Thursday, November 05, 2009

S. Valley Split To Be Discussed at Forum

By Elaine D. BriseñO
Journal Staff Writer
       How would starting its own city affect South Valley residents?
    Those looking for answers will have a chance to hear the pros and cons of incorporating during a town forum tonight at Rio Grande High School.
    Supporters claim the move would give residents more autonomy and say in their government. Opponents believe splitting from the county would mean higher taxes.
    A group of residents and local politicians in the South Valley are pushing to incorporate and become their own city, which would be named Valle de Atrisco. The new city would have about 53,000 residents and contain about 108 square miles of land spanning from Interstate 25 west to the Rio Puerco, north to Interstate 40 and south to the border of the Isleta Pueblo.
    The incorporation would exclude certain areas, including Westgate, the Metropolitan Detention Center, the Cerro Colorado Landfill and the Southside Water Reclamation plant.
    "We don't have local control to address the needs relevant to our community," said State Rep. Miguel Garcia, D-Albuquerque, who supports the incorporation. "The decisions are being made by other people who not a part of our community."
    Valle de Atrisco would fall within the county boundaries but would have its own governing body. The new city also would be responsible for providing its own police and fire protection as well as coming up with its own policies that govern things like land use and growth.
    The forum, hosted by South Valley Citizens for Common Sense, will start at 6 p.m. in Rio Grande High School's cafeteria. Parties from each side of the issue will have a chance to present information in a panel-style discussion. There will be two teams — a pro and a con — and each side will have three minutes at the beginning of the meeting to present their case.
    The public will then have a chance to ask panel members questions.
    The Bernalillo County Commission voted last month to hold an election by mail Jan. 5. The ballots will be mailed starting in December, but only residents living inside the affected area can vote.
    Garcia obtained money from the Legislature in 2007 to conduct a feasibility study. The study was conducted by the University of New Mexico Bureau of Business and Economic Research.
    The study said a new city was possible, but it concluded that it would need a $30 million budget to maintain the current level of services the county provides because revenues from the existing tax base would not be sufficient to meet spending requirements.
    According to the study, the county would need to increase gross receipts tax. With money it would receive from other sources, such as property taxes, the new city would still be $8 million short of providing those services.
    The study suggested a variety of options for bridging the gap, such as encouraging new retail development or establishing a municipal court that could raise money by collecting fines.
    But Garcia said the study included a lot of "guesstimates" and that an analysis done by his group using more detailed information has lowered the proposed costs discussed in the UNM study.
    "We did a more practical analysis and approach," Garcia said. "Our numbers are more accurate."
    Garcia said he believes the budget would be closer to $19 million.
    But one county official said the study underestimated the cost of the new city. County Commissioner Art de la Cruz, who is opposed to the incorporation, said the county has done its own analysis and believes the budget shortfall would be greater than $8 million. He said the analysis is still under way, so he could not yet discuss actual numbers.
    Despite the detractors, Garcia said making the South Valley its own city is necessary.
    "It's important to our future," Garcia said. "We want to have (South Valley) people involved in the actual decision-making and involved in policy-making."

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