and was Superintendent of Insurance for five years. Old-timers will remember him as the Democratic candidate for the northern congressional seat in 1997. That's when Republican Bill Redmond pulled an historic upset of Serna (with a Green Party candidate splitting the  Dem vote) and filled the seat left vacant when Bill Richardson became ambassador to the United Nations. 

Serna was a controversial pick because he was seen as part of the northern "Old Guard" who often brushed up against ethics rules. The smell of an upset was in the air on the eve of the election with then UNM professor F. Chris Garcia opining: 

The thing that can defeat Eric Serna is for Democrats, mainly Hispanics who are usually the strength of the Democratic Party, to stay at home either because of complacency or dissatisfaction. 

Marty Chavez

Those words were prescient. Serna lost the race to Redmond by 43 to 40. In turn Redmond was defeated for a full two year term in 1998 by Democrat Tom Udall. No Republican would ever again take the northern seat which came into being in 1982.

'97 was the end of Serna's political career but he went on to success in the private sector as a lawyer specializing in insurance management and regulatory consulting. 

Now Serna, thanks to MLG, is back at an historic time to help reposition the Fair and a large swath of SE ABQ for the future. He may be just the the guy for the job, given the political skills the administration needs to pull off the deal. There are a multitude of parties to pacify and Serna is no amateur. 

For Serna this is a chance at a strong last act, one that could bring sweeping changes--the kind of changes he would have had if his dream of joining the Congress had not been dashed those many years ago. 

Former ABQ Mayor Marty Chavez, MLG's infrastructure advisor, is leading the administration's efforts to relocate the Fair. His considerable political acumen will be fully tested as he works to pull off what would be the most significant public works project of the Governor's two terms. Working with Serna should be no problem as both pride themselves on being masters of the Movida.

BARELA WINS

As our Senior Alligators predicted, Amy Barela Saturday easily won election as the new chair of the NM Republican Party. The results of the GOP State Central Committee vote:

Amy Barela--157; John Brenna--58; Mark Murton- 46 Mick Rich- 44; Robert Kwasny-3 

Barela, 49, a former chair of the Otero county GOP and a current county commissioner there, succeeds longtime chairman Steve Pearce. Before her victory, Barela said:

Now, more than ever, we must fight for New Mexicans—defending their constitutional rights, supporting our legislators in their efforts to combat out-of-control crime, and ensuring that law enforcement has the support they need. We must also bring awareness to the challenges New Mexicans face, including the state of our schools, rising prices, and the healthcare crisis. These are New Mexican issues and addressing them starts with voting differently to bring real change to our state.

Barela is squarely in the camp of the Pearce/oil wing of the state GOP as opposed to the wing of former Gov. Susana Martinez and her acolytes. Unifying the party has been impossible the past decade. Now it's Barela's turn to try.

Hessel Yntema, city attorney for Roswell, replaces Barela as the party's First Vice-Chair. All GOP convention results here.

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