Why Annexation? Why Indeed?

(Breaking News) Clean Energy, Clean Streets, and Clean Government organizers are meeting this weekend at an undisclosed location near Taos. Luis Reyes, Amos Cohn, and Jeff Northrup accidentally met at a local cafe and began talking. The threesome realized they had much in common and promised to convene. Luis’s recent victory over Tri-State at the PRC, similar to Amos’s muni court victory for “Beautify Taos,” and the confirmation of corrupt practices by the town and coop have legitimized the message on Jeff’s signs, according to backers. For years, Tio Luis has been installing solar devices for the sake of the community–even if paid for by struggling members. Amos follows in the footsteps of Tia Helen, who cleaned up Tio Levi’s junkyard south of Ranchos, ‘lo these many years ago, a junkyard (I liked) but thought to be offensive to tourists. And, now comes Jeff, who is seeking clean and honest government, believing as the other two do that “cleanliness is next to godliness–or your higher power and the U.S. Constitution.” Buenas suerte, bros. Buenas suerte.  May Los Jardineros reward the winner.

Analysis and Opinion

“Why” the Town Ignores the County’s Offer to finance the airport and air operations in the interests of what attorneys term the “sham annexation” –more or less–of Highway 64, Indian Country under same, the El Prado Water and Sanitation District pipes under same, County road ingress and egress under same, and the Rio Lucero acequia under same is the metaphysical mystery of the moment.

Town spokesmen and manager Oscar Rodriguez talks like the first letter of his name, “O” in circles, rejecting the County’s offer of financial support in a regional effort, claiming the county’s offer a promise uncertain. For the sake of clarity, Commissioner Tom Blankenhorn noted for the press’s benefit, and Oscar’s, in an email the governing statute for “Joint county-municipal operation of airports” i.e. NMSA 4-38-34: To wit:

The boards of county commissioners are hereby authorized and empowered to cooperate and join with any municipality located in such county, in the joint operation, financing, maintenance and control of publicly owned or operated airports, under such plan and provisions, as the board of county commissioners and the governing body of such municipality may mutually agree.

We hazard the guess that the town rejects the offer because—despite saying annexation is no “land grab”—and despite Councilor Silva’s “sincere” vote, while pressured by his El Prado neighbors, against annexation, and despite all the blither–certain private and public parties stand to benefit from annexing businesses or improving the value of their property.

Did Silva vote against the ordinance the first time it was passed and nobody was looking?

Earlier in the evening El Silva abstained from voting for the E911/Dispatch movida to the KCEC Office Building, saying he had “contracts” with the Broadband contractor. Contracts? Eh? Is there a profit motive in mind here? The mayor has contracts, too, with KCEC.

During an informal discussion of a county proffered resolution instituting a “moratorium” on annexing county property on Tuesday evening, March 12, “Black Tuesday” as former councilor Gene Sanchez called it, Councilor Rudy Abeyta, the realtor, revealed the motives for the town’s rejection of the county offer.

Rudy said the proposed resolution for a moratorium should have a limited time attached. And he also said he wanted to exempt a single property owner from the moratorium, someone who had been waiting a long time for the airport deal to go through.

A single property owner? Confessions of a realtor. Could that single property owner be Darren’s buddy, well-driller and straw-man, lover of oldies but goodies, the heir, allegedly, to Wally Chatwin’s private water company circa Merced St. in Taos? We’re only asking if Gil owns land at the airport.  And there’s nothing wrong in America with profit motives. We’re not communists. But say it loud, I’m proud: I stand to profit.

In terms of legal matters, the town is in the fine hands of a long-toothed shark, the clever lawyer Brian James, who ignores procedural niceties and condones the council’s lack of notification re: annexation. He has reassured the council of their righteous acts—regardless of statute–and has retreated in a hoary way to custom: it’s not what you know but who you know, a time–honored tradition in El Norte.

To James jurisdictional issues are a mere canard. To wit, he prosecuted the sign man for violating the code in three prior cases for stepping onto highway rightaway frontage with his outlandish signs. But when the “tow truck gang” pilferred the protester’s signs, it turned out the “Beautify America” groupies were friends of folks in high places, and James dismissed charges by town cops and claimed the town has no jurisdiction over the state highway fringe. A new interpretation of the code.

Now that the town wants to annex Highway 64. So the El Prado residents worry about crime and gangs if the sign man–tow-truck drivers move their turf battle north to the historic village.

James, like O’Rod, is that fortunate attorney, who saves his best tautological arguments for himself. Though he lost to the sign man (3 times) at Muni Court, he has won a victory over same, aided and abetted by perjured testimony, in a criminal trespassing case in district court. Buttressed by his victory, he’s looking forward to revisiting the annexation ordinance in those august chambers.

The county staff and the commissioners, in a few short weeks, have re-invented county government as a stable, even-tempered, and sharp-eyed force for protecting, not exploiting, their constituents. On the county’s side in district court, you’ve got three attorneys: the Sinewy Wizard, Commissioner Blankenhorn; County Attorney Barbara Martinez, a former prosecutor; and Bob Malone, the incisive researcher and case-law scholar. On the town’s side you have Brian James, who doesn’t make “legal” distinctions between protest signs and roadside litter. Mr. James reminds me of Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers,  the triple crowner, who watched a third strike sail by him and lost the world series for his team. He can’t tell a ball from a strike.

Still when you dismiss charges against thugs, thugs who were charged by law-abiding cops, you are acting in a time-honored Taos tradition. And he has precedence on his side: a district judge convicted the sign man and let the perjured politicians ride free. Another district judge let the Coopsters go, Coopsters who had brought down the wrath of members on their heads, due to spend and borrow policies. So the courts tend to rule in favor of the establishment. But who is the establishment in a town-county battle?

Speaking of custom, the El Prado Water and Sanitation District, i.e. led by Telesfor Gonzales and John Painter, have been doing battle from the inside out with the Town of Taos for years, while arguing  over jurisdictional issues, i.e. negotiating the Abeyta water deal or pipe and sewer agreements.

Your hostile annex team at the town can say what they want in response to El Prado’s Arsenio Cordova’s charge of a “land grab” but the movida makers have revealed themselves in their actions, when they voted to annex 6 and a half miles of state highway. An impoverished town hall is salivating over potential GRT targets.

After the vote to relocate E911 to KCEC, I asked KCEC CEO Luis Reyes if “blackmail is cheaper than bribery?” He laughed nervously and said, “what do you mean?” Maybe he hasn’t read the Karla Trilogy by John Le Carre. Smiley said that Karla, the chief Russian spy and agent runner, preferred blackmail to bribery because it was cheaper, more certain, and had a timeless quality.

Call the grab part of the new Robin Hood principle: steal from the taxpayer and keep it. Call it homegrown corporate fascism. Call annexation “uncommon indecency.”