In this week's paper, SFR looked at some recent code complaints that have come in to the
and
bureaucracies.
There were a few that we didn't have room for on the page, but which deserve a look regardless.
The first concerns Advantage Asphalt, a company that is under investigation by the Santa Fe County Sheriff's office in a convoluted money-and-influence scheme reportedly involving several local politicians, including state House Speaker Ben Luján, Santa Fe City Councilor Matt Ortiz and County Development Review Committee chairman Jon Paul Romero.
On June 14, the Journal Santa Fe
that Santa Fe County officials had cited Advantage "for illegally storing heavy machinery and other equipment on a residential La Cienega property."
SFR's photographer visited Advantage's Los Estrellas Road address last week. Does this like a "small scale operation?"
This appears to the house for which Montoya was initially denied a permit last October—a decision that was reversed without clear explanation by County Manager Roman Abeyta, per the Journal.
County officials told the Journal they weren't sure when the most recent complaint had come in about Advantage's property on Las Estrellas. But the records obtained by SFR show an anonymous complaint referred to inspector Rick Lovato by Permits and Inspections Division Director Wayne Dalton on April 14.
The caller "believes there is an unpermitted structure going up at 57B Las Estrellas," the complaint says. "Neighbor believes that they are running illegal business. They start big machinery up at 6:00 A.M. The business is Advantage Asphalt."
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Another complaint concerned a property at 6 Jennifer Way, owned by James S Ramsey, whom SFR was unable to reach. The complaint concerns "[a]nother RV lived in with no hook ups" and "debris and junk" on the property.
It still looked that way when SFR's photographer visited last week, although the complaint was recorded March 2, and Cobau says property owners are usually given 30 days to clean up after a code inspector's visit.
One thing the complaint didn't mention: These animals.
Thanks to SFR photo intern Ana Goni-Lessan for traipsing all over the place.
