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District 4 coalition meeting
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Lee Ann Riesen
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Aug 20, 2009 09:31 PDT
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Hello everyone. I attended the August meeting of the District 4
Coalition of Neighborhood Associations last night. (There was no
July meeting.)
We listened to a debate about the 1/4 cent transportation tax. This
sales tax that we pay has been allocated over the past few years to
new roads, maintaining existing roads, and for expanding the transit
system. It "sunsets" in 2010. On the October 6 ballot we will vote
on whether it should continue, or be dropped.
On the "continue" side of the argument we heard from Greg Payne, the
transit director, and Michael Riordan, the Department of Municipal
Development director. They described the accomplishments they have
made with the funds from the 1/4 cent tax and the benefits we would
see from a continuation of the tax. You can see their presentation
online at http://www.cabq.gov/municipaldev.
The "drop it" argument was made by Brad Winter, city coucilor for
district 4. He said that economically, this is not the time to
continue a tax that does not need to be continued. He said that
there is about $40 million in unspent money right now that is
earmarked for transportation, and if they have unspent money it
doesn't seem that these departments need more money. New expenditures
for transit and roads can still happen without the tax. It would
come out of the operational budget instead and would go through
the City Council as part of an overall policy on transit and roads.
All speakers offered the email addresses for questions:
mrio-@cabq.gov
gpa-@cabq.gov
bwin-@cabq.gov
In answer to a question about the redesign of the I-25/Paseo
interchange, Mr. Riordan said that it requires $325 million and
that a package has been created and forwarded to be funded in
part with federal stimulus money. It is the highest priority
proposal by NM or the county (not sure which) and so has a good
chance of being funded. This means the work will likely begin
sooner than expected.
The coalition appointed a committee to arrange a mayoral debate
in district 4. The debate should occur sometime in September. The
mayoral election is October 6.
The city's Parks and Recreation Department has a citizens' advisory
board composed of one person from each city council district
plus two at-large members. There is no representative from district 4.
If you would like to be considered for appointment to this board,
contact Brad Winter (bwin-@cabq.gov). As our city councilor he
will submit the name of a nominee to the mayor for appointment to
the board. This board meets on the 2nd Tuesday of every month
from 4 PM to 6 PM.
The representative from Academy Acres North reported that a woman
in a home at the corner of Christy and Louisiana is creating a
health hazard. She puts out about 100 pounds of bird food every day
and the pigeons that are in the area around her home are making a
huge mess. There is no ordinance against putting out any amount
of bird food, and birds (like cats and dogs) can not be exterminated
if they are a nuisance. She is trying to get the woman's neighbors
to speak to her and try to solve the problem.
The West La Cueva neighborhood association is trying to help the
residents of Coronado Mobile Home Park. These are the homes just
west of I-25 and north of Paseo. Under the proposed new North I-25
Sector Plan, it seems they would be relocated. They residents would
like to preserve their community.
The PTA clothing bank is in dire need of shoes and clothing for
elementary, mid and high school students. The District 4 Coalition
voted to contribute $400 to the PTA clothing bank.
That's all...
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Lee Ann Riesen, laf-@swcp.com
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