Santa Fe New Mexican - CONNECT
SANTA FE COMMUNITY PROFILE
SHistory
anta Fe means “holy faith.” The city’s official name, given to it by Spanish settlers in 1608, is La Villa Real de la Santa Fe de San Francisco de Asís. Santa Fe boasts the title of the oldest capital city in the United States. Prior to the arrival of the Spaniards, the area was already inhabited by Puebloan peoples, who revolted against the Spanish in 1680. In 1692 Don Diego de Vargas reclaimed the land for the Spanish. In 1712 the Santa Fe Fiesta was established to commemorate this reconquest. The tradition of Fiesta holds to this day, celebrated in September.
By 1822 trade caravans were traveling along the Santa Fe Trail. At the end of the trail sits the Palace of the Governors, which has flown four different flags throughout its history: representing Spain, Mexico, the Confederacy and the United States. In 1860 the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad set out to expand into New Mexico from Kansas.
Route 66 figures prominently in New Mexico. For many people traveling this road during its heyday, New Mexico revealed the exotic cultures of the Southwest. New Mexico presented the adventure of discovery — from Indian pueblos predating European colonization to the Santa Fe Plaza, bustling with the activity of commerce before there was even a United States.
In 1850 New Mexico became a U.S. territory. It signed in as the 47th state in 1912. In the 1920s Santa Fe became a thriving art colony and Indian art market. In the 1940s, Los Alamos became home to the Manhattan Project and many world-renowned scientists. Since then it has been important to the New Mexico economy as a scientific and technological research center. In the 1970s, Santa Fe became known as a center for alternative healing. Due to its colorful history and its unique cultural traditions, food and architecture, Santa Fe is affectionately called the City Different.
Just a few landmarks that tell the history of Santa Fe are the Gothic-style St. Francis Basilica, the Miraculous Staircase in the Loretto Chapel, the San Miguel Mission, the Oldest House in the United States and the Palace of the Governors. We invite you to visit them and the other historical locations in the downtown area and the rest of the city.
Education
Santa Fe’s education system is comprised of a variety of public and private primary and secondary schools, as well as a range of colleges and universities.
Recreation
Santa Fe is ranked second on Condé Nast Traveler’s “Top 10 Cities in the United States” list, and the magazine has proclaimed the city “pure magic” and “heaven where souls vacation.” Northern New Mexico is a scenic paradise for those who love the outdoors. Golfing is an almost year-round activity. Local golf enthusiasts can enjoy the beautifully groomed course at the Santa Fe Country Club or play Marty Sanchez Links de Santa Fe, nested among the Sangre de
Cristo, Jemez, Sandia and Ortiz mountain ranges. The Pueblo de Cochiti Golf Course, ranked by Golf Digest as one of America’s “Top 75 Affordable Courses,” is nearby.
Skiing and snowboarding amid the aspens and under clear blue skies are favorite winter activities. Ski Santa Fe, located below 12,400-foot Sangre de Cristo Mountain peaks, boasts 1,725 vertical feet of skiing. Its Millennium Triple Chair provides rapid access to the steeper side of the mountain and opens up new terrain for blue and black runs. At Ski Santa
Fe, the mountain “beckons skiers to Santa Fe’s pathways of powder — where the turns and terrain are as varied as the scenery.”
The Genoveva Chavez Center has an NHL-regulation iceskating rink open year-round. Despite the desert surroundings, water sports are popular in New Mexico. White-water rafting and kayaking are available on the Río Grande, and fishing is popular on the Pecos River and on lakes located an hour or so from Santa Fe. Boating and swimming at the many surrounding lakes are favorite activities, and windsurfing can be done on Cochiti Lake. The area is also a mecca for campers, hikers, mountain bikers, rock climbers and photography buffs.
Health Care
Santa Fe has a long tradition as a healthy city. The American Lung Association named it one of 20 U.S. cities with “consistently safe ozone levels.” Modern technology, combined with alternative therapies, has helped establish the city as a center of healing for body, mind and spirit. Numerous massage therapists, holistic doctors and traditional healers of all kinds make Santa Fe their home.
CHRISTUS St. Vincent Regional Medical Center
455 St. Michaels Dr., Santa Fe, NM 87505 505-983-3361, stvin.org
Located in Santa Fe, the 200-bed hospital operates under a 50/50 partnership with CHRISTUS Health and SVHsupport. CHRISTUS
St. Vincent is a comprehensive acute-care hospital serving a sevencounty area with a population of nearly 300,000.
Each year, more than 13,000 patients are admitted to the hospital. More than 200,000 outpatients visit the hospital and its physicians each year. More babies are born in birthing suites at CHRISTUS St. Vincent than anywhere else in Northern New Mexico, with nearly 1,300 newborns delivered at our hospital each year. The birthing program provides 11 labor-delivery-recovery-postpartum suites. More than 8,900 surgical procedures are performed each year at CHRISTUS St. Vincent. With more than 52,000 patient visits every year, CHRISTUS St. Vincent Regional Medical Center has the second busiest emergency department in New Mexico.
Presbyterian Santa Fe Medical Center
4801 Beckner Road, Santa Fe, NM 87507 505-772-1234, phs.org
The 342,000-square-foot Presbyterian Santa Fe Medical Center provides a range of health care services in one convenient location. It focuses on improving care, enhancing the patient experience and lowering the total cost of care. It provides more choice and greater access to health care for Santa Fe and surrounding areas. The center features:
• An urgent care and 24/7 emergency department
• 30 private inpatient beds
• Surgery and procedure suites for outpatient and short-stay surgeries • Lab and imaging services, including CT and MRI
• Specialty medical services
• Inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation services
• Ground and helicopter ambulances
• Hiking and biking trails, a healing pathway and green building practices
The center is designed to be a beautiful and inviting place where community members can gather to pursue their own health and wellness goals.
Climate
Before New Mexico became the Land of Enchantment, it was called the Sunshine State because it’s sunny 70 percent of the year and has low humidity. On average New Mexico enjoys 325 sunny days per year. Santa Fe’s 7,000-foot altitude keeps temperatures moderate, with a high averaging 91 degrees in July and lows near 19 degrees in January. The city has four distinct seasons, with frequent dramatic summer thunderstorms and occasional snowstorms in winter. The temperate climate includes mild winters and low annual rainfall. The low humidity makes the climate one of the most healthful in the U.S.
Retirement
Santa Fe has a long-standing reputation as one of the best places to visit, to live and to retire. The clear, healthful air and peaceful surroundings draw seniors from around the country in search of a healthy lifestyle, business opportunities and a stimulating cultural environment. With world-class restaurants, shopping, culture, golf courses, tennis and social clubs, the city is ideally suited to the needs of retirees. Adventurous people can live a relaxing, creative lifestyle surrounded by the beauty of the Rocky Mountains. Those with sophisticated tastes can enjoy more than 400 restaurants featuring cuisine from all over the world, while art lovers can find top-quality entertainment. Active retirees can enjoy a great quality of life, recreation, arts and creative endeavors, intellectual and spiritual activities and the bluest of skies. Call the Chamber Resource Center
at 505-988-3279 or visit santafechamber.com to get referrals, order a relocation package or ask specific questions.
Religion and Spirituality
With a multicultural tradition and a history of tolerance, Santa Fe, the City of Holy Faith, is a spiritual center, home to healers, meditation centers, therapists and religious disciplines of all kinds. Santa Fe has more than 40 Christian churches, four synagogues, six Buddhist temples and dozens of spiritual centers supporting other beliefs. While primarily a Catholic community, Santa Fe has a tradition of tolerance, and mutual respect has grown among spiritual disciplines ranging from Buddhism to Sufism and beyond.
Transportation
There are plenty of ways to travel around Santa Fe as well as from Santa Fe to other places in the state and country.
Santa Fe Municipal Airport (santafenm.gov/airport) offers daily nonstop flights to Denver, Dallas and Phoenix. American Airlines has daily nonstop service to Dallas/Ft. Worth and Phoenix, and United Airlines has daily nonstop service to Denver. Santa Fe is located one hour north of Albuquerque International Airport (abqsunport.com), which serves nine commercial airlines. Shuttle bus service between the airport and Santa Fe is available daily.
Three interstate highways intersect the state: Interstate 40 (east-west), Interstate 10 (east-west) and Interstate 25 (north
south). The Rail Runner (nmrailrunner.com) began commuter rail service from Albuquerque to Santa Fe in December 2008. Amtrak’s Southwest Chief runs daily between Chicago and Los Angeles. The closest Amtrak station to Santa Fe is Lamy, 18 miles away. Visit Amtrak.com/southwest-chief-train.
Santa Fe Trails buses run on 10 routes around town, and Santa Fe Pick-Up buses coordinate with the Rail Runner train schedule. Uber and Lyft apps are also available for in-town travel.