artdirector@sfreporter.com
Morning Word
City of Santa Fe budget hearings begin today
Hearings for the City of Santa Fe’s proposed 2023 fiscal budget kick off today during a 1 to 4 pm Finance Committee meeting. Hearings will conclude at the City Council’s April 27 meeting (you can watch all the hearings on the city’s YouTube channel, and view the complete schedule here). In a news release yesterday, city officials emphasized the $382.8 million budget includes 8% salary increases for all city employees; 16% salary increases for Santa Fe Police Officer’s Association members; $2,000 annual retention incentives and $1,000 hiring incentives; a $750,000 fund for mortgage assistance for first responders; and a $500,000 allocation toward a “Green Bank” to help low- and moderate-income residents solarize their homes and reduce their energy costs. “Right now, we have the rare opportunity to make big, forward-looking investments that will directly address the city’s needs,” Mayor Alan Webber said in a statement. “Our GRT revenues are at a record level and we will receive additional ARPA funding from the federal government. Every department will receive a significant level of investment and residents will see the results in more livable neighborhoods, improved services, better parks, more affordable housing, and ongoing commitments to public safety.”
Congress visits NM for election hearing
A US House subcommittee held a field hearing in Santa Fe yesterday on access to the ballot in New Mexico. The Subcommittee on Elections of the Committee on House Administration held five hearings last year on issues related to voting in America, and released a report last summer. Yesterday’s hearing, held in person at the Roundhouse and livestreamed, included testimony from New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver, Common Cause NM Executive Director Heather Ferguson, NAVA Education Project Executive Director Ahtza Dawn Chavez and OLE Executive Director Andrea Serrano. US Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, D-NM, a member of the subcommittee attended the hearing, as did fellow Democrat US Rep. Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico, who is not. “The current national discourse about voting and elections has been infected with a disturbing amount of misinformation about how elections are run and about the measures in place that secure our vote,” Toulouse Oliver’s written testimony reads. “Hearings like this one today are a great opportunity to educate the public on the complex, difficult, and vitally important work that election administrators engage in everyday to keep the gears turning on our democracy.” No Republicans attended the hearing, the Albuquerque Journal reports, which comes amid a stalled attempt to update the federal Voting Rights Act, and as other states pass more restrictive voting laws. Not New Mexico, US Rep. G.K. Butterfield, D-N.C., chairman of the subcommittee on elections, said: “This great state has moved in the opposite direction by increasing access to the ballot box for voters.”The committee met to discuss New Mexico’s elections as candidates in the 2022 election met their first campaign finance report deadline yesterday. The campaign for Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who doesn’t face a challenger in the Democratic primary, reported raising close to $2.7 million. Among her Republican challengers, Mark Ronchetti’s campaign has raised more than $2.1 million since October—more than twice as much as any other GOP candidate in the race. State Rep. Rebecca Dow, R-Truth or Consequences, came in second with $751,000 in donations, including a $40,000 loan she made to herself.
Gov. Lujan Grisham’s mother, Sonja Lujan, dies at 82
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham spoke of her mother throughout the pandemic, such as in August of 2020 when the state began allowing family members to visit their loved ones in nursing homes again, albeit with numerous restrictions and no physical contact. At the time, the governor remarked that the new guidelines would allow her mother to at least go outside, but what she really looked forward to was “meeting my mom outside, driving to an outside location at a dining area and having a libation with my mother, maybe it’s a glass of champagne to celebrate that we’re together.” Yesterday, the governor and her brother Gregory Lujan announced their mother, Sonja Lujan, died on Sunday at the age of 82 of natural causes, spending her “final days surrounded by the people she loved.” In a statement, Lujan Grisham said her mother “was truly one of a kind. Like so many caring and devoted mothers, she became a dedicated advocate for my sister Kimberly and children with disabilities across the country simply because there was no other choice. She worked to right every wrong and fought for the best standard of care, refusing to back down when she knew there was more that could be done. Her tenacity and determination in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges has inspired me every single day of my adult life. She taught me to fight hard—to make sure no one is left behind, that no family is lacking the support they need and deserve. Together with my father, my mother taught me the importance of service to your community—of working to ease the burdens of others. Though neither of them ever ran for office, they exhibited true dedication to New Mexico and its people. She adored her family, and we treasured every minute we had with her. She was my mom, irreplaceable, and I love her dearly.” Numerous public officials and residents posted condolences to the governor, including US Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-NM, who wrote via Twitter: “It’s not hard to see how Governor Lujan Grisham came to be who she is when you see the footsteps her mother left behind for her. A devoted mother, friend, and public servant through and though, Sonja will be missed.”
COVID-19 by the numbers
New cases: 329 (includes the weekend); 519,262 total cases
Deaths: 13; Santa Fe County has had 268 total deaths; there have been 7,374 total fatalities statewide. Hospitalizations: 50; Patients on ventilators: six
Breakthrough cases: According to the weekly vaccination report, over the four-week period of March 7 through April 4, 38.5% of COVID-19 cases in New Mexico were among people who had not completed a primary vaccination series; 24.5% were among those who had completed the series but had not received a booster; and 36.9% were among those who were fully vaccinated and boosted. For hospitalizations, those figures change to 61%,18.6% and 20.4%. The percentages shift to 54.5%, 20% and 25.5% for fatalities.
Community transmission: According to the health department’s community transmission report for the two-week period of March 22 through April 4, only DeBaca County has low transmission. Nineteen counties have moderate transmission; 11, including Santa Fe County, have substantial transmission; and two have high rates of transmission. According to the report, Santa Fe County had 177 new cases during that two-week period and has a daily case per 100,000 population of 8.4. According to the most recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s “community levels” tracking system—which uses case rates along with two hospital metrics in combination to determine the state of the virus on a county level—31 of New Mexico’s counties—including Santa Fe County currently have “green”—aka low—levels, whereas Hidalgo County has a yellow, or medium, level. The CDC updates its map on Thursdays.
Vaccinations: 91% percent of adults 18 years and older have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 77.8% have completed their primary series; 46% of adults 18 years and older have had a booster shot; 12-17-year-old age group: 71.3% of people have had at least one dose and 61.7% have completed their primary series; Children ages 5-11: 39.3% have had at least one dose of the Pfizer vaccine and 31.5% have completed their primary. Santa Fe County: 99% of people 18 and older have had at least one dose and 87.4% have completed their primary series.
Resources: Vaccine registration; Booster registration Free at-home rapid antigen tests; Self-report a positive COVID-19 test result to the health department; COVID-19 treatment info: oral treatments Paxlovid (age 12+) and Molnupiravir (age 18+); and monoclonal antibody treatments. Toolkit for immunocompromised individuals. People seeking treatment who do not have a medical provider can call NMDOH’s COVID-19 hotline at 1-855-600-3453.
You can read all of SFR’s COVID-19 coverage here.
Listen up
Theatre Santa Fe’s mission is to celebrate and promote the city’s performing arts scene, which includes hosting a free Theatre Lovers Club talks with and about the people, venues and companies from Santa Fe’s theater community. From 6 to 7 pm tonight, TSF’s discussion will center on “what’s under the hood,” examining how shows come together—from page to stage—with guests from the Santa Fe Playhouse and the New Mexico Actors Lab. You can attend via Zoom (register at least an hour before the event starts) or attend in person (1213 Parkway Drive); masks required.
FBI offers reward in petroglyph desecration investigation
The FBI yesterday announced a $5,000 reward for information leading directly to the arrest of anyone responsible for the vandalism committed at the La Cieneguilla Petroglyphs in Santa Fe in January. The US Bureau of Land Management at the time described the defacement as including swastikas and racial slurs on 10 protected petroglyphs—most of which date between the 13th and 17th centuries—located on the ancestral homelands of the Pueblo people and protected by the National Historic Preservation Act, the Archaeological Resources Protection Act and the Galisteo Basin Archaeological Sites Protection Act. In February, the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance announced a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of those responsible for the desecration. Both the FBI and BLM are investigating the incident, according to a news release yesterday. “Visitors from around the world come to New Mexico to admire wonderful Native American cultural resources like the La Cieneguilla Petroglyphs,” Special Agent in Charge Raul Bujanda of the Albuquerque FBI Division said in a statement. “It’s hard to believe someone would try to ruin these priceless works of art and show such disrespect for this area’s unique heritage. The FBI is asking anyone with information about this vandalism to come forward so we can ensure this crime doesn’t go unpunished.”
No place like home
New Mexico’s hot springs, hot-air balloons and other potentially hot outdoor offerings continue to attract attention, with Marie Claire offering up an “Instagram” guide to Albuquerque that features the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta in October as a can’t-miss event; the Petroglyph National Monument as a must-see phenom; and a do-it-yourself Breaking Bad tour as must-try way for fans to pick up merchandise. The story also features a ride on Sandia Peak Tramway, a visit to Casa Rondeña for a taste of New Mexico wine country and a sojourn to White Sands...which is not in Albuquerque. Travel Off Path offers some overlap with its roundup of the top eight outdoor adventures in the state this spring (we personally would avoid hot air balloon and tram rides during 50 mph winds), and also recommends a visit to the Gila Cliff Dwellings; a float down the Rio Grande; and an Albuquerque ghost tour (we have those too). Huffington Post, meanwhile, includes Santa Fe in its list of “lovely honeymoon destinations” in the US, where lovebirds can do the same activities as other visitors, like visit Meow Wolf, the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum and other scenic indoor and outdoor spots.
Fire and wind
First, the good news. We have a slight chance for isolated showers after noon. Otherwise, today will be mostly sunny with a high near 61 degrees and, yes, very windy, with a south wind 10 to 20 mph becoming west 20 to 30 mph in the afternoon with guests as high as 45 mph, according to the National Weather Service. That puts us under a wind advisory for today and another red-flag warning for dangerous fire conditions tomorrow. The wind is working against firefighters battling the Hermits Peak Fire, which began as a prescribed burn last week, blew out of control and has grown to nearly 1,300 acres northwest of Las Vegas and spurred voluntary evacuations of approximately 100 people. During a community meeting last night, incident managers said the fire was about 10% contained; the Southwest Area Type 2 Incident Management Team 4 assumed control of the firefighting efforts early Monday. The management team has been called in for previous fires, including the 2020 Medio Fire. Evacuations also began yesterday in Valencia County in response to the Big Hole Fire, which officials said last night was threatening structures.
Thanks for reading! Based on this Smithsonian magazine article, The Word thinks the show Is it Cake? sounds super weird, but possibly also fun in a tempting mind-numbing way.
