Local Election Act postponed at Taos Council meeting
Andrew Gonzales becomes interim town manager, replacing Rick Bellis
The Town of Taos Council held its first two official “hybrid” meetings Monday and Tuesday (April 11-12), the first official meetings to be held in-person since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The official Tuesday meeting lasted just over three-and-a-half hours, with council members discussing a wide range of topics, including the appointment of an interim town manager, new members on town boards and whether or not to opt-in to the Local Election Act.
New town manager
Andrew Gonzales was officially sworn in as the interim town manager, a position that carried a lot of weight in the previous administration. The contract with Gonzales is open-ended, meaning that Gonzales will stay on until the new administration can find a candidate it deems suitable to fill the position long-term.
Gonzales thanked new mayor Pascual Maestas and the council for choosing him to serve in the position temporarily. After accepting the role, he reflected back on when he was sworn in as a town councilor in 2012. Gonzales said he offered to fill the interim position to give Maestas and the council an opportunity to conduct an international search. “Having sat in your seat before, you all should have a say who your manager is,” he said. “That’s one of the reasons behind the interim manager position.”
He said he has not yet decided whether he will put his own name into the hat to serve as the official manager for the next four years. Marietta Fambro was the only councilor who voted against appointing him.
When it came to the position of Mayor Pro-tem (the person who acts as mayor in the mayor’s absence), Maestas nominated Darien Fernandez, who was unanimously voted into the position. Councilor Nathaniel Evans previously held the post.
Lupe Martinez was also sworn in as the new finance director, a position Fambro held before she was elected to the town council in March.
Local Election Act
Maestas said during his campaign and after he was sworn in April 1 that he plans to opt-in
to the Local Election Act, which would cut terms short by nine weeks — or extend them by a 22 months — in order to align municipal elections with November general elections. Maestas said he wants to shorten the terms.
Town Clerk Francella Garcia noted that only 31 percent of registered voters turned out in the town election, and said 86 municipalities in the state have already opted-in to the Act, while 26 municipalities have opted-out. While Maestas wanted to pass the act during the Tuesday meeting, councilmember Evans suggested waiting to get more input from
the public. “There’s no drawback for having more time to look at things,” he said.
Councilmember Corilia Ortega agreed they should have a more public discussion and made a motion to table the possible approval until the next regular meeting. The motion passed unanimously.
New board appointees
The meeting ended with the appointment of various community members to 10 different boards and committees. This included the appointment of seven members to the Planning and Zoning Commission, including mayoral candidate Genevieve Oswald; the appointment of five members to the Historic Preservation Commission, with Maestas casting the tie-breaking vote for members Ruthann McCarthy and Judith Cantu; the appointment of five members to the Airport Advisory Board; the appointment of five members to the Tree Board, which has four more open positions; and the appointment of five members to the Lodgers Tax Advisory Board.
Several boards and committees remain undecided, including the Audit Committee, Finance Committee and the Parks and Recreation Commission. These positions will be revisited at the next town council meeting on April 26.