This week I introduced Senate Bill 222 to preserve pathways along ditch banks in Bernalillo County. This is in the wake of the failure of the District to move in this direction and in light of the fact that 60% of the revenue for the entire district comes from taxpayers in Bernalillo County, most of whom do not irrigate. This bill assigns a small portion of the assessments paid by MRGCD ratepayers in Bernalillo County for the creation of a trails program here in the County. Under the bill, the City of Albuquerque's Open Space Division will operate a trails and recreation program in conjunction with the Conservancy in the same way that the Rio Grande State park is operated under a joint powers agreement between the District, the State and the City. A trails management plan would be incorporated into the joint powers agreement.
Citizens, neighborhood organizations and other local jurisdictions would have input into the management plan for the program through public hearings and consultations between Bernalillo County, AMAFCA, the State Parks Division of the New Mexico Energy Minerals and Natural Resources Department, the Village of Los Ranchos, and MRGCD. This process would be convened by the Mid-Region Council of Governments. This is important because every neighborhood has a different attitude toward their ditch-some would like only a clear path with no impediments, others would like gentle improvements such as signage, doggie waste bag dispensers or a bench here and there. And we all have strong feelings about preserving our local pathways in a rural, traditional style.
While this bill may seem like a drastic measure to some (including the Conservancy District, which said in a recent news article that I was throwing a "temper tantrum") I feel that it is in keeping with a rising recreational tide in Bernalillo County. More and more people look to ditch walking, jogging, horseback riding, and cycling for fitness and a respite from urban life. According to a 2007 professional survey commissioned by the Conservancy District, 83% of MRGCD ratepayers in Bernalillo County said they supported dedicating a share of the taxes they pay to support recreational trails. And 77% of respondents to my recent constituent survey said they supported modest improvements to the ditches for a trails program.
I was pleased to see that the Albuquerque Journal agreed. Here's a modified version of what they said in Friday's editorial. (See Below)
Albuquerque Journal
Friday, January 30, 2009
Opening Ditch Trails A Matter of Fairness
Last summer, the directors of the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District had an opportunity to expand the irrigation district's mission in the scenic river valley that winds through Albuquerque - and expand the district's political base at the same time. Unfortunately, they did neither.
On a unanimous vote, the board terminated its involvement with a grassroots effort to upgrade ditchbanks for expanded recreational use by walkers, joggers, horseback riders and cyclists.
Dubbed "Ditches With Trails," the proposal would build a few bridges and resurface some larger trails in the network of tree-lined ditchbanks. Proponents of the plan worked on it for three years, but directors killed the plan the night they received it. Ditchbanks are already open to the public, they said, and the trails project could interfere with irrigation work.
Supporters were stunned. They had addressed the main issue stated by the conservancy district, liability. Sen. Dede Feldman, a North Valley Democrat, carried a bill to limit exposure to lawsuits involving ditchbank mishaps. And supporters had made the reasonable argument that Bernalillo County residents who live within the district contribute 60 percent of total revenues while the county has only 16 percent of the district's total acreage. Expanded recreational access would have provided urban residents more value for the tax dollar.
Now that solution may be imposed by the Legislature. Feldman has introduced a bill that would force the district to share its purview over ditch trails in Bernalillo County with Albuquerque's Open Space Division. The bill would earmark roughly $900,000 of the $7.2 million MRGCD collects from Bernalillo County property owners to fund the project.
Enhancing the trails into an urban asset available to everyone was a good idea last summer, and it is still the path toward fairness for urban taxpayers. The MRGCD board needs to get this message: It's time Bernalillo County property owners get a little more for their taxes than attitude.
We support this bill... thank you for your work on it and keep up the good fight!
Posted by: Sarita | February 03, 2009 at 08:17 AM