As some of you may have read in the media, a few weeks ago, the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District has decided to quit the Ditches with Trails project, a joint endeavor of the city, county, state, national parks service, and almost a score of neighborhood organizations in the North and South Valley. MRGCD had been a member of that endeavor in the past, and was cooperating, I thought, in a very constructive way-until now. Fearing some kind of "take over" of the MRGCD's authority over the ditches, and reacting to a well organized group who used misleading tactics to stir up fear of a paved, urbanized trail effort that would benefit recreationalists from outside their area, the Board stopped the project without even considering the feasibility report.
It further criticized Bernalillo County for cost overruns on a footbridge over the Griegos lateral in the North Valley built with funds I appropriated. The bridge, which had been licensed by the District, was built in response to concern over safety of the small, rickety crossing there-which may have been a factor in the accidental death of a young Los Ranchos doctor. The bridge incorporated public art, and required the relocation of some large PNM telephone lines. The widow of the doctor (who had earlier decided not to sue the district) was at the board meeting, and was told callously by one board member that she shouldn't expect any special treatment just because her husband had died.
This was the first time I'd been to a MRGCD Board meeting in years-and I won't forget it for a long time. Sure there was disagreement over this project, and the bridge was controversial, but the process reinforced the long-held perception that the district cannot cooperate with other jurisdictions, is willing to go back on its agreements, undermine its own staff and insult members of the public. To access my statement the night of the meeting, click here Can you provide link?.
Both before and after this meeting, I've gotten quite a few questions about what we ratepayers here in the Valley get for our taxes, particularly if we do not irrigate using ditch water. I've responded with what the Conservancy has told me publicly: We get access to the natural, green ditch system for hiking, biking and other recreational activities. Now I'm not so sure that they really want recreational access to the ditches.
Maybe, as some of the columnists and critics have long suggested, the Conservancy should be abolished, or financed only with the revenue from those farmers who use the water. Presently, the bulk of the revenue comes from Bernalillo County, where most ratepayers do not irrigate and agriculture is shrinking.
Here's what one of my constituents, Lora Lucero, wrote in a letter to the Albuquerque Journal.
"Albuquerque Journal, West Side Edition
Dear Editor,
I am a taxpayer who owns property within the boundaries of the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District (MRGCD) in Bernalillo County. According to my property tax bill, last year I paid about $110 to the MRGCD, about $25 to the Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo Flood Control Authority (AMAFCA), and about $285 to Albuquerque Public Schools (APS), not to mention the other slices of the tax pie.A few observations -
(1) Since I don't irrigate any lands, I'm told my taxes to MRGCD are paying for flood protection. I'm also paying AMAFCA for flood protection. I shouldn't have to pay two different agencies to protect my property from flood damage in a desert.
(2) My contribution to APS is a mere 2 1/2 times my contribution to MRGCD. That's absurd considering the future of our children and our workforce depends on having a strong public school system. The property tax pie needs to be reprioritized.
(3) Recently, the MRGCD Board decided to shelve the Ditches-to-Trails plans, reinforcing MRGCD's irrelevancy to me as a non-irrigator, and it's inability to work constructively with others.
Based on these observations, and much more, I believe the time has come for the public and State Lawmakers to ask whether or not MRGCD should continue to exist. Perhaps AMAFCA should be delegated responsibility for all flood control work in this area; the Mid-Region Council of Governments should be delegated reponsibility for the trails and open spaces; and the responsibility for water delivery to our Valley's farmers might be delegated to an agency that can focus solely on water delivery at a much more reasonable cost.
Time to put the MRGCD under a microscope.
Sincerely,
Lora A. Lucero, AICP"
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