Patti’s Responses to the 2012 Sierra Club Candidate’s Questionnaire

1. What do you see as the principal environmental challenge you would face if elected?

The primary environmental challenge that the City of Santa Fe continues to face currently, and I believe into the future, is the issue of our water supply, quantity, quality, demand management, and sustainability. I have been proactive on the Council in creating policies that ensure a more secure water supply in the near term; but, the issue of a secure, sustainable, and quality source of supply, (and all other quality-of-life issues that depend on that supply), will continue to be the greatest environmental challenge for this and future Councils.

As a policy maker that has served on the Council, since the purchase of the Sangre de Cristo Water Company, it has been a priority of mine to foster and help to enact a series of policies that have improved the City of Santa Fe’s water security. We have come a long way since 1994, with: the completion of the Buckman Direct Diversion project; the implementation of a sensible conjunctive use water policy; a long-range/regional water plan; the creation of the Water Right’s Transfer ordinance; the Water Rights Banking ordinance; a variety of water conservation measures and incentives, and accompanying forward-looking land-use policies, toward making Santa Fe more sustainable. But we cannot rest on our laurels.

Even though we have a long-range water supply plan, and today we are less dependent on the mining of our aquifer for our source of water supply, the fact is that we live in the semi-arid Southwest and face ongoing droughts, the possibility of forest fires near our watershed, and the continual pressures of growth on our limited natural resources. We will need to continue to be proactive and resourceful.

During the next four years on the Council, I hope to be able to help refine our Treated Effluent Management Plan (TEMP), craft policies that proactively deal with the effects of climate change/drought, protect our watershed, work regionally with the County Commission on our shared environmental/quality-of-life issues (alternative transportation, energy policies, green building/housing, land-use, and water management, and solid-waste) and continue to pursue land-use policies that reflect our community’s priorities, including a living Santa Fe River.

2. Tell us about your vision for coordination/cooperation between the Santa Fe City Council and the Santa Fe County Commission on environmental and resource issues.

I have had the privilege of working with many of our County Commissioners over the years, while serving as a founding member of the Regional Planning Authority (RPA). After many years of working together we were able to find common ground and bury the “urban versus rural” hatchet, by creating a land-use plan for our mutually shared jurisdiction, the 5-mile extraterritorial zone. It is a thorough and thoughtful long-range planning document. The RPA, on which I continue to serve, provides oversight to a regional transit system that serves Santa Fe County. I serve on a subcommittee of the RPA that is looking at the issue of affordable housing from a regional perspective. We currently have several other joint operations, such as the Buckman Direct Diversion water treatment and delivery system, and our Solid Waste Management Agency (SWAMA).

The existing areas of regional cooperation leave me with the hope that one day in the near future we will be able to merge our governmental operations and planning functions. The public benefits from a joint City-County government; the advantages range from economies of scale cost-savings to a simplified bureaucracy.

Political boundaries can be overcome easily when we have shared interests. In the last four years, I have worked with County Commissioner Holian to introduce a joint resolution in support of a New Environmental Impact Statement for LANL’s Chemistry and Metallurgy Research Replacement Nuclear Facility (CMRR-NF Project), and worked with County Commissioner Vigil to close Camino Carlos Rael to vehicular traffic. Over the last four years, I have also sponsored/supported legislation that was regional in nature: passed a resolution supporting the adoption of HB 471 enacting a new section of the Oil and Gas Act that recognizes the inherent authority of municipalities and counties to regulate oil and gas operations within their jurisdictions (and a follow up resolution opposing oil and gas exploitation within the City of Santa Fe and Santa Fe County); passed a resolution supporting the adoption of HB 572 which would enact the Solar Energy Improvement Special Assessment Act; and supporting the adoption of SB 647 which would enact the Renewable Energy Financing District Act(and the follow up legislation to implement these Acts in SF City/County); co-sponsored a resolution urging the PRC to find that third party developers utilizing solar power service agreements are not public utilities and not subject to regulation by the PRC, thereby eliminating market uncertainty for renewable energy; co-sponsored a resolution combing efforts to plan and design affordable housing and identify areas where collaboration will result in more effective housing programs and projects for the benefit of the working citizens of City and County of Santa Fe; and, co-sponsored a joint resolution which established a Food Policy Council for the SF County region.

When I first started in the Council, I saw the great benefits of a Santa Fe River Corridor trail and watershed restoration effort. I introduced the legislation to create the Santa Fe River Commission and subsequently their work, the Santa Fe River Master Plan. That Plan envisioned a trail that not only united the East and West sides of a City that had been unnaturally divided by a Federal Highway, but also provided a great amenity for all of SF County residents. The public would one day be able to ride bikes or walk from the reservoirs all the way down to the wastewater treatment plant in the County. Our river, bird, plant, and animal life, our citizens and visitors will all benefit from the joint City-County effort to bring our river back to life. I still hold that vision of City-County cooperation and our Living River, and will continue to work to see all the pieces come together.

3. Do you favor providing water for the Santa Fe River (1000 acre ft/year)?

Yes, I am in favor of providing water for the Santa Fe River. In as many years as a resolution has been introduced “Authorizing the City of Santa Fe to Support a Living River By Allowing Water to Bypass McClure and Nichols Reservoirs”, I have been a co-sponsor and voted in favor. I have also signed on to both new pieces of legislation that would allow for target flows in the SF River—an ordinance that would allow for annual target flows and a resolution adopting the administrative procedures. I would also be interested in examining the cost-effectiveness of using treated effluent to achieve year-round flows.

4. What is your position on transferring water from the agricultural sector for municipal use?

The problem of balancing the growing water needs of municipalities and sustaining the water needs of the surrounding agricultural sector is not a new one, nor is it unique to Santa Fe County. I have always favored a long-range water strategy that protects and preserves traditional acequia water rights and partners with farmers to minimize the impacts of any possible transfer of water rights into the municipal sector.

I have not been in favor of proposals that have come before us, such as buying farmland in the Estancia Basin, with accompanying water rights, and piping it to the City of Santa Fe. Regional Water Plans, such as the Jemez y Sangre, should be our guide when it comes to developing water rights acquisition policies for the City’s water company.

Buying local produce, supporting our fabulous, local Farmer’s Market, maintaining rural culture and open spaces are all efforts that should factor into our local economic development strategy. It would be shortsighted and fool hardy to dry up the agricultural sector to feed our growing thirst.

5. Do you favor imposing a clean energy improvements surcharge on water bills?

I would, of course need to see what level of surcharge was being proposed. I have supported all of the surcharges that have been proposed to develop the water conservation fund, which then offered incentives and rebates to our customers. I supported a minimal environmental surcharge to deal with storm-water runoff. I supported the offering of an optional charge that could be allotted to the river.

I am thrilled that we have the solar array, powering our new Buckman Direct Diversion project and understand the environmental costs of coal-fired electric plants and their use of water. All that to say that I can see the nexus and purpose of a clean energy surcharge; I would just need to see the details of any particular proposal.

6. Would you encourage the use of wind/solar powered clothes dryers (clotheslines) as an inexpensive and cost effective means of saving energy?

I have and do encourage the use of clotheslines as the means to dry clothes. However, in my particular circumstance, I have to dodge the pigeon droppings as they nest just above where my clothesline stretches. The pigeons are an unintended consequence of building a pitched-roof home so that I could more efficiently fill my 11,000-gallon underground cistern. I will say that my water harvesting and gray water systems unfortunately use more electricity than my clothesline. Now, if I could just find a way to generate electricity from pigeon droppings…

7. Plans are being developed to transform St. Michaels Drive into a four-lane boulevard lined with multi-story 1,000 dwelling units to attract the creative class, health care workers, and university students. Would you support such a transformation?

Absolutely. The prospect of transforming an outmoded, auto-oriented St. Michaels Drive through an Overlay District that would allow for a more urbanized, pedestrian friendly boulevard where residents can live, work, and play is exciting. With Santa Fe’s University of Art and Design as an anchor, the hospital nearby, the build out of the Higher Education Learning Center, and the right mix of housing types, the St. Michaels Drive area, which is the true heart of our City, would be transformed into a vibrant new neighborhood and commercial center. St. Michaels Drive would no longer be a collector street with a sea of parking that is not always inviting to navigate by automobile, never mind on foot, or on a bicycle.

Unlike our new Railyard Arts and Cultural District, this Overlay District could become a live-work center that attracts a younger, entrepreneurial segment of our population; somewhat like the Baca Street Railyard area, but on a larger scale.

The key to success, of course, will be the ability to secure the right financial model of public and private investment to see this plan through to fruition.

8. Would you support using a portion of the City’s Northwest Quadrant land grant – to install enough solar panels to power Santa Fe?

The idea of a large solar array makes more financial sense to me than the proposed (albeit fairly green) Northwest Quadrant housing/commercial development. The costly infrastructure needed to get that development off the ground in the difficult and rugged terrain of the NW Quadrant should make a solar-operated power generation plant look very inviting. Now, if we could extend the solar tax credits at the Federal level, perhaps some entity would be willing to pursue this as an option.

Of course, the costs of the transmission of electricity, both political (i.e. transmission lines) and financial would need to be explored. Count me as willing to look into such a possibility.

9. What is your position on using a portion of the Northwest Quadrant for greenhouses to grow food?

I consider myself somewhat of an urban farmer, on a very small scale. I am also an enthusiastic supporter of our community gardens. I am also all for keeping business local. The cost of bringing water and electricity to the NW Quadrant would have to be considered. I hope solar/wind power and rainwater harvesting would be employed in any greenhouse operation. The answer is yes I would be interested in reviewing such a proposal.

10. Do you support the initiation of a bike share program to accommodate daily mobility needs of both Santa Fe’s residents and visitors?

In 2008, I introduced and passed a resolution “directing Staff to Research and Recommend an Appropriate Bike Sharing Program to be Located at the Railyard.”
I then introduced and passed a resolution “Initiating Efforts to Acquire or Otherwise Secure the State Owned Archives Building and Property Located on the corner of Montezuma and Guadalupe Streets in Order to Insure that the Railyard Will Serve as a Hub to Promote and Accommodate Alternate Modes of Transportation”. In 2009, I introduced and passed a resolution “Directing Staff to Work With the Mid Region Council of Governments to Develop a Conceptual Plan for the Development of a Multi-Modal Facility and to Obtain a Long-Term Lease with the State for the Archives Property” (which was subsequently secured). In 2010, I introduced and passed a resolution “Directing Staff to Locate Funding Sources for Design and Construction of the Multimodal Center Located in the Railyard, and Intended to Serve Passengers of the Rail Runner Express.”

As Chair of the Bicycle and Trails Advisory Committee (BTAC) since its inception six years ago, I have successfully worked to promote and accommodate bike riding as a means of transportation throughout the City of Santa Fe. I am also a road bike rider and commuter. I am currently working with a task force to try and develop a Santa Fe version of bike sharing that works for our residents and visitors alike. The concept is bike share kiosks emanating from the Railyard multimodal hub and connecting to other active Rail Runner stations and a station near City Hall. The goal is to have this system up and running by next October, the date of the International Mountain Biking Association (IMBA) conference. We have been working with the Rail Runner Express staff and hope to fund the prototype through a public-private partnership of local governments and our hospitality industry. Ultimately, I envision a system of solar-powered kiosks that extends out as far as the SF Community College with solar-powered kiosks. The City has already purchased some bike lockers to accommodate Rail Runner express bike commuters who bring their own bikes.

11. Car sharing as used in Philadelphia has decreased the need for 14 parking spaces for every shared car and city hall car fleet use by 30 percent. Would you support car sharing in Santa Fe?

In 2008, I introduced and passed a resolution “directing Staff to Research the Possibility of a Car Sharing Program to be located at the Railyard”. See the answer to the question above for more details about the multi-modal transportation hub, which includes car sharing, for which we are currently seeking funding for. Also note that I worked with our former Parking Director to secure some plugs in our parking garage for the recharging of electric cars.

12. Do you support using the upcoming bond issue to pay for improvements in sidewalks, bike facilities, bus purchases and other transportation options to allow Santa Feans and our guests to navigate the city safely?

The upcoming March bond issue consists of three questions that will be put to the voters. The second question asks the voters to approve $14 Million for trails/on-road improvements, parks, and open space. Only $6 Million of that, if approved, will be used for trails and on-road improvements. My job as a City Councilor was to send projects that the electorate might be willing to accept in return for a property tax increase. I worked both as Chair of BTAC and a member of the Metropolitan Planning Organization to prioritize a list of projects that would provide the most connectivity for the suggested $6 Million. At the eleventh hour, the Council opted to recommend $2 Million for a project that had not been vetted nor planned, and was certainly not considered a priority. Unfortunately, this decision left the growing bicycle community divided in their support for that second bond question therefore limiting their willingness to advocate for it.

My vote against recommending bond question number two to the electorate reflected my concern that this was not the “best bang for our buck”, that the hard work of the planning staff and the bicycle advocates was being ignored, and therefore the advocacy for question number two would be compromised.

On the plus side, I was able to secure $250,000 in the upcoming Capital Improvement Projects bond for on-road improvements, such as sharrow maintenance and bike racks. I will also continue to be a strong advocate on the Council for our public transit and bicycle and pedestrian amenities.

I advocated for the first crossing under St. Francis Drive that honors our late, great bicycle advocate Gail Ryba. The underpass and trail will connect to our Rail-Trail system and get bicyclists and pedestrians safely across a busy highway at an already dangerous intersection.

I have introduced other measures, and worked hard for their passage, that are making the streets of Santa Fe safer for bicyclists, such as: amending the Uniform Traffic Ordinance to require that cars allow a five-foot distance when passing a bicyclist; a cooperative agreement between NMDOT and the City for the design, construction and maintenance of bicycle trails within the State’s right-of-way (improving the shoulders); and worked with the MVD and Traffic Safety Bureau of the State to implement comprehensive bicycle safety and road-sharing educational provisions in the New Mexico Drivers Test and Student Driver’s Education Curriculum.

In the recent past, I was able to get the Council to designate the majority of the NW Quadrant as open space, and am thrilled that close to $3 Million of the previous $30 Million Parks and Trails bond issuance, approve by the electorate, will be used to develop a fabulous network of off-road trails. In fact, the master planning effort of the La Tierra Trails project just won an award, and was among the reasons that IMBA chose Santa Fe for its international conference, over other cities renowned as great places to bike.

All of the hard work of the growing bicycle community, planning staff, strong advocacy on the Council, and the voter’s previous approval of $9 Million for trail improvements, has made it possible for the City of Santa Fe to receive the Bronze Category designation as a “Bicycle Friendly City”. We hope to be able to go for Gold in the not too distant future!