Quality of Life Committee Wed, Jul 2, 2025 · Quality of Life Committee https://santafeminutes.space/meeting/809 == Executive Summary == The Quality of Life Committee met to discuss the city's 2027-2031 Infrastructure Capital Improvements Plan (ICIP) and strategies for securing state and federal funding for various projects. A major theme was the need to improve the city's project completion rate and streamline capital outlay spending, as state legislators have expressed frustration with delays. Councilors also emphasized the importance of clear communication regarding project funding sources and a more proactive approach to engaging with the legislative delegation. The committee reviewed proposed projects, including a new large-capacity non-congregate shelter and a police training facility, which sparked discussion about prioritization. Concerns were raised about the reliability of federal funding and the impact of delayed audits on the city's ability to secure financing. The meeting also included updates on various community events and initiatives, as well as facility repairs. == Key Decisions == - The agenda was approved with amendments, pulling Item D for discussion and moving Item C to a later schedule across multiple committees. - The consent agenda was approved as amended. == Motions & Votes == - Motion regarding an unspecified item (likely related to project implementation or inter-agency collaboration) — Passed 4-0 (Councilor Castro, Chavez, Garcia, Faulkner all voted yes). == Public Comment == Councilor Garcia stressed the importance of finishing current projects and prioritizing "lower-hanging fruit" to build trust and demonstrate efficiency. Councilor Faulkner echoed concerns from state legislators about the city's slow capital outlay spending and urged for a faster, more streamlined process. Councilor Castro highlighted the frustration of receiving funding for projects not requested by the city and the need for stronger advocacy with state legislators. The Mayor emphasized the need for a strategy to complete projects and for the public and lobbyists to be aware of the true funding sources for projects. Councilor Castro also emphasized the importance of community occupying the Railyard space for Mus Cultural events. == Topics == - Infrastructure Capital Improvement Plan (ICIP) - Legislative Funding Strategy - Homelessness Initiatives - Police Department Needs - Project Completion Delays - Community Events & Activities - Economic Development - Parks and Open Space Funding - Airport Expansion - Library Services & Programs == Full Transcript == back. Chair Chavez would like to go live. Madame Chair, Councilor Chavez, we are live. Great. Thank you. All right. I call to order the July 2nd, 2025 Quality of Life meeting. Could I get a roll call, please? Councilor Castro is indeed. Councilor Chavez, here. Councilor Garcia, present. Councilor Faulkner. Yes, here. Madam Chair, you have a quorum. Thank you. And Councilor Cassat is out sick. Are there any... So, moving on to the approval of the agenda. Are there any changes from staff? No changes. Could I get a motion? Move to approve. Second. I have a motion and I have a second. All those in favor signify by saying, "Aye." Any opposed? Seeing none, motion passes. Next is approval of the consent agenda. Are there any items pulled? Item D has been pulled. All right. Item D has been pulled. Are there any other items that need to be pulled? Hold on one second, Madam Chair. Do we need to approve upon approval agenda for item C, remove it due to it being procedurally? Yeah, because right now if we approve consent, it would be approving item C. So I think we do need to pull item C to amend the schedule. Correct. So item C needs to be pulled. There is going to be a change in schedule. So it will be heard at Public Works on July 21st, 2025, Quality of Life July 23rd, 2025, Finance Committee July 28th, 2025, and then Governing Body on July 30th, 2025. Okay. So, motion to approve as amended. Second. So, we have a motion to approve as amended and a second. Could I get a roll call vote, please? Councilor Castro, yes. Councilor Chavez, yes. Councilor Garcia, yes. Councilor Faulkner, yes. Motion passes. Thank you very much. We have no presentations today, so we're going to move straight to that item that was pulled, which is item D. Consideration of a resolution number 2025 to be determined, sponsored by Councilor Amanda Chavez and Mayor Ellen Weber. A resolution adopting the City of Santa Fe's 2027 through 2031 Infrastructure Capital Improvements Plan. And we have Director Regina Wheeler here. And I believe this was pulled off by Councilor Cassat and Councilor Michael Garcia. But we will go to you, Councilor Garcia. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you, Director Wheeler, for being here. So my question mainly revolves around some feedback I heard loud and clear from our delegation this past session, which revolved around our delegation not necessarily wanting us to go after new money. They would like us to complete projects and then go after new money. And so I see two of the new pro two of the top five. And so just for contextual sake, correct me if I'm wrong, the top five are what we actually produce in legislation later saying this is our top five priorities. And even though the top five is in a resolution, we still are able to go after funding for the remainder of those items listed, right? Because I think that's a question that always comes up. How do we determine these top five? And it comes back to this actual piece of legislation. Am I understanding that correctly? Actually, thank you so much, Councilor Garcia, for the question. I'd love to answer the number of questions that you put in there. So the process for developing the ICIP annually is a long process. We've been working on it for a couple of months. We take the old Infrastructure Capital Improvement Plan that was submitted to the state last year. All the project all the divisions get together across the city and determine their capital priorities for the division. Right? Because in most of the cases across the city, what we have is sort of operating and maintaining divisions that are both operating the infrastructure. They know where we need investments. They've been listening to councilors and constituents. And they know where we need new investments or repairs or improvements or enhancements, whether it's better equipment on parks or whether it's better accessibility to a building or whether it's better shelters for our homelessness. So, that's a process that each of the divisions go through, updating their capital needs, updating the pro each project on this line has a giant six-page worksheet. They update the budgets, they update the scopes as they understand them to be at this current moment. And then the draft list is put together and brought to the leaders of the departments and the city manager who then also take a look at all the projects and the priorities for the city that they've heard from constituents and the councilors. And then just as Councilor Garcia is saying, the top five projects in the list become the city's highest priority requests. However, what we have actually seen in the past is that the legislature funds their priorities more than they fund the city priorities. So, for instance, Fort Marcy Park got $5 million in 2024 session. It wasn't even on the city's list. The airport is hugely supported by the legislature. So, whether it's in the top five or not, it always gets funded. I do have a slide. If you don't mind, I'd give you a little bit more insight into the big picture here that this particular committee hasn't gotten a chance to see. Here's some data, some data about the legislative appropriations that the city has received since 2021. And you, all the councilors received this in an email. But I think it's helpful to also add some verbiage to it. So I just mean you can one of the big things you see on this chart is the big gigantic brown slice of the pie, which is parks and open space. That's two big things are in there, which neither one were the top five for the city. One is the $5 million for Fort Marcy Park, and then there's $6.25 million for Soccer Valley in there that was generated largely through special interest lobbyists that worked in the legislative session. So parks is a huge focus. It gets a lot of support. Another one you'll see is the big blue slice of the pie in the top right, the airport. That's even that includes $4.5 million for the 599 access road from the airport. That was not in the top five for the city, as well as $2 million for the Phase 2 terminal design. So that project is underway. Both of those projects are underway actually. And what doesn't show here is that in 2019, we got $9 million for the first phase of the airport terminal expansion. So if you added that in here, that'd be showing $16 million for the airport alone. You can see the fire department has a lot of support. We know that we got a lot of funding for equipment this time that wasn't on our list. So the fire department is well supported for good reason as a, you know, emergency response public safety. But the interesting thing that we noticed when we looked at this data was where's police? So the police department has a very small piece of this pie. And that's why you'll see them in the top five this year because we really need to focus in. They have a number of capital needs in the police department for the training facility, for a special investigations facility. They need extensive improvements to their headquarters. They're not fitting in there anymore and they're not serving their needs. They're not modern. They're not safe and secure. So this is another context that we kind of took into consideration to say, look, where we're successful in the legislature is to match our priorities to the legislator's priorities and the governor's priorities. And I think that's all what went into bake this cake, Councilor Garcia, that you see here. Thank you so much for providing some context around that. Can you help refresh not only mine but the public's memory, because I can't go back and look at the for some reason our Civic Clerk does not allow me to go back to read what our 2024 priorities were, what our 2023 priorities were. And that way it helps me to see how these priorities have evolved over time. To kind of get back to the original comment I was making early on was our delegation wants us to complete projects, not begin new projects. And what I'm seeing especially with the two new projects we're seeing, whether it's the large capacity non-congregate shelter or the police training facility, those are two new projects. And my immediate thought is, well, which two fell off the list from last year? Why are we not moving forward with trying to complete those projects, especially when the number one priority, which I wholeheartedly support us exploring a non-congregate shelter, but what is what is being missed, so to speak, because that's a $27 million ask. What fell off the list? What are we more than likely to get funding to help support completion of projects? Thank you so much for that question as well, Councilor Garcia. And I'd like to actually get a little bit more specific about the feedback from the legislators in the last session. They were particularly frustrated that the Shelby Street Bridge wasn't built. And so I actually did a root cause analysis on that project. And the fact of the matter is is that the bridge fell in 2023 after we had submitted our ICIP. We had generated a preliminary cost estimate of $110,000 to get the project started. That went unfunded for a year by the city. So we added it into the 2024 legislative appropriation, the Shelby Street Bridge, about $1.5 million. We got $250,000 from the legislature in the 2024 session. We immediately started design on the project. We kept it on the list, not as a priority, but on the list. We got another $250,000 in the 2025 session. So we that project is about to go into historic review. We're trying to expedite that $250,000 from the legislature, and we will be coming forth to the governing body to ask for the rest of the money for construction as soon as we get approval from the Historic Review Board, which we expect to have in about a month. And we expect to be seeking about a million dollars to build that bridge. So that was one. Another one that was very frustrating to the count to the legislators was the Hamus Road sewer. So that's the sister project to Vereda de Valencia sewer extension to where we had trailer parks off of Airport Road that had no sewer lines. Sort of little colonias off of Airport Road. Representative Linda Sarato innovated these investments. We completed the Vereda de Valencia extension about a year and a half ago. That's a utilities project and six or seven homes are already connected. It's a really great story. It was a great project. The Hamus Road project, we just got both of the grants that we needed for that. It's a total of $600,000. The project is in design in-house right now. And on both of those projects, the Shelby Street Bridge and the Hamus Road sewer line extension, we are pushing like heck to get those built next year. So when we go to the session next year, we can say those two projects are built. It is it has been frustrating for the legislators because remember they have been appropriating money since 2021 that the city couldn't receive because of the audits. So, if you remember about a year ago, we started to get all of those grant agreements. We received 63 grant agreements for $40 million in less than a year. And so, you know, certainly Representative Sarato, who had appropriated funds in 2022, was plenty frustrated by the time we got the money and got the project started. So, I think there is a little, you know, there's been a lag because of the audits. Things always take longer than expected. But I think we're making some really good progress and have great progress to show. So that's a little bit about the unfinished projects. Regarding what was last year's priorities, the number one last year priority was transitional and permanent housing to end homelessness. kind of a very general bucket to support the homelessness effort. That actually has, that is still on the list, but it's sort of a more general thing and it's not as compelling as this project that everybody wants to see done, which is a replacement for Pets and Consuelos. We feel like that has super high visibility. We feel like everybody knows there's a huge need for this. Working with Director Hammond Paul, we agreed that this is the way to present this. We could swap it and put that general bucket back on there. So, for instance, if a legislator wants to give $200,000 to pallet shelters, that other project of transitional and permanent housing to end homelessness is a perfect place for that. But this is where we're looking for $10 million to build a new shelter. The other thing that has switched is I actually personally conceded slot number three last year. It was the Richards Avenue extension project. That is a really important road connection project. It's been on our books for over 20 years. We're going to get that thing done, but we mapped out another financing strategy with that, which is that we'll get to final design using impact fees and then we'll leverage federal funds for the $30 million construction. So, we're going to go in for raise funds. It's a really large, it has to be a shovel-ready project. So, those are the two changes from last year's top five. Okay, thank you so much for the context. I really appreciate that. But I do, it would not benefit the community to reiterate what I heard loud and clear from several members of our delegation, is that we need to finish the projects that we currently have on the books. So, I'm looking at the chart, and there are several projects that, for example, if we look at the Santa Fe Median Beautification Project, that's been one that's been on our books for a long time. To finish that project is $1.7 million, $1.8 million. These are, and I'm looking at it more from the perspective, what are the projects that are the lower-hanging fruit so we can say, "Look, we're doing what we can to get the job done," versus, "We want to go after the next big shiny object." Again, I'm not discounting that we need a campus-based model to address our homelessness issues, but is there a way we can work towards that goal, but also begin to tick a lot of these issues, or not these issues, these priorities off of this list, because I think we can do both. That's where my concern comes in, because when you mentioned the police training facility, this is the first time I've heard that our police officers are having subpar facilities, etc. I mean, it's quite frustrating to me that I'm hearing that now, and we've never had PD, never through budget, through the many, many years that they've come before us, saying we need X, Y, and Z. Thank you so much, Councilor Garcia, and I really appreciate your deep thoughtfulness as to the strategy of our submitted funding. I would say that this list actually does exactly what you're saying. Now, remember, airport terminal expansion phase two has been in the, was phase one for the first four years I was here. Got a whole bunch of money from the legislature and got completed phase one, and we never took it off the list, and we moved right into phase two. So, I think that's a real case of us showing that we are finishing projects and continuing to try to realize the vision that we've partnered with the state to have. Exactly the same thing with the Midtown redevelopment. I mean, there is huge construction going on out there right now with the film studios. They have their lease. They're investing millions in that property. They're generating GRT. You can see dirt moving. The infrastructure is at 30% design. What you can see here on this roadmap for Midtown is that we expect to actually make a huge investment in infrastructure, maybe somewhere around $40 million, somewhere in FY27 and 28. This is us sticking with and delivering a project that we promised. It's a big project. It took, as we all know, a master plan, a community development plan, a parcelization plan, procurement. We're still working on entitlements with the state for track. It's a big project. I think the state would like to see more dirt moving. So, that's two projects that we have continued to commit to and demonstrate progress on. Of course, the Arroyo plant, same thing, was on there last year. We've, I think this year, probably made somewhere around $14 million investment in that plant to get it running really well, which it is. So, there's some of that. The medians specifically are going into construction this summer. They have enough money to do, I think, actually construct about four medians. The model of that project is they're creating templates for sustainable, beautiful medians that are maintainable and safe. So, that will have construction happening this summer. You'll be able to see some results. We could endlessly invest in that project because there's a lot of medians in this town. So, what we're saying here is the gateway medians is what we're targeting the full funding for. But that one does have funding, and it will be in construction this year. Thank you, Director. I'm going to let other councilors chime in on questions or comments, and then we'll come back to you. Okay. Councilor Garcia. Councilor Faulkner. So, I have two questions. One, given the political climate, how much can we actually depend on the federal government? Thank you so much, Councilor Faulkner, for that question. We've been asking that question on a daily basis and getting some pretty positive feedback. We thought our FEMA grants were going to disappear, but we just got confirmation that they're all good, the ones that we have. Federal Transit Administration has just approved, you saw Gabrielle Chavez, our Transit Director of Administration, at the podium at council last Wednesday for a $4 million grant. So, they're beginning to shake that loose. We're continuing to get federal funding from DOT as well. I mean, I think it's very uncertain where the holes are going to show up, but I would say in our road projects, we're feeling confident about continued funding. Are the road projects the only primary projects? There's, I know that there's funding being cut in a lot of places on the federal level. So, where are some of the gaps that we need to be aware of? Thank you so much for the question, Councilor Faulkner. I would say our transit, our road, and our FEMA is funding stormwater and resiliency both for our hazard mitigation team. So, the emergency management team got direct funding for hazard mitigation work, as well as Public Works got funding for resiliency power, as well as stormwater management, because that's our impact, right, is that heavy rain that we get. I don't know, maybe I don't know if any of the other directors in the room are aware of losing funding. Public Works has not. But maybe Director Montoya would like to speak to that. I just, you've told me what we're not going to lose funding. Yes. But I would like to kind of know where we have some gaps and some risks that we need to be aware of as a governing body so we can kind of offset those as we move through the process. All right. Directors, do you want to chime in on that? Yes, Madam Chair and councilors. We are moving forward with our CDBG grants. We actually have had good communication and work with HUD. So, for now, we feel like those are on track. They have not been fully funded. We don't anticipate seeing the money until this fall, but things seem to be on track on that end. Director Hammond Paul, Madam Chair, Councilor Faulkner, thanks for the question. I think there's two buckets of, I mean, relatively few of the funds that the Department of Community Health and Safety gets are related to capital expenditures. A lot of it is program and operational. We have seen initial funding cuts to our senior programs through the AmeriCorps grants. Those have since been reinstated. We are also starting to see some trickle through monies that the state gets from the feds and then gets passed on to the city be affected. And then one area where we're going to be seeing major cuts that isn't going to affect us directly as a city, but will be affecting us, is HUD cuts to voucher program, Section 8 vouchers, things like that. The city does not manage those funds, but we will, we will directly experience the impacts of those as major cuts to the public housing programs spill over into other issues that we manage. You guys, the other, it's more of a comment for me. I have to concur with Councilor Garcia. I know during this session, when I was at the Roundhouse, the Santa Fe 7 are not happy about how we're managing our funds and that it takes so long to move capital outlay in particular through our system. So, I only hope that we can figure out a way to do it faster. I know that I've worked with the city before as a lobbyist, and there were, there was protocols we had in place that you could expedite capital outlay, and I'm not sure we're doing those right now. So, maybe we can have a conversation offline about how do we expedite capital outlay, because that is really the place where the discretionary funds are being spent is in capital outlay, and that directly impacts Public Works. So, I hope we can get to a place where we can figure out a way to streamline this through smoothly and faster, because I know as a lobbyist, I do not allow my clients to ask for more money when we haven't spent the money we've been given. So, if I get money for one of my clients, I tell them immediately, "You spend this in the next year. If you can't spend it in the next year, don't ask for it." So, I hope that we can get to a place as a city where we can streamline the process and just spend the money we've been given, because the legislature is getting to a place, and it's not just Santa Fe, it's all over the state, where they're giving money to municipalities and sub-governing agencies, and the money isn't getting spent, but we're asking for more and more money, and it's difficult for the legislators because they genuinely want to help people, but they don't want to give money to an organization or a sub-governing entity that isn't spending the money, because that money is just sitting there for four years where another organization or another entity could use that money. So, I would hope that as the capital of New Mexico, we could figure out how to spend our money as fast and as appropriately as we can. Councilor Castro. Yes. Thank you so much for the opportunity, Chair. Thank you, staff, for the presentation. I just want to note, similarly to my colleagues, it's a frustrating process. Things have been held up for a few years. We are not doing the best in terms of looking for funding. But I do also want to flag something that Director Wheeler mentioned, that many times legislators fund things that their constituents want and that we didn't ask for. In District One, I feel that frustration in particular. So, I will continue to work with our board of community members that help us figure this out, along with directors. But I would like for the community to understand that we are advocating as best we can, but we also need to talk to our state legislators and our governor about what our priorities are in this city. Thank you. Thank you, Councilor and Councilor Garcia. Mayor: Thank you, Madam Chair. Speaking of board or committee members, do you know when the Capital Improvement Advisory Committee is going to be appointed? Councilor Garcia: Thank you, Madam Chair. Councilor Garcia, for the question, I think we're getting there. We had a list of candidates, and I think you've all been contacted about who wanted to sponsor which candidate. Once we have each councilor having selected one of the candidates, then we'll be able to seat the group. Just to note, though, that the Capital Improvements Advisory Committee has nothing to do with the ICIP. They are the IFCIP, the Impact Fee Capital Improvement Plan Advisory Committee. Although there is a relationship, of course, the projects that we list for impact fee use would also be listed on our ICIP. So the capital plans do, of course, speak to each other, but their main authority is to approve the new IFCP, which we are actually working on. It's due to be renewed by the end of 2025-2026. So it's a really good time to bring them in, and we hope they'll be seated soon. Mayor: Okay. Thank you so much for that. I guess I just again want to reiterate, I'd like for us, and we can make amendments to this, right? Because I'd like for us to begin to have a strategy of completing projects. I mean, we've got Henry Lynch Road here on the list. That's a project that's been on the books for a while. Councilor Garcia: The Henry Lynch reconstruction will be fully funded by outside sources. So many of the projects that you see on this list for utilities, stormwater, and roads already have funding roadmaps from other funding besides legislative sources. Mayor: So can we pull those items off of here? Councilor Garcia: There's, I guess they aren't eligible for the outside funding unless they're on the list. They have to be on the city's adopted capital list to be eligible for Water Trust Fund Board funding, federal transit funding, street road funding, state road funding. So that is largely a big part of the function that this plays. It's our official capital list that says that the city is willing to receive grants for these, and then of course, the grant agreements come to the governing body. Mayor: Okay. Is there a way to isolate these projects that might be funded from other sources? That way, we can, not only us as the governing body, but the public be aware that it says we're going to go ask for X amount from the legislature, but we're actually seeking funds from a different source. That way, it allows, especially our lobbyists, to be well aware of what's going on because I'd hate for JD to go do a lot of legwork on an issue where we've already potentially secured funding from another source. Thank you so much. Councilor Chavez: Let me, I just want to say, perhaps we could do that in a presentation, like at Public Works, because then it is a public document, and it's just a presentation of information. So maybe we could put a presentation together. Would that be helpful? So it's informative to Public Works, but then we can also, you know, reference it and refer our constituents to it because it would be a public document. Councilor Garcia: Thank you so much, Councilor Chavez. Yes. Romela actually did present that at Public Works last time, her roadmap for all the projects, and Henry Lynch was one, and it showed the funding sources for each of them. It did. Mayor: Okay. But I'd like that for the entire list. So, I'm sorry. Well, thank you. Councilor Garcia: Sure. We'll try. Mayor: That's a, well, it's helpful for us as we're strategizing this because I'm looking at this list. This list comes with a total value of $896 million. That's a great amount. It's nearly a billion dollars. And I think we as a city government need to be all on the same page regarding where the potential sources of revenue for these projects are coming from. If some are going to come from federal, some are going to come from state, some are going to come from other entities. And we need to fully understand the impacts. As Councilor Faulkner was mentioning earlier, there could be federal impacts to some of these. And it can change from administration to administration. Some of these projects have been on this list for, I mean, probably predating your taking your directorship role, Director Wheeler. And I think this is where having that vision of, it's going to cost this much. If we can't go get $25 million for a new congregate shelter, where else can we go get funding from? And I think it behooves us to explore all funding sources because we're not just going to find $896 million in our couch cushions. The state's not going to give us $896 million, nor is the feds. It's going to take a coordinated effort and leveraging of resources. Not only city, but maybe the county comes in and plays a role. I mean, it's how do we really maximize the available dollar to get these critical community needs completed? And I think the last comment to make is, I definitely understand the pressure you've been under, Director Wheeler, because of the way that funding has stacked and that is due to the audits, as you mentioned, not being completed. And that is why year after year, I raised that concern, and year after year, we had folks such as the Mayor say, "That's no issue." Well, it's becoming a major issue, and it's preventing us from getting funding for these critical projects. And this is why it's important to get things such as our audit completed on time. So, thank you, Director Wheeler, for, this is not a light lift. This is a heavy lift. I know you've got to work with many folks to figure out how to prioritize what the needs are, et cetera. And every year it changes. At least the five years I've been on here, I don't think there's been the same five priorities. There's always some shifting and changing or amendments made, et cetera. And I think it just changes based on availability of resources, what's coming in the door, and what projects we've been able to get completed. So, thank you for trying to orchestrate all of these many, many moving parts. With that, no other questions, Madam Chair. Councilor Chavez: Thank you. And I think for a presentation, it doesn't need to be like item by item, but even just like a group, like under each funding source. If any of these items fall under a specific funding source that we're unaware of, then they can be put in that group just so that we have some type of idea how each of those items will be funded. Does that make sense, Director? Director Wheeler: It does. That information doesn't exist. So we'll have to take a little time. There, they're actually, each of these projects does have a worksheet that we submit to the state. The state does ask us for other funding sources that we might be applying for. So the project managers do fill in some data there. And, you know, the state, I don't know if you know, but used to have a fantastic dashboard for their capital program. You could slice and dice the data. They stopped supporting it two years ago, and they are transitioning to a new. But if we could get that data that we've entered into the state's program out of there, that would be super helpful because as you noted, there's a large dollar amount on these. There's also a huge number of projects on here, and the funding sources are so myriad, or even knowing what's been fully funded that we're unaware of outside of that would be helpful as well. Councilor Chavez: I think that's more so what you would want, Councilor Garcia. And I think we're aware of that. So maybe just I should point that out, Councilor Chavez. Actually, that information is here on this sheet. The funded to date column provides how much money the city has on hand successful for that project. Councilor Garcia: Not that, not that information. So, but we want to know how it's funded. So it does say, so that's what we're trying to say is like, we want to know what funds came from the state, what federal funds, how it's been fully funded so that we have an idea and we could communicate progress because it's been funded through a different source to the state when we have those conversations. Is that clear now? Director Wheeler: It is. Thank you. Councilor Garcia: Yes. So one of the things that I'm seeing is like, we have to put projects on this list in order to get other funding sources. What would be super helpful for us is if we could have a list of like, this project is on this list for the state funding, but it's on this list because it has to be, but this is where other funding is coming through. Because then when we look at this list, we can, we can prioritize like, okay, so this project has funding coming from like two other sources and they're covered. So then when we're looking at this list, we can then say, this project does not. So then we should prioritize this project because this project doesn't have additional funding sources. So I think like that's the part that I'm, I'm struggling as a councilor is like, we have all these projects on a list, but we're not necessarily being told that some of these are on the list only because they have to be to get additional funding and they're funded. So then if you just look at the list the way we're seeing it, it's hard to tell which projects are funded from other sources and which projects we have to prioritize at the state level. Director Wheeler: I am so sorry. I really misrepresented this. There is no guarantee of any other funding. Absolutely none. Right. So some of the projects are eligible for DOT funding, or some of the projects are eligible for FEMA funding. But I think you know our success rate, and we apply for a lot of grants, and we have a great success rate, but they're not, there's no guarantee that any of these would achieve any other funding. And so we, they're not funded. And also if they do achieve other, I'm really sorry that I misrepresented that there was already locked in other funding because there really is not. It's almost like your optimism led us to believe. I'm so sorry. And then the thing is too, is that even when you have grants, you have to have matching funds. And then a lot of times, like on Guadalupe, the feds funded really all of it except the landscaping, which is another million dollars. So every capital project that we do, especially the bigger ones, have a really complex stack of capital that we use. We use some legislative funding, some federal funding, some impact fees, maybe some donations, like with Soccer Valley. So we really work hard to put together all the pieces. And I think what we really want to get, what we appreciate from the governing body is what your priorities are because then we can get some funding from the legislature and match that with other funding because the legislature never funds anything 100% either. The city matches it, or the impact fees match it, or other grants match it. And so really what we would like to know from the governing body is what your priorities are so that we will focus our efforts on fundraising for those priorities. I think that's really the way to look at it. Councilor Garcia: Yeah. I just have one other question. I think it would be helpful if we would work with the legislative team prior to our legislative breakfast about what, like, I know we kind of do this a little bit, but I do feel like there's some room to do some strategic planning around like, what is, what are the legislators willing to fund, what we need funded in our districts and as a city in total. And so we might want to lean in a little earlier into this, into the negotiations around what we can get from the state. So I, I do kind of feel like we put things off to the last minute, and then we're reactionary. And so part of like my strategizing is looking at it and saying like, okay, so we kind of know what we need in our districts if, and I do think all of us care about our districts a lot. So, we know what we need in our districts, but that clearly is not in alignment with what the legislators are hearing about what we need in our districts. And so, I almost wonder if we should start a process a little earlier so there's more time to negotiate with the legislators about what we can come up with as a team that would be good for the city and the districts. Thank you so much, Chair, and Councilor Faulkner for that question. And I think it's really a question for the city manager and the governing body and the mayor to answer strategy with the legislative delegation. And I think it was more a comment. I think it's a great, it's a great suggestion. And I think some of this also has to do, unfortunately, with our, how do I say this, our lack of ability to keep positive relationships with our partnering agencies. And I'm not going to point fingers as to why that's the case, but we all know that is a real factor in why certain things end up the way they do when we make requests. And so, I think Councilor Faulkner's suggestion would help build relationships. And I think there's a lot of relationships we need to mend and build so that we are truly able to deliver to our constituents. Unfortunately, I think they're the ones that are feeling the effects of the many conflicts we tend to have with partnering agencies. So, I do think that that is a great suggestion to start sitting at the table and brainstorming how to serve our constituents as a collective. And that'll probably get us further. So, I, that's a, I would totally support having conversations with city manager to see about that being a possibility in the future. I too, Director Willer, want to just acknowledge how difficult this is. I think a lot of people think that money appears and then we could just get straight to work and that is not how the world works. I always tell people, you get a loan to remodel your house and that is not a quick process and that is just one house. And you have complete control over it. So when we're talking about all of these projects, there's many human resources involved. There's many moving parts and we don't have complete control over all of them. So, I think there's a misconception there when we think, oh, we're funded, that means go. Go usually comes many, many months after, even though we have put the green light. So, I do want to give you credit for orchestrating everything. We can always do better. Feedback is always something that will help guide us to be better. I think government agencies in general move very slowly. And we know that there's a level of bureaucracy that interferes with how we can be more efficient. But we need to put our brains together as leaders to see how we can make that happen. And Councilor Faulkner's idea is a great idea, I think. So, thank you for your time. Please know we acknowledge your hard work and kind of a very, very difficult task you've been faced with, especially with the delay in the audits. So, I just want to know that you're appreciated for just kind of coordinating this work. It's not an easy task. Thank you. Thank you so much, Madam Chair. Could I add one more thing, Madam Chair? The other thing that for the councilors to remember is that we have the top five city priorities and I'm sure you all remember you'll have an opportunity to pick a project as your district priority. So, that will come with that legislative priorities resolution that we usually pass in September, October. So, that is another opportunity maybe to strategize and really bring forth a project that's important to your neighborhoods. Great. Thank you for that. All right. So, did we have a, we had a motion and a second. Could we get a roll call vote, please? Councilor Castro, yes. Councilor Chavez, yes. Councilor Garcia, yes. Councilor Faulkner, yes. Motion passes. Thank you very much. Thank you, Director. Moving on. Matters from staff. Turn it over to you. Madam Chair and councilors, we have a handful of interesting things happening this evening. Going on right now until 8:00 p.m. is the Canyon Road Summer Walk series. It's the first Wednesdays of each month throughout the summer. The initiative is seeking to revitalize and celebrate the rich artistic and cultural heritage of Santa Fe's historic Canyon Road for generations to come. There's going to be music, community events, and crafts. This is free. This weekend we have our annual Fourth of July celebration at Vinda Park. It runs from 4:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. And also at the Santa Fe Place Mall. I always want to call it Vinda Mall. When I was a young girl, sorry, sidebar, I can't hold back. When I was a young girl, my parents had a fast food at the mall. Papas Fras de Santa, giving props to old school. Admission is free and parking is free for the Fourth of July celebration. Going to be a lot of fun. This Saturday we also have Pancakes on the Plaza. It's sponsored by the Rotary Club of Santa Fe. There's going to be a vintage car show. There's going to be music. The opening ceremony at 8:00. Pancakes are served at 9:30. There is a charge to enter. It's $12, but all proceeds go to community service grants. Let's see. On Monday, July 7th, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., we have our Office of Economic Development Southside Santa Fe Business Incubator services. So, if you're looking to start or grow a business, go to the Santa Fe Business Incubator and learn about how the city of Santa Fe can help you start your business. We have a new hire in the Office of Economic Development. Her name is Deborah Torres, who is our first Tribal Business Development Liaison. This is a new role created to uplift and support Native-owned businesses, entrepreneurs, and artists in Santa Fe. She is kicking off her first event. It's launching a new initiative called Native Threads. And again, this Native Threads program is designed to uplift the Native community. Their first event is Tuesday, July 8th at the Santa Fe Business Incubator from 10:00 a.m. to noon. And this is their first monthly gathering to provide space for these entrepreneurs and artists and business owners to begin connecting. They will meet monthly at different locations. But I love that this first meeting is on the Southside. And then on Saturday, July 12th, we are going to have Low Rider Day on the Plaza. And Santa Fe is a co-sponsor for this, but it is also sponsored by the New Mexico Low Rider and Arte Culture and Scene Vargas are the group. So that's exciting. And that's all I have for you this week. Thank you so much, Madam Chair. A handful of updates from the Community Services Department. So, starting with recreation, we have on July 25th, Crafty Christmas in July Teen Night hosted by my, on July 26th from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., we have a summer reading party at the GLEC. On August 8th, 15th, we have Back to School Block Party and Backpack Giveaway at the Teen Center and that's in partnership with La Fonda Foundation, Solace, EarthCare, Boys and Girls Club, and the Southside Library. Regarding youth programs, we have some after-school registration appointments that open on July 21st. In-person registration will be at the GLEC on July 28th. And then we also have Teen Center transportation registration coming soon. And I'll be able to provide updates on that shortly. For, with regard to the facilities, the GLEC ice rink, we have received all the repair quotes, repair quotes, and we are hoping to have a reopening date for the ice rink in the next week or two, and really looking end of August before the fall season really kicks off and the demand gets really high. For the libraries, some great, and I'll share the links out. There was a really cool story where a child donated Clifford and Biscuit stuffed animals to the library and it got some national attention and the author of those books then donated additional materials to our libraries and there's a KOB news story about this. And then, there was also a story on CBS Evening News regarding an elderly patron who was using the Santa Fe Public Libraries to do job searches amid a moment of economic hardship in their life. We also have the Southside mural unveiling, Southside Library mural unveiling by Aaron Ki Natai. And that is going to be on July 12th at 2:00 p.m. Lastly, with regard to community senior services, we had senior prom. I can't, I think it was, I can't remember the day, but there was a really nice story about it in the New Mexican, complete with masquerade masks. Thank you. Oh, yeah, there it is. Thank you, Riselle. Anything? No. All right. So, next is matters from the committee. Are there any matters from the committee? Just want to, oh, go ahead. Sorry. We are, okay. I just want to remind everyone that the Southside is doing a Back to School Bash on August 2nd. And I'm going to be saying this at every meeting. Councilors Chavez, Cassett, Lee, Garcia, and Faulkner are hosting a huge Back to School Bash with lots and lots of amazing activities. Lots of community members and partners are helping. Sam's Club, Albertson's, Coca-Cola, Hutton. The list is endless. But it should be a really, really fun event and so hopefully people can attend. Thank you, Councilor. Councilor Castro. Just really quickly, thank you all so much. There's some amazing events at Mus Cultural this week, 11th, 12th, 13th. We're going to be having an art exhibition, Sagrada Medicina. So, it's about sacred medicine and then it's going to actually go through July 19th, 27th, Saturday and Sunday. So, there'll be some amazing events at Mus Cultural and I really encourage community to be at the railyard. We need to occupy that space. Great. Thank you. Any other matters? Hey, matters from Chair. Next meeting is Wednesday, July 23rd, 2025. And with that, we're adjourned.