artdirector@sfreporter.com
COVID-19 by the numbers
New Mexico health officials yesterday reported 2,561 new COVID-19 cases for the three-day period of Dec. 11-Dec. 13, bringing the statewide total so far to 332,238; DOH has designated 283,030 of those cases as recovered. Bernalillo County had 878 new cases, followed by Doña Ana County with 268 and San Juan County with 170. Santa Fe County had 138 new cases. The seven-day statewide test positivity rate decreased from 11.5% to 10.6%, still above but declining closer to the 7.5% target.
The state also announced 12 recent deaths, including one from Santa Fe County: a female in her 50s who had underlying conditions. Santa Fe County has now had 188 deaths; there have been 5,484 fatalities statewide. As of yesterday, 610 people were hospitalized with COVID-19, a decline of 81 since Friday. Currently, 87.3% of New Mexicans 18 years and older have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 75.1% are fully vaccinated. As the state surpassed 75% for full vaccination, Deputy Health Secretary Dr. Laura Parajón issued a statement thanking those who have been vaccinated. “This is a massive milestone for our state,” she said. Among those 18 and older, 29% have had a booster shot. In the 12-17-year-old age group, 65.5% of people have had at least one dose and 56.5% are fully inoculated. Among children ages 5-11, 22.2% have had at least one dose of the Pfizer vaccine and 10.1%. In Santa Fe County, 99% of people 18 and older have had at least one dose and 85% are fully vaccinated.
New Mexicans can register for a COVID-19 vaccine here, schedule a COVID-19 vaccine booster here and view a public calendar for vaccine availability here. Parents can add dependents to their vaccine profiles here. You can read all of SFR’s COVID-19 coverage here.
NM reports first Omicron variant case
The state health department yesterday reported the first known case of the Omicron variant in New Mexico. According to a DOH news release, the case was identified on Sunday, Dec. 12: a female adult in Bernalillo County who reported recent domestic travel to a state with reported cases of Omicron. The individual was seen in a local emergency room and discharged stable to home. DOH is currently conducting a thorough case investigation. Thus far, the Omicron variant, which has been designated as a Variant of Concern by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has been confirmed in at least 30 states and the District of Columbia, as well as more than 60 countries. The COVID-19 variant appears to be spreading faster than the currently-dominant Delta variant. A preliminary study released yesterday out of South Africa—where Omicron was first detected—of real-world vaccine resistance indicates two shots of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine provides 70% protection against severe complications, such as hospitalization, from the variant, but only 33% protection against infection. An Omicron infection would appear to be less severe, the study showed, but the variant also appears to deliver a higher risk of re-infection. Pfizer/BioNTech released the results of its own laboratory study last week, which indicated more protection would be provided against the Omicron variant through a third dose, or booster shot. Israeli researchers presented finding similar to PfizerBioNTech last weekend.
Session halts as Senate negotiates map
The fast-moving special redistricting legislative session ground to a halt yesterday in the face of opposition to maps for state Senate districts critics say ignore the work of the Citizen Redistricting Committee and the will of tribal leaders. The Albuquerque Journal reports Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth, D-Santa Fe, met with tribal officials for seven hours to review redistricting proposals, following Native leaders’ denunciation of the map introduced in lieu of the one they had approved through a bill sponsored by Senate President Pro Tem Mimi Stewart, D-Albuquerque. The bill reportedly had bipartisan support because it avoided placing two incumbent Republicans—Greg Baca of Belen and Joshua Sanchez of Bosque—into one district. Stewart tells the Journal the Senate delay allows more time for discussions with tribal leaders. “We’ve just paused,” she said, “and we’re going to continue to consult and collaborate with them, even if it take 24 hours, day and night.” As for other legislation, both the Senate and House approved a map redrawing the state’s congressional districts; it now awaits Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s signature, with supporters of the bill rallying yesterday at the Roundhouse. The House passed the bill redrawing its own boundaries, which now awaits Senate action, as does a bill for the Public Education districts, budget appropriations and medical malpractice legislation. House Democrats yesterday issued a joint statement urging Senate action on the funding and medical malpractice legislation, which read in part: “We cannot keep our families and communities waiting for these results. We must get this critical legislation to the Governor for her signature so we can go back to our constituents and let them know that their New Mexico state government has got their back.”
City fills close to 30 spots after job event
City leaders say a rapid hiring event over the weekend proved successful enough they may host another in 2022. More than 140 people attended the event on Dec. 11, which was scheduled to end at 2 pm but instead lasted most of the day due to turnout, city Communications Director Dave Herndon tells SFR. The city made 29 contingent offer letters to candidates—who will receive $1,000 hiring bonuses—across a dozen city departments, including three in the police department; four each in the environment services and streets departments; and three each in the library and finance departments. The city had more than 300 openings as of last week, Herndon noted, but the interest shown in Saturday’s event and open positions bodes well, he said. “The turnout defies the prevailing narrative that people don’t want jobs,” Herndon said. Bernadette Garcia, an organization development specialist, told KOB at the event the city decided to “try something different,” and make a normally cumbersome process more efficient. Current employees will also be receiving $2,000 retention bonuses. “This was a great success in every way,” Mayor Alan Webber said in a statement. “People who need work got good jobs and the City got good people to do important work. We’ll learn from this and continue to fill City positions quickly and effectively. The City is hiring!”
Listen up
Author Debra Rosenman’s award-winning book, The Chimpanzee Chronicles, was 13 years in the making and presents an anthology of heartbreaking stories of captive chimpanzees who have been exploited as biomedical research subjects, entertainers and pets. Rosenman joins Carly Newfeld on the most recent episode of The Last Word literary podcast on KSFR to talk about her book and the stories behind it. Note: The book features a chimp on the cover named Burrito who began his life in New Mexico in medical research and entertainment, but today lives at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest. “He has a happy life,” Rosenman said. “He’s learning how to be a chimpanzee.”
Bah, humbug!
If you were planning to attend the Santa Fe Symphony’s annual free holiday “Carols and Choruses” concert tonight at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi, slow your roll. Symphony Executive Director Emma Scherer announced last night the show has been postponed due to a COVID-19 case at the Symphony “and out of an abundance of caution and care.” Instead, the show will take place at 3 pm, Sunday, Jan. 2, 2022. This seems, therefore, as good a time as any to mention Santa Fe Symphony TV, which offers both individual performance purchase options and season passes safely from home (here’s a free sample of the symphony’s offerings, featuring the chorus singing “A la ru” and the “Hallelujah” chorus from Handel’s Messiah). For those in need of classical music this season and out in the masked world, the Symphony teams up with the Santa Fe Opera on Christmas Eve for a program at the Lensic Performing Arts Center, with selections from Mozart, Georges Bizet, Puccini, Verde and many more. Learn more about the Christmas Eve concert here.
Grounded in Texas
Architectural Digest profiles the Texas compound owned by Santa Fe philanthropists Ashlyn and Dan Perry, designed by Lake Flato architects on a 700-acre property outside of Marfa. The main house took two years and 3.5 million pounds of dirt “just to create the two-foot-thick rammed-earth walls of the resulting 6,000-square-foot home.” For interiors, Ashlyn worked with set designer and stylist Keith Johnston, who also worked on the Perry’s Santa Fe home; their Santa Fe restaurants Chama Local and Palace Prime; and the guest cabins at their New Mexico property Trout Stalker Ranch, a 1,500 acre working ranch in the Chama Valley where one can stay for $500 to $600 per night. The Architectural Digest story provides a tour of the Texas abode, with Ashlyn noting that she sleeps really well in the Marfa house: “I often wonder if it’s the thickness of the walls, the grounding of the earth, or the just the vastness of the landscape. It does something. You can really relax your mind.” In the bedroom, Architectural Digest, notes “the positioning of the fireplace in the corner was a minimalist nod to Kiva fireplaces, commonly found in Santa Fe, where the couple has their primary residence.”
Waiting on weather
Today looks partly sunny, with a high near 50 degrees and north wind around 10 mph becoming southwest in the afternoon. Tonight, however, the National Weather Service forecasts a 40% chance for showers, mostly after 11 pm, with snow likely tomorrow morning (60% chance) and a return of high winds.
Thanks for reading! The Word has been intermittently obsessed since October with this New York Times story about the rise of sharks on Cape Cod following the rebounding populations of seals there, and just thought of it again after watching the live cam at the pupping beach on Seal Island National Wildlife Refuge.
