Zoning issue signals philosophical shift

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A coalition of new commission chairman Joshua Madalena, vice-chairman Dave Bency and Orlando Lucero voted to send the project back to county staff and start all over. Commissioners Jack Thomas and Don Leonard were on the opposite side of the issue.

The case stems from how the county handled what the agenda describes as “42.8874 acres, more or less, to be subdivided into 41 lots ranging in size from 1 acre to 1.33 acres. The proposed subdivision is located in the Indian Flats area of Placitas and within Section 19, Township 13 North, Range 5 East.”

Eichwald ruled that the county “violated the scope of its authority” and was “arbitrary and capricious” in its handling of the case, and that proper public notice was “incomplete and misled the public” in violation of he county’s subdivision regulations. Thus he required the re-hearing.

By voting to remand, the commission is requiring its staff to start the legal process of formally changing the lot sizes and boundaries. Thomas and Leonard argued that everything had been done correctly for the first time and Eichwald’s concerns about proper notice were being met by having the re-hearing as part of the properly-posted commission agenda.

“I know in the past this commission has taken actions in the past in Placitas where developers were going around subdivision regulations in order to deal with water irregularities, and out staff asked us to put a stop to that,” Bency said. “Somehow I get the feeling that there’s a bait-and-switch going on here is what the judge is saying. There is like a bait-and-switch going on – it’s actually like a subdivision but we’re pretending its not.

“This commission, as well as any other governing body, relies heavily on staff. I’ve never had any problem with our development department,” Bency said. “I think it’s one of the best I’ve ever seen.

“Bu mistakes are made. Maybe P&Z didn’t know everything it needed to know. Maybe staff didn’t know everything it needed to know. But what I do know is what the judge is telling us.

“A judge has remanded this back to us. And when I hear words like ‘arbitrary and capricious,’ I don’t take them lightly. Where I hear those words dollars and cents follow. Fines and all sorts of bad things can happen.”

In rebuttal, Thomas said, “The court ordered basically that we had to re-hear this tonight. When I look at the things that they (the court) said they reviewed, I see drainage as being done in the conditions set down by the Planning and Zoning (commission). The roadways seem to be approved by the Sandoval County Public Works. The fire department didn’t have any problem getting in, and there seems to be plenty of water by the state engineer.

“I think when we looked at his the first time, we looked at everything that was here. I made m decision on what planning and zoning gave me, on what they took the time and went out and looked at. I think that if we were ‘arbitrary and capricious,’ (county development director) Mike Springfield would be standing up here and telling us that we were doing that.
“I see that we did everything by the book, the same way we have always done it. We got the same feedback from everybody from the state level who had anything who had anything to do with this. I don’t think I did anything ‘arbitrary and capricious.’ I think I did everything exactly the way it should have been done. The planning and zoning department did everything they were asked to do. Every department has come back to us the same way. Everyone we have ever seen has come back to us. I think what they did was right, and I think what we did was right.”

Pressed by Thomas, county attorney David Mathews said he interpreted the judge’s ruling that “the judge felt we acted arbitrarily and capriciously by not looking at drainage plans for adjacent subdivisions, by not looking at the entire region.

The one-vote margin was the first in several months for the commission and further confirms he shift in power that began last month with the selection of Madalena as chairman, making him the first chairman from District 5 since 2002. By tradition the vice-chairman moves up every year, meaning Bency could be in charge in 2009 despite being the only Republican on the five-member commission.

The political positioning becomes especially important this year as the county looks for a successor to county manager Debbie Hays, who will retire at the end of the year. Three commission positions are up for election this year: Leonard is unopposed so far in District 2, no one from either party has expressed interest in District 4, where Thomas is term-limited; and Madalena has already announced plans to challenge Sen. Linda Lovejoy for her state senate seat.

In approving the six-month management contract with Netlogix, the county is moving forward with its revamped broadband project that has been under heavy scrutiny since state auditors questioned the use of state money to the initial contractors. Since then a five-person oversight committee has taken control of the project, including the implementation of tighter financial regulation and reporting methods.

One major change from the initial project is having separate companies handle the management and actual construction. The Denver division of Atlanta-based ChM2Hill will handle the implementation, design and engineering of the project.

The commission had given approval for staff and the oversight committee to negotiate contracts with the two companies at is Nov. 1 meeting.

Moira C. Gerety, director of information technology services for the University of New Mexico and chair of the oversight committee, exchanged high-fives with committee member John Brown after the vote. Both said ChM2Hill had responded to the county’s Request for Proposal, the basis of a contract, and that the “spine” the county’s broadband project could be constructed in a matter of months depending on issues of right away and licensing.

County officials believe providing high-speed internet access throughout the county will provide a competitive advantage when it comes to economic development and recruiting new business. They also believe broadband can assist educational access, especially in rural areas, and provide a virtual real-time link to the County Health Commons for online medical information and assistance.