SAD-9 clears first council vote

By Eric Maddy
The SCORE

Rio Rancho began the long process of addressing flood control issues again Wednesday night as the city council approved a small Special Assessment District.

SAD-9 includes properties along Pasilla, Milsa Alta, Campache and Soltillo roads, though the boundaries are far from set. It currently includes only 112 properties, a far cry from the controversial $70 million SAD-7 project proposed earlier this year.

The Governing Body’s unanimous vote directs the city staff to continue the SAD process. The next step, said acting city engineer Scott S., is to set final boundaries of the district.

A document prepared by the city shows 32 percent of the total property owners support the SAD, 29 percent oppose and 1 percent is undecided. Another 38 percent did not respond to the survey, which was conducted by phone, e-mail and/or self-addressed stamped post cards.

Actual homeowners on the same property favor the SAD 41-20 percent, with 2 percent undecided and 37 percent not responding.

That high number of owners not responding is why residents who favor the SAD asked for city help. Under the state law on special assessment districts, a SAD can be created in two ways: a governing agency can impose it or 2/3 of the owners within the boundaries must agree to self-impose the fee, which would be used for infrastructure improvements including flood control.

The first six SADs in the city were requested by more than 2/3 of voters. When the city attempted to impose SAD-7 earlier this year in response to flooding in 2007, many residents objected to the estimated $12,500 per property average assessment, at one point jamming 1,200 residents into city hall in protest.

Residents in isolated pockets who favor a SAD for their area have approached the city in an attempt to get improvements. Six of the seven residents who spoke Wednesday night were in favor of SAD-9, especially after heavy rains earlier this month caused road washouts that made it difficult for them to access their homes.

City officials have not done a full engineering plan that would set the per-property costs. They hope that publicity generated will encourage more people to join in, expanding the boundaries and hopefully lowering the per-property cost.

More details are available on the city's web site.

In other business, the Governing Body:

• Approved two loan agreements with the state totaling almost $10 million. One agreement, for $4.669 million, would fund the extension of Paseo del Vulcan and infrastructure for the new Cleveland High School. The other loan, for $5,217,100, will go for water, wastewater and roads improvements and construction.

• Approved members of Mayor Tom Swisstack’s new visual arts and cultural enrichment, animal welfare, aesthetic quality of life and disability task forces.

* Approved the appointment of Pete Lorenzen to the Planning and Zoning Board.

• Approved the reappointment of Randy McNicolas to the Parks and Recreation Commission.

• Approved two zoning changes from residential to special use/mixed use multi-family zoning on 39th Street.

• Approved a police department request to purchase graffiti removal equipment.

• Decided on its meeting schedule for November and December, canceling its second meetings of the month because of the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.