Santa Fe’s Law and Policy Conference Takes Place Next Week

Local government junkies take note: this year’s Law and Policy Conference takes place next week.

The agenda includes sessions on open government, foreclosures, green energy planning, improving schools and revitalizing Santa Fe’s St. Michael’s Drive and Airport Road corridors.

Organized by the non-profit Santa Fe Neighborhood Law Center and co-sponsored by the city of Santa Fe, the conference is slated to take place Thursday and Friday at the Santa Fe Community Convention Center.

Around 60-70 people have registered so far, though it’s likely that well over 100 people will attend the event. The conference is now in its fifth year.

“Santa Fe is the City Different with a unique community and unique community demands, and those things need to be addressed,” attorney Peter Dwyer, a conference organizer, said when asked about the event’s relative popularity.

“It’s not just like any other town in America, and people here take that very seriously and they expect a high level of concern and consideration of what made (Santa Fe) attractive in the first place and what made them want to live here,” he continued.

Dwyer also called the conference a community asset where information is exchanged, questions are answered and issues addressed at a policy level.

During each session, a panel of speakers informally discuss a particular topic. Time is set aside for attendees to ask questions.

Dwyer said this year’s “primary theme” is open government. It’s an issue that, for various reasons, has made headlines this year in Santa Fe and New Mexico.

“It was just in the media a lot this year as a topic of interest and so we decided the public would be interested in that issue,” Dwyer said.

There are also sessions devoted to foreclosure issues, a topic Dwyer said has been popular at past conferences.

Community members can attend free, though organizers ask that participants register ahead of time. The only attendees asked to pay a conference fee are lawyers unaffiliated with the city, county or conference itself.

For more information and a full schedule visit santafenn.com/law-center-home.