Sunday, November 09, 2008

New Downtown, Population Growth Among Top Stories

By Rosalie Rayburn
Journal Staff Writer
          It's been a roller coaster ride for the city in the five years since the Rio Rancho Journal first hit the stands.
        Population growth, changes in city leadership and the rise and fall of several bold new plans have marked the half decade.
        Rio Rancho has gained nearly 16,000 new residents, its population rising from 59,981 in 2003 to 75,9781, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
        It is now larger than Santa Fe.
        In five years, it has had four mayors and it's seen two city managers come and go.
        A new City Hall and a 6,500-seat arena have opened in what was untouched mesa land and is now known as Downtown Rio Rancho.
        Amenities opened within the last two years, such as the Loma Colorado Main Library and the Aquatic Center, have enhanced the city's cultural and recreational offerings. More is on the way in the shape of a UNM and Presbyterian Healthcare Services hospitals and a downtown Central New Mexico Community College/University of New Mexico campus.
        In a recently completed citizen survey, 77 percent of respondents rated their quality of life in Rio Rancho as "excellent or good," based on criteria such as schools, public safety and availability of affordable quality housing.
        Some highly touted projects have failed to meet expectations. The city abandoned a plan to create a free municipal wireless service after Azulstar, the company contracted to build the network, incurred numerous customer service complaints and failed to pay money it owed the city.
        The much-hyped Santa Ana Star Center arena has ended up losing money, and the city has had to use its funds to help pay off bonds it sold to build the center.
        And, this week, the city officially acknowledged that movie company Lions Gate Entertainment Inc. would not meet a deadline to begin construction of a studio it promised to build in Rio Rancho.
        Other problems persist, too. Finding sufficient funds to tackle the city's numerous road-paving and drainage infrastructure needs remains a challenge. Unusually heavy rains in 2006 caused widespread flooding and erosion damage, but a City Council plan to recoup the cost of drainage improvements from property owners was partially defeated after hundreds of owners objected to the cost.
        The city's retail base is limited and city revenues still come primarily from construction-related gross receipts taxes.
        New retail outlets have opened, notably a Home Depot in Enchanted Hills and a Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse at Northern and 40th Street. But construction activity, and city revenues, have declined.
        Rio Rancho saw new home building soar between 2003 and the end of 2005. The number of building permits issued jumped from 1,224 in 2003 to 3,084 in 2005. The number dropped to 2,049 in 2006 and 1,046 in 2007. Between January and the end of October this year, the city issued 667 permits, according to the city's Web site.
        City leadership has also been somewhat of a revolving door in the last five years.
        Jim Owen was the city's mayor in 2003 when the Rio Rancho Journal launched. At the time, he predicted that in 30 years the Rio Rancho-Albuquerque area would be comparable to Dallas-Fort Worth, with Rio Rancho being the Dallas part of the equation.
        Under Owen, the city hired former City Manager Jim Palenick, who spearheaded plans for the city-wide wireless Internet network, the Santa Ana Star Center, the new City Hall, a contract with Lions Gate and the vision for a vibrant downtown.
        Owen was also a fierce opponent of taxes Rio Rancho residents south of Northern were paying to support CNM, then known as TVI. At the time, he said he was ready to take the community college to court to stop it from taxing Rio Rancho residents.
        But Owen lost a bid for re-election in 2006 in a three-way battle with political newcomer Kevin Jackson and Councilor Michael Williams.
        Jackson oversaw the opening of the Loma Colorado Main Library in December 2006, which was funded by a $5.5 million voter-approved city issued bond.
        He also pushed to fire Palenick, citing communication problems with the hard-charging city manager. City councilors voted to terminate Palenick's contract in mid-December 2006.
        Jackson's tenure ended a few months later. He resigned in July 2007 following allegations he misused a city credit card. Williams, the deputy mayor took over as interim mayor.
        Jackson's departure came barely a month after the city hired Jim Payne as its new city manager.
        Williams opted not to seek election as mayor in the March municipal election.
        Thomas Swisstack, the city's mayor in the mid-1990s, won. Within a few months of Swisstack's arrival, Payne resigned, after just over a year in the job. He has recently been replaced by former city manager James Jimenez.
        Since taking over as mayor, Swisstack has pushed to create long-range plans for infrastructure and economic development and asked city staff to craft a plan to turn the loss-making Star Center into a break-even enterprise.