Meow Wolf liquor license transfer wins approval

The Santa Fe City Council late Wednesday approved a request from the arts collective Meow Wolf to transfer a liquor license from a Hobbs restaurant.

The council had postponed a decision on the transfer in late October after a 90-minute debate over whether the group should hold a liquor license at its House of Eternal Return exhibit on Rufina Circle.

Meow Wolf has offered beer and wine, licensed and serviced by nearby Duel Brewing, since the interactive exhibit opened last year. The company has said operating under its own liquor license would help boost its concert events as well as its food and beverage offerings. Chief executive Vince Kadlubek has said revenues from increased alcohol service would allow Meow Wolf to open a coffee shop and cafe, and hire 15 new employees.

Mayor Javier Gonzales, who was absent from the late October discussion, said he wanted some clarity from councilors on what had contributed to the intense scrutiny of the Meow Wolf request.

“It seems that to deny this transfer, this opportunity, really is to discount the effort that Meow Wolf has [undertaken] to create a responsible environment for people to be served alcohol and enjoy our nighttime economy,” Gonzales said.

Councilor Mike Harris said he had received sufficient confirmation from the Santa Fe Prevention Alliance that Meow Wolf employees were working to comply with best practices of alcohol service.

Councilor Ron Trujillo, who recused himself from the discussion in October because he said Kadlubek had bullied him on social media, said he had been under the impression that Meow Wolf intended to “build a wonderful, family-oriented [place] for kids to have fun.” He wanted to know why expanded alcohol service was part of the company’s business plan and asked pointed questions about police responses to a small number of incidents at Meow Wolf and whether employees were in violation of a “vaping” restriction, a reference to electronic cigarettes.

But Trujillo joined all but one of his council colleagues in approving the transfer Wednesday.

As Trujillo voted yes, a man in attendance toting a gun, Roger Rael, began to repeatedly scream “Sell out!” and was removed from the council chambers. Trujillo shook his head.

Only Councilor Carmichael Dominguez voted no, expressing resignation about what he said was the inevitability of the state Alcohol and Gaming Division approving the license transfer even if the city denied it.

“There’s a huge disconnect between what the state says they allow us to do and what our local authority really is,” Dominguez said.

Council shorts BOND ISSUE FOR STREET IMPROVEMENTS

Issue: A bond issue proposed by Mayor Javier Gonzales and unanimously approved by the City Council is expected to bring in almost $12 million for maintenance and improvements of high-priority city streets. The annual debt on the bonds would be paid off over the next 10 years with gasoline tax payments to the city from the state government. The bond issue would accelerate repair on infrastructure projects, primarily high-traffic roadways — projects that otherwise would take 10 years to complete would be done in two.

Discussion: Councilor Ron Trujillo wanted to know if a recent external fraud assessment report that identified a lack of internal controls in municipal financial and accounting operations would impact the city’s bond rating.

“We’ve received no indication and I don’t anticipate any indication our bond rating will be affected,” said Finance Director Adam Johnson.

David Catanach, director of streets and drainage maintenance, said that while his staff had identified tens of millions of dollars of needed street repair, the bond was an important start. “Our need is great,” he said.

What’s next: Work will begin in earnest in 2018; a city fiscal impact report said multiple construction projects going on at once could congest roadways.

CONCERNS ABOUT ARMED ATTENDEE

Issue: Rael, a Santa Fe man who previously appeared at a City Council meeting bearing a handgun and saying he hoped to unnerve councilors, attended Wednesday’s meeting with a handgun again slung over his shoulder.

Discussion: A woman testified that his presence in the back of the council chambers made her uncomfortable. She said she was concerned it also would discourage people from attending government meetings and speaking. As she spoke, Rael shouted from the back of the room about “constitutional rights.”

Rael, a vocal critic of Mayor Gonzales and Councilor Signe Lindell on social media, then approached a podium to defend his right to carry a handgun. He called himself “a patriot to watch over the sheep.” Referring to a mass shooting Sunday in Sunderland Springs, Texas, he said, “If we had somebody like me at that church on Sunday, we would have 26 people still alive.”

Addressing the woman who had complained about his gun, Rael said, “How dare you show your stupidity.”

“Don’t tread on me,” he added, slamming his hand on the podium.

What’s next: Municipalities are prohibited by the New Mexico Constitution from restricting the right to bear arms.

OUTSIDE FIRM’S ACCOUNTING COSTS

Issue: Approval of an additional $50,000 for an external accounting firm currently assisting the city Finance Department; the firm was brought on after a recent fraud assessment report found the city’s financial and accounting operations were at risk of fraud and waste.

Discussion: “This is an extraordinary measure I would say, and I think it’s a good one. I think it’s a prudent one. But I think this is a situation where the public needs to be kept informed at appropriate milestones,” Councilor Joseph Maestas said.

What’s next: The external firm, Anderson Accounting & Consulting, will present a scope of its expected future work with the city to the Finance Committee next week, Finance Director Adam Johnson said, and perhaps later the advisory Audit Committee.

OFFICER VACANCY RATE HAS FALLEN, SFPD REPORTS

Issue: Officer vacancies at the Santa Fe Police Department are down from 20 to 9, City Manager Brian Snyder said, with new hires currently enrolled at the New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy.

Discussion: Snyder said he had discussions with outgoing Chief Patrick Gallagher and deputy chiefs about extending recruitment efforts in local schools with the intent of creating “a stream of local officers that don’t necessarily have that desire to move away.”