Pop Quiz: District 4

SFR quizzes candidates for the City Council seat ahead of the Nov. 7 election

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It’s that time again! This election season, SFR reprises the tradition of pop quizzes administered to City Council candidates in the Nov. 7 election about the communities they hope to represent. For the next several weeks, each issue will feature a different race. In District 4, which covers the central city, some areas west of Cerrillos Road and the area along Richards Avenue south of Rodeo and north of I-25, two candidates are facing off.

Incumbent Councilor Jamie Cassutt seeks to keep her seat for a second term against a challenge from political newcomer Joel Nava. Per usual, the candidates agreed to not use any sources besides their own knowledge to answer the questions asked. We record the conversations and report the answers verbatim. Early voting at the Santa Fe County Clerk’s Office starts Oct. 10. (Evan Chandler)

Questions

  1. How much are the fees to rent a racquetball court at the Genoveva Chavez Community Center for both a member and a non-member?
  2. What are the goals of the city’s plan to redevelop the Midtown Campus?
  3. Name the most prevalent crime identified by city police in July.
  4. How much is the approximate median home price in your district and how has it changed since last year?
  5. What is the current status of the Richards Avenue extension project?

Answers

  1. The GCCC racquetball courts are free for members, $2 per hour for non-members.
  2. The city adopted a community development plan for its Midtown Campus, which includes new parks and green spaces; housing developments and reuse of existing buildings. The city recently granted approval to PE Real Estate Holdings to construct Aspect Studios in the former Greer Garson Studios building. The Midtown Arts Alliance has an exclusive negotiating agreement to create visual arts center. Preliminary plans also include the rehabilitation of Fogelson Library, a new plaza and future RFPs for affordable housing developments.
  3. In July, city police reported 241 cases of larceny or theft. Motor vehicle theft is a separate category in police data; city police reported 50 cases in July. The second most prevalent crime of the month was assault: 152 reports. The crime stats were presented to the Public Safety Committee in August.
  4. As reported by the Santa Fe Association of Realtors, the median home price for the second quarter for the “Southwest City” region in Q2 of 2023 was $450,000, slightly less than in the 2022, when it was $453,000. For the city as a whole, the median in Q2 of 2023 was $604,500, compared to $595,000 in Q2 of 2022.
  5. The city voted in August to buy state land that would make the road extension possible across the Arroyo de los Chamisos. Designs are underway for the extension that would require 2 to 5 acres of the land, and the city could use the balance for open space, a senior center, a child care center or recreation.

Jamie Cassutt

Score: 3 / 5

After winning a three-way race to become the District 4 councilor in 2019, Jamie Cassutt wants to hold on to the seat for another term. She serves on the city’s Finance Committee and its Quality of Life Committee. She has a master’s degree in public health.

  1. For both a member and a non-member? Hmm. I’m thinking in my head—for some reason, the numbers $10 and $12 are popping in my head. Not sure if it’s for those fees, but those are the ones that are coming to me.
  2. That’s about a two-hour conversation, but one of the most important documents for really understanding those goals would be the Community Development Plan, which talks about what are the different things that we want to be seeing built there or developed there, as well as what are the different values that are driving the decisions that will be made. We are looking for equity, we are looking for sustainability, we are looking for affordability, and we are really wanting to make sure that this is a community development where all members of the community can really take advantage of it. We are looking at things like affordable housing, youth programming, arts and culture, the Fogelson Library being rehabilitated, economic development, open space and opportunities for small businesses. It’s really, really quite a robust plan given that it’s 54-plus acres.
  3. I’m thinking. I could guess between two answers, and I’m not sure which one to go with. Let’s say car theft.
  4. In the city of Santa Fe District 4—let’s go with about $450,000. It hasn’t changed that much. I know things have leveled out a bit, so maybe $430,000. My district changed too, so that makes it a little bit complicated.
  5. We are currently in the design phase, and the Public Works Department and our contractors will be coming forward with the design. So that is where we are with Richards.

Italic Text: Incorrect

Joel Nava

Score: 1 / 5

Joel Nava works for a private security firm at the state Capitol and is a girls basketball coach. The Republican Party of Santa Fe County promoted Nava’s campaign multiple times on social media in the nonpartisan race.

  1. So I’ve never done racquetball, so I don’t know.
  2. Again, I haven’t looked into that yet, so I’m not too sure.
  3. Property crime, I believe.
  4. We were just going over this. I was just looking at this. Oh my goodness. I think the median house was I’m going to say $250,000, and it’s gone up quite a bit since 2012.
  5. So I know they just started it, and I’m not sure when it will be finished. But it just started.

Italic Text: Incorrect