District 1 candidates take questions in forum
The two candidates for the District 1 Taos County Commissioner position faced off for the first time Monday (April 4) in a forum hosted by the Taos County Democratic Party.
Susan Trujillo and F.R. Bob Romero are both vying for the position, and took the time to discuss their views on topics ranging from affordable housing, the lack of a detox center, the expansion of the airport and the legalization of cannabis.
Taos County Democratic Party Chairman and Town of Taos councilor Darien Fernandez moderated the debate between the two candidates. Because there is no Republican candidate for the position, the winner will be determined after the June 7 primary.
In opening statements, Trujillo touted her 25 years of government experience with Taos County, in she served as a grant administrator, administrative legal assistant, finance director and county treasurer. Romero talked about his time spent teaching history and government at UNM–Taos, and noted that he currently serves as the chairman of the El Valle de Los Ranchos Water and Sanitation District.
The two candidates expressed overall similar sentiments when it came to many of the issues affecting Taos County.
Both discussed the incoming American Rescue Plan Act money as a once-in-a-lifetime windfall of cash to help Taos, and both said they hoped to see social programs and economic infrastructure expanded by the money.
When it came to the issue of affordable housing, both Trujillo and Romero said it was a top priority for the county, and said the county land use regulations should be revamped. Asked what
could be done to alleviate the lack of affordable homes, Romero responded that the county could work with the town to develop a low income minority housing project. “We cannot only build the high-end houses that are $500,000 and above, but we should be building houses that are in the lower $200,000–$300,000 range, so houses are more affordable for people that have grown up in Taos and live in Taos.”
Trujillo referred back to the ARPA funds and the CARES Act funding still available. “I believe there’s strategies to use that kind of money to bring what’s necessary — to not just develop but also plan ahead — for the housing Taos County needs,” she said. “We have a beautiful place to live and people want to come to Taos but they cannot afford it ... So it’s something that doesn’t just affect the one person leasing, but the lessor also. So again, building is the solution.”
The hot topic of the Taos Regional Airport also came up. Both candidates said they support the expansion of the airport, but said they would like to see the Airport Master Plan Draft before making a commitment to fully support the expansion.
Romero said it was “very important to the community,” but acknowledged many community members are “concerned with the prioritization of funds going to the airport over some of the needs of the people of the town of Taos.”
Trujillo said she was curious how much it would economically benefit the community. “Is it going to bring in tourism? Is it going to just affect the [Taos] Ski Valley? Are people going to come and shop and dine in the county? It’s to be seen,” she said, adding that she would collaborate with the town and keep an open mind.
Both Trujillo and Romero said it was important to expand the economy beyond tourism, but neither offered a concrete way to do so. Trujillo said that change in Taos needed to be “a gradual change… We have tourism, we have the skiing part of it, and we have the Rio Grande, [but] we need to expand.”
“It’s nice that we do, in fact, have some people that see Taos as a place that has a lot of history, has a lot of culture and traditions, and has outdoor recreation… but we just need to expand on that,” said Romero, mentioning the expansion of education, renewable resources and construction as a way to build a more robust economy.
The two candidates seemed to have similar views on many of the issues discussed, but when it came to the legalization of cannabis, Romero and Trujillo had vastly different views. Romero said simply that “it passed to the legislature, it is a law. I support it.”
Meanwhile, Trujillo said that as a school board member, she is concerned about “the impact on our children, the impact on our community and the impact on homes. It’s a gateway to other drugs. We always really have issues with DWI [and] we already have issues providing a detox,” she said, adding that she was generally “not in favor” of legalization. “I just cannot see that we would have to look to this type of revenue source to fund our resources here in Taos.”
Trujillo added in a later answer that 100% Community initiative would help solve problems related to drug abuse. “It begins in the home,” she said. “It takes a community to raise our children, to raise up the youth in a positive manner.”
Romero said substance abuse counseling in schools should be a top priority, and agreed that “everything comes back to the families… Strong families with good parenting are pretty much able to avoid [drug problems].”
Both candidates said they wanted to see the detox center get up and running as soon as possible.
The candidates will face off on June 7 for the Democratic Party primary.