Farewell, Larry
The news came just weeks ago that longtime Albuquerque legislator Larry Larrañaga was dropping out of his run for re-election to his seat in the state House of Representatives. Last week, when the state budget expert resigned his seat, it surprised many people. Tuesday, 80-year-old Larrañaga died. Family members suspect a degenerative brain disease. The Albuquerque Republican's death drew fond remembrances from both sides of the political aisle, as that seemingly rare politician who lived his beliefs without demanding that others acquiesce to them. He will be missed by many.
Room for two?
The Public Regulation Commission has denied a request by a Presbyterian Healthcare Services-owned ambulance company to start non-emergency service ($) in Santa Fe. Rocky Mountain EMS runs the only private ambulance service in town. It opposes the request for both non-emergent transport and emergency services.
Treatment vs. lock-up
A program in Santa Fe that pushes drug users into treatment instead of jail has shown encouraging results. The 2014 decision to test treatment options instead of arrests shows that initial rates of reoffense are lower, though there's no difference in recidivism after six months. The New Mexico Sentencing Commission released a report on the program today.
In the works
The end of the year is often rather quiet for the Santa Fe City Council. Just three meetings remain for the governing body. But four measures introduced last night ensure the city won't be short on spirited debates this fall.
When it rains…
With snow on the mountains, it's tempting to move past the exceptional weather Santa Fe (and other cities) endured in July. It rained so hard then that some estimates put the event at 1,000-year-flood levels. The problem is that city code demands preparations for stormwater from a 100-year-flood, and such storms seem more frequent. SFR looks at the impact on smaller nonprofits, such as ArtSmart, which took on flood waters it never anticipated and now wonders how to plan for the future.
Going international
News of Netflix's plans to buy Albuquereque Studios has spread far and wide, and along with that publicity comes the normal display of geographical idiocy. Yahoo! Finance was pretty sure the deal was bringing jobs and a bunch of production to … Mexico.
You ghosting me?
Yes! In the very best of ways. Arkansas-based Whoopsi was supposed to show up at Ghost tonight for a good old rock 'n' roll show. But weather and whatnot. Locals Dylan Blanchard, and Luke Carr and Dylan Earl still plan to shred, with the late add of the aptly named Void Mixer. The show starts at 7:30 pm; entry's by donation and is a suggested $5-$10.
Unsettled
It's been a while since The Morning Word has had weather to talk about every day of the week, but this has been an odd week. Expect temperatures to rise to the mid-60s in Santa Fe and near 70 in Albuquerque and points further south. There's still a slight chance of rain, but today should be sunnier than yesterday (but not as sunny as tomorrow?).
Thanks for reading! The Word wonders if we secretly love when others mistake New Mexico for Mexico.
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