Violations put Glorieta Camps’ license at risk
County cites unpermitted development, disposals
The group that owns the former Glorieta Conference Center has been issued a cease and desist order by Santa Fe County and is in danger of losing its business license after inspectors found numerous violations for unpermitted development, and use and solid waste disposal on the property, now operating primarily as a Christian youth camp.
Glorieta 2.0, Inc., which bought the property a little more than three years ago and does business as Glorieta Camps, was intending to bring 25,000 kids to the camp about 15 miles east of Santa Fe this summer. But during an inspection at the 2,400-acre property on Feb. 15, the county fire marshal and growth management staff found multiple issues regarding new and remodeled buildings, zip lines, decks, slides and diving boards at a recreational lake.
Inspectors also found “a large area of land” being used for solid waste disposal that may contain hazardous material.
“The unlawful use being allowed on the property presents immediate risk to the patrons of the facility, the general public, and surrounding property,” states the notice of violation from the county’s land use administrator.
“Failure to immediately cease and desist occupancy and use of the unpermitted structures and unpermitted re-modeled structures … will result in criminal charges being filed and may result in a civil action to enjoin the use,” it continued in bold, underlined type.
If imposed, penalties would total thousands of dollars and accrue daily.
In addition, the state Environmental Department’s Occupational Health and Safety Bureau recently cited Glorieta Camps for several violations rated as “serious,” related to food safety and hazardous chemicals, with proposed penalties totaling $4,900.
Glorieta Camps had until today to correct the violations.
Anthony Scott, who has overseen construction and the rebranding of the property after Glorieta 2.0 bought it for $1 in 2013, said his organization
is working closely with state and county officials to correct the problems.
“This isn’t something we take lightly at all,” he said in an interview last month. “We, like everyone else, have areas where we can improve.”
Scott says more than a dozen state and county officials showed up recently in response to complaints alleging multiple offenses that occurred during the multi-million-dollar overhaul of the property. Glorieta Camps has been working to resolve the issues ever since.
“We’re trying to knock them off one at a time,” he said. “But when it comes to the health and safety of our campers, we’re not worried. Our goal is to have things 100 percent open by this summer, but we will not compromise safety.”
That interview took place days before the county issued its cease and desist order. Scott did not return calls from the Journal this week.
Safety issues
Michael Adney is worried about the safety of the campers.
“That place needs to close until they get it right,” he said in an interview this week.
Adney, who was hired at Glorieta Camps as a cook and promoted to food service director in August 2015, was fired after sending a letter to management listing a litany of concerns. “I was completely ignored,” he said.
He still resides on the property, however. He’s living in a home owned by Kirk Tompkins, the last of more than 60 homeowners who once leased land in a residential subdivision on the property. While the others left after their leases expired or accepted a buyout from Glorieta Camps, he sued the new owners (see sidebar).
Adney says he didn’t contact state and county agencies about the issues at Glorieta Camps to retaliate for being fired. He did it “for the safety, health and protection of children, youth, young adults and staff.”
He also questions whether Glorieta Camps should even be allowed to convert the property into what he called an “amusement park.”
For more than 60 years, he says, the center was run by a nonprofit, and used exclusively for religious conferences, retreats and events. And while Glorieta Camps’ mission is “to inspire Christ-like change through outdoor adventure, authentic relationships, and Biblical truth,” it now operates as a corporation and makes its facilities available to the public at a cost. It also hosts a series of mountain bike races from May to September.
County ordinances say that unpermitted structures or conditional uses of the property require public hearings. That hasn’t happened.
“It’s like if they built a movie theater or a hospital on the site. You simply can’t do that,” he said.
Jose Larranaga, commercial case manager for the county planning division, said Glorieta Camps never submitted an application for the structures or use of the structures.
“Until such time that an application is made and reviewed, staff cannot determine if the structures and uses are a permitted use or a conditional use,” he said in response to an email inquiry. “A permitted use is processed administratively and a conditional use requires public hearings.”
‘Blatant violation’
Meanwhile, the New Mexico Environment Department said several investigations were launched involving the Food Safety Program, and the Health and Safety, Environmental Health, and Solid Waste bureaus after it had received reports of noncompliance. The department’s statement to the Journal said it was working with Glorieta Camps in an effort to resolve issues before this summer.
As of Thursday, Glorieta Camps’ website was still taking reservations for the 2017 season. It is advertising a spring break day camp March 21-23. Its summer season runs from late May into August.
According to the citation notice dated Feb. 14 from the Occupational Health and Safety Bureau, serious violations included such things as failure to train employees handling hazardous chemicals, safety data sheets for chemicals not being properly maintained, and lack of facilities for quick drenching or flushing of eyes in places where corrosive chemicals were used.
The Hazardous Waste Bureau issued a notice of violation to Glorieta Camps in December, citing it for six issues. Three of those involved the storage and labeling of used oil and evidence of spilled oil that hadn’t been properly cleaned up. The bureau inspected again in January and determined all issues had been resolved.
The Environmental Health Bureau/Food Program conducted a surprise inspection on Jan. 30 and found a few issues at the “Chuck Wagon” food service area and dining hall. Most were quickly corrected, but a follow-up inspection is scheduled for some time in April.
The Solid Waste Bureau is conducting an investigation into Glorieta Camps’ waste disposal practices, and the Air Quality Bureau is also looking into its handling of asbestos removal.
A spokeswoman with the Construction Industries Division said it, too, was investigating “some permitting and construction concerns” at Glorieta Camps, but declined to comment on an ongoing investigation. Spokeswoman Alex Sanchez said CID’s compliance division “has been investigating and is trying to work with the owner” to remedy issues addressed in the Carnival Ride Act, which covers zip lines.
There are five sections of zip lines totaling more than a mile in length at Glorieta Camps that are open to the public, according to its website. It promotes a “High Five” tour that includes hiking trails between zip lines, takes about 3½ hours to complete, and is priced at $95 for adults and $75 for children 16 and under who meet the height and weight requirements.
According to the notice of violation from Santa Fe County, Glorieta Camps failed to obtain permits for “multiple new structures utilized for zip lines, a structure which includes lake slides and diving boards, multiple decks, a remodeled building utilized as a Coffee Shop/General Store, the construction of trails (grading) for extreme biking, and a skeet shooting range.”
“Your property is currently in violation and requires development permits for all newly constructed structures, renovations of existing structures, grading, and the change of use resulting from the addition of new facilities,” the notice says.
The letter also says that disposal and waste burial on the property was “a blatant violation” of country ordinances. It refers to appliances, building materials, tar paper, rags, garbage and refuse piled “in a heap.”
The county also cites Glorieta Camps for litter and hazardous materials, defining them as asbestos and asbestos products, infectious materials and petroleum products, among others.
With regard to its business license, the notice says that the site is zoned “Public Institutional” and historically has been used as a Religious Facility/Retreat/Dormitories, but current activities “no longer fit under this use status.” Current uses now include bed and breakfast, resort, restaurant, retail sales, amusement, recreation establishment, shooting range and landfill, it states.