Quality of Life Committee Wed, Feb 4, 2026 · Quality of Life Committee https://santafeminutes.space/meeting/981 == Executive Summary == The meeting primarily focused on a comprehensive presentation and discussion about the Santa Fe Teen Center. Councilors received detailed information on the center's mission, services, youth engagement statistics, and future expansion plans, including adding a commercial kitchen and dance studio. There was significant discussion around evaluating the Teen Center's impact, ensuring sustained funding, and addressing transportation challenges for youth. Councilors emphasized the importance of youth and parent input in programming and exploring collaborations with Santa Fe Public Schools. Other topics included the approval of a grant for Santa Fe Police Department law enforcement support positions, updates on economic development initiatives, and announcements regarding senior activities, the 2026 Senior Olympics, and library programs. The meeting concluded with an emphasis on the need for robust program evaluation and continued community engagement. == Key Decisions == - Approved the agenda as amended (Item C pulled). - Approved the consent agenda as amended. - Approved the request for approval of the New Mexico Department of Finance and Administration certification for allocation 23-ZH5048-81-3 years in the amount of $93,750 for law enforcement support positions at the Santa Fe Police Department for FY26 until June 30th, 2026. (Passed unanimously 5-0). == Motions & Votes == - Approval of Agenda as amended (Item C pulled) — Passed. - Approval of Consent Agenda as amended — Passed. - Approval of the New Mexico Department of Finance and Administration certification for allocation 23-ZH5048-81-3 years in the amount of $93,750 for law enforcement support positions at the Santa Fe Police Department for FY26 until June 30th, 2026 — Passed unanimously 5-0. == Public Comment == Councilor Fagala expressed gratitude for the Teen Center's work and inquired about public involvement opportunities. Councilor Cassid praised the Teen Center's progress, asked detailed questions about operations and funding, and stressed the importance of sustained funding and outcome evaluation. Councilor Kaset emphasized the critical need for measurable impact to justify funding and offered her support for evaluation efforts. Councilor Travis highlighted the importance of needs-based programming, parent/caregiver input, and school collaborations. Councilor Barrett inquired about youth transportation and tutoring awareness. Appreciation was expressed for the Teen Center's free programs, the police department's non-sworn positions, and the "Go Local Go Different" program. A committee member congratulated everyone on a productive legislative session, specifically mentioning the passage of HB9. == Topics == - Teen Center Presentation - Law Enforcement Support Positions - Economic Development Initiatives - Recreation and Community Events - Library Programs - Meeting Logistics & Approval - Teen Center Expansion - Teen Center Staff Training - Multi-generational Facility Discussion - Legislative Session Outcomes == Full Transcript == Madame Chair, Councilor Castro, we are live. Thank you so much, Mike. We will just wait one more minute, and we're going to promote Councilor Chavez and allow for Director Nielsen to get situated, and we will start shortly. All right, Mike, you said we are live, correct? Yes, we are live. Wonderful. So, at 5:00, I am calling to order the Quality of Life Subcommittee of the City of Santa Fe. If we could get a roll call, please. Councilor Fagali. Yeah, here. Councilor Barrett. Here. Madame Chair. Oh, I'm sorry. Councilor Chavez, I'm so sorry. Madam Chair. With that, we do have a quorum. So, I would entertain the approval of an agenda. Oh, we have one more here. Councilor Casset. Let's take a second. We'll get situated. And with that, I would entertain a motion. Move to approve. Move to approve. Second. And because we do have someone online, could we get a roll call vote, please? Mercy. Councilor Fagali. Yes. Councilor Barrett. Yes. Councilor Chavez. Yes. Councilor Casset. Yes. Madam Chair. Yes, motion passes. Wonderful. And so we do have a presentation today. We do have to go through the consent agenda. And one thing was pulled, if I am not mistaken. That was item C. Is there any other change to the consent agenda? Move to approve as amended. Second. Second. Oh. Could we get a roll call vote, please? Councilor Fagali. Yes. Councilor Barrett. Yes. Councilor Travis. Yes. Councilor Casset. Yes. Madam Chair. Yes, motion passes. So then we'll move on to presentations, please. And we do have the Teen Center presentation today. We're very excited for that. Yay. Not more excited than we are. Thank you, guys, for having us. Council and Chair, my name is Sandy Emory. I am the Interim Manager of the Santa Fe Teen Center and a Program Manager for Youth and Family Services. I have with me Serena Munoz, who is a supervisor at the Teen Center. Awesome thing about Serena, she's actually been with the Teen Center since the start. She helped open it more than three years ago. It's been open two years, but she's been with the city for a while. And so, she's had the opportunity to see the Teen Center go from a building under construction to the wild place it is at this very second. So, we're really excited to be here today. Serena and Adelaide Dorsy, who is the other supervisor at the Teen Center, have put this presentation together, so she'll go through it. And I wanted to just share with you really just the amazing work that happens at the Teen Center because it is still new. We still, even from our own city colleagues, hear, "What is the Teen Center? Where is the Teen Center? Is it that place in the mall?" All of the many, many questions. And so, really the more we can do to make the community and our colleagues and the city more aware of what's happening there and all of just the wonderful things available for youth in our city is why we are here today. So, we have some really cool numbers to share with you. In December, we served 119 unique youth, over 733 visits. And in January, we actually saw 122 youth. So, we're seeing growth month after month, serving 122 youth. In January, they spent 1,417 hours at the Teen Center. So many youth come more than one time. Many come most days a week. Many, there's even a handful that stay pretty much from open to close. So, we have a lot of really great engagement from teens, and we are really working to resource our staff so they have all of the tools in their toolbox to be able to meet the needs of the teens of our community in a way that's trauma-informed and really is guided by how they really want to engage in the community. I'll let Serena take over for this part. Our role in the community, who we are. We are a welcoming space located on the south side of Santa Fe. We're here specifically to serve teens, but also be a positive presence in the community. Everything we do is grounded in creating a place for young people to feel respected, supported, and comfortable being themselves. Who we serve? We serve youth ages 12 to 18 from diverse backgrounds, experiences, and who have different interests. We provide safe and supervised spaces for teens to support positive youth development, growth, and leadership to ensure the teens have access to supportive adults. Over the past two years, our facility has engaged approximately 1,300 teens. In 2025, the Teen Center saw over 20,000 hours of usage by youth participation. The Teen Center provides transportation from 10 schools across Santa Fe, including El Camino Real Academy, Magro Middle School, Santa Fe High School, Nino Orto Community School, Gonzalez Community School, Aspen Community Magnet School, the Academy for Technology and the Classics, Early College Opportunities High School, Ortiz Middle School, Mandela International Magnet School, and Monte del Sol Charter School. Every youth that enters the Teen Center is provided with a meal free of charge while on site. They're able to choose what they want. We provide a menu, and they get to select everything that they want. Some resources that we have at the Teen Center is crisis support and suicide prevention awareness through our trained staff who are able to identify any teens that may need help in that area. Access to food and snacks, transportation, academic support. We have tutoring three times a week that's on site and just drop-in. So, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, the teens are able to just drop into tutoring if they need that extra support and peer interaction and social development. We have a family that's been coming since the beginning, and it was a family of homeschooled teens, and just seeing them grow throughout the two and a half years we've been open, they're having that, like, it's their only form of peer-to-peer interaction. So, just seeing them grow into the teens they are today, it's really great to see. Our facility has a game room. So, in our game room, it's on the presentation. We have video games, board games, ping-pong, pool. We have a full commercial kitchen that we use to make the teens their meals, and we're working on getting programming in there. We have a gym which has six basketball courts, a volleyball net, and a weight room that we're able to supervise them and assist them. A computer lab which has 10 computers that they're able to apply for jobs, do their homework, write their papers, play Minecraft. We have classrooms that we utilize in different ways where we have STEM, 3D printing, just any way that teens are able to utilize the facility, we make sure it's done. We have an outdoor recreation area with turf and a basketball court that gets used primarily in the summer. We have a lobby that the teens eat their snacks at, and they watch movies and just hang out. We have a media studio that has podcasting equipment, electric drums, it's an electric guitar, and yeah. We have a quiet room. So, when the teens are getting a bit overwhelmed and they just need a quiet place, or just need to talk, we have a really relaxed room that they're able to go to. We have a conference room that's utilized in many different ways, but right now we have a gardening program in there. We have an art room that they're free to use anything in there, so if they set their mind to it, they could just go in there and create whatever. We have a washer and dryer and shower facilities that is open for them to use if needed to help support their mental health, their confidence. And we have an indoor and outdoor stages that have been utilized for different events and performances. And there's an expansion coming soon. Right. So, I think a few of you may know we actually have some capital outlay funds that have been on hold and are being reactivated to complete the master plan for the facility. So, what those funds will do is expand our commercial kitchen space, which is amazing, and also add a dance studio to the Teen Center. So, it's really exciting. Facilities is working really hard to make sure that we can utilize that outlay funding as soon as it becomes available again. So, that's a really exciting thing for our youth. And it's definitely, you know, we have Serena just went over all of the amenities that the facility holds, but really those are missing pieces, and so it will be really exciting. My dream for the Teen Center is that when youth wake up in the morning, instead of thinking, "Oh, I can go to the mall," or "It's a Saturday, I can do this," or whatever, they think, "Oh, I can go to the Teen Center. That's my safe place. Those are where my friends are. That's where I want to be." And we're getting there little by little, but just popping into the extra space. Programming at the Teen Center is youth-driven and ever-changing. We regularly survey the teens to understand their interests. This allows us to offer programs that are relevant, engaging, and meaningful. Teens have a voice in shaping what we provide. So, some of the programs we have going on right now is tutoring, like I mentioned earlier, is three times a week, and that includes just drop-in tutoring and also SAT prep. So, we've seen a lot of high schoolers come in and get that tutoring. We have a 3D STEM, 3D printing, STEM program going on right now. We have meditation workshops and a stipend gardening program. We also have a Latin on Fridays. And then we do in-house programming. So, we do sports and video game tournaments, art activities, and then we have a program called Nails, Hair, and More, where the teens are able to participate in that. That one was really youth-driven. Our staff really take in everything that the teens want, and they try to make it a reality for them. Yeah. So, as you've heard, there's a lot happening at the Teen Center and even more to come. So, I shared with you when we first started that we are really working on really bumping up our training and really getting our staff the resources they need to be able to continue to serve. Am I loud enough? To be able to continue to serve the youth as well as they already are. I think a great model for that is the Girls, Inc., if you guys are familiar with that organization, they offer their staff 150 hours of professional development a year, right? So that's Northstar. But, with opportunities like that in mind, we actually have been able to call in our Children and Youth Commission and HSC grantees to ask if they are interested in offering presentations and micro-trainings to our staff. So, we actually, since January, have scheduled trainings and/or just information sessions with 16 local nonprofits, including the schools and including the Office of Student Wellness and Adelante programs, so that when inevitably needs arise that our staff are not yet equipped to manage, they can help guide youth and families to a space where they can get the resources they need. And on that, one of the things that I would love to see happen with the Teen Center is to establish an MOU between the Teen Center in the city and Santa Fe Public Schools so that we can have a more streamlined opportunity for referral sharing and making sure that if there is a public school bus that drives by the Teen Center anyway, that we can establish that as a bus stop so that our 10 schools that we're currently picking up at, we can add more to that and we can bring more youth in who really need it. Families do really rely on that transportation engagement for their kids after school, as you can see by our numbers. And so that's a lot of what we have going on currently. Coming up, we have a whole lot more. The Fire Department is starting monthly visits. I think this month we're calling it "Flaming Hoops." So the Fire Department's coming in to play basketball with our kids, really just work on positive youth interactions, especially first interactions with first responders for youth are really super important to have. Doing it in a way that's kind of holistic at the Teen Center is something that we're really excited about. Like Serena said, we're always taking what the kids are wanting, interested in, and bringing it into reality for them so they know that their voices matter. What they need and want matters to us, and they always have a voice there. We're hoping to bring in some GED classes in the fall so that we're really utilizing the facility all open hours of the day. So GED classes would be an opportunity kind of before the Teen Center's regular after-school hours, but during the day, so young people can come in and work on GED attainment. We're really excited for our March Madness basketball tournament. We are partnering with the JB White Foundation, and Judevas is actually going to do a celebratory tip-off at the beginning of it to really offer a really awesome engagement activity for youth, but also really bring awareness to the seriousness of violence in our community, especially as it relates to youth. So, a lot going on at the Teen Center. We're really excited to be able to share this with all of you and just hoping more and more people start coming in. So yeah. Well, thank you so much, Director, and I will see to the committee if there are questions. Councilor Fagala. Thank you so much for all the work you're doing and for letting us know about it. For those of us who do not have teenagers, are there things that we can do? Are there ways that you would like the public to be involved? Are there needs that you have? Chair Castro, getting the muscle memory going with everyone's new positions. Thank you. That's a great question. It's really super cool because there are a lot of calls every day where people hear about the Teen Center and they say, "Oh, can I come in and do this?" And we say, "Well, we'd really love for you to engage, and let's figure out how." I think the best way to engage is to make sure that youth know that it's a resource. Also, let's be in touch if we're coming. There are a lot of unmet needs in our community, as we know. I think the City of Santa Fe does a great job of collaborating with our local service providers, and we have great networks. So, I think the more we're just in communication and thinking about utilizing the robust network that we have in the community to support. Thank you. Councilor Cassid: Thank you so much, Madam Chair. Thank you both for being here so much, and for all the work that has gone into this. It's really exciting to watch this come into fruition. I remember the groundbreaking, actually. I think that might have been the first time they ever handed me one of those weird golden shovels. And then to see what it's really turned into and the amount of work and effort. I have a couple of questions. You mentioned 1,300 teens served in this past year, correct? Since opening. Are those unique individuals? The 1,300 is unique. And how many kids, teens, do we have in this demographic in the City of Santa Fe? I actually don't know the answer to that number. I think it's three or four thousand, but I could be wrong. That's, I mean, I thought that it was, you know, I know it's not going to be that many. Unfortunately, Santa Fe is an older population right now, still trying to get more youth and young people, but that's a pretty good percentage that you have already been able to tap into. So, that's really exciting. And I'm curious, are you guys looking at the geographical demographics of this? So, I know very purposely putting it on the Southside because that is where a lot of our families are. We do still have families in the Midtown area. We do still have families on the Northside. How well are we doing at helping teens in other parts of the city access? I know you mentioned from the schools, but is that working well, or do we still need to work on this? Thank you, Chair Castro, Councilor Casset. That's a really great question. So, one of the reasons that I think having a relationship with the public schools around this is so that we can ensure that there are a handful of schools that are in busing distance of the Teen Center that we're currently doing van pickups at. So, if we can get those buses to swing by the Teen Center, that would actually free our resources to spread more into the cities. So we do have kids who come from all over town. It is primarily kids who are on the Southside right now. Myab has been a great resource in that because there are youth from all over the city. So they do a great job of bringing their friends in, especially when they're thinking about teen nights and events like that. So the answer is that we're getting there. It could be better. We could have more kids from all over the city. We are doing a great job on the Southside, and I think spreading will happen. Wonderful. And do you know if there's a barrier that even if they can get there, getting home is a challenge? Have we, do we use the buses or the vans to get kids home? Is that one of those conversations to have with transit? We don't take youth home currently. It's just, you know, timing and staff-wise, that doesn't, you know, one space, one school's pickup is a lot different than going to 12 different homes. I think there is a bus stop right there, so transit is possible. I know during the summer we partnered with New Mexicans to Prevent Gun Violence and the Office of Student Wellness for a program that was run out of the Teen Center. And I know Jen Jefferson really worked with the kids to make sure that however they needed to get there, it could be figured out either with transit or whatever needed to happen. So yeah, I think there's, I think there's work to be done, but I think that's definitely something that we're always thinking about is how can we get kids there and also make sure they're getting home. Right, right. And yet, I can imagine the challenge, especially when we were kids, we got licenses at 15 and got to drive all our friends, right? It changed right as I was there. So I remember my younger friends did not have that option. It was really interesting to be like, "What do you mean you can only drive one person or nobody?" So definitely a little bit of a different scenario, probably for the better. In terms of funding, is the City of Santa Fe the sole funder of everything that's going into this? So equipment, programming, yes. What is the cost per year of running this facility and all this programming? I would have to get back to you on the total number. It is upward around 750. Okay. That sounds about right. I have to pull the salaries from, like, I know the operation budget really close to the back of my hand, but the... Separate from salaries too, just all the materials and the equipment and thinking into expansion if we are successful in getting more kids there, what is the capacity of both staff and stuff to support more kids? And at fully staffed, we have a lot more capacity than what we're currently working with. And also, I'm really, you know, once you have the materials set up, when you are running youth programs, like, you know, we have the cache of art supplies, right? So we have made that investment already. So, you know, with a fully stocked art room, you can do millions and millions of activities with youth, right? So I think, you know, the expense of setting the foundation at the Teen Center has been phenomenal. And, you know, just, I'm really, the, I should not call them girls, the wonderful women who work at the Teen Center, especially our supervisor, are very, they're very cost-conscious. So really thinking about how we can get the most bang for our buck with the resources we have. We just recently presented to the Children and Youth Commission right ahead of their strategic planning session to really put that at top of mind. And also, prior to me coming into the Teen Center with some of the DO funds that I manage for youth violence prevention, there are programs from that that actually run out of the Teen Center. So, that was an excellent kind of marrying of activities and funding. Okay, that's wonderful. And the reason I'm asking is one, you know, it's budget season, and we always start to think about these things. But also to let you know that we did, we did make some really huge investments in the Teen Center upfront, and I want to make sure that we don't do the thing where we invest a lot upfront and then it slowly dwindles away. And so really understanding, making sure that we know what it takes to continue to have this as such a resource for our youth and making sure that we have the materials, we have the food, we have the staff, we have the activities, as opposed to thinking, "Well, we did this really big investment, we're good," and then it just kind of slowly dwindles. Eventually, we'll hopefully have to refill the art supplies and things of that nature. I'm also curious, you mentioned community partners, and you talked about, you know, I see in the slides, youth mental health, food insecurity. Has the Teen Center tapped into the Connect Network? Is there a navigator there who's helping? Sorry, I'm knocking the mic down. Because of the age of the kids, a Connect Navigator is not appropriate for the Teen Center. Got it. However, the Teen Center is able to enter into purchase order agreements with providers to provide some of those services. So, like right now, we have a meditation program that is very mental health-based. We've had some, we've had the opportunity to actually have therapists and counselors hold office hours there and meet the needs of kids. So, it's a, it's a bit of a way to creatively address the need in a way that also protects the city's liability. Yeah, always, always have to be thinking about liability. And then with food security, have you guys reached out to the Food Depot because they have that mobile food van? Does that show up? It goes across the street to the Southside Library. Okay. So, we're in there, but we do, we, they, the Food Depot is coming for a presentation, I think next week or the week after. And we, we are working because one of the, one of the biggest things is that we, you know, we want the center to be a place of abundance, right? So, you know, yes, you've already had your meal of the day, but also if you need snacks, we're going to give you some snacks, right? You know, last Wednesday, I put a giant bowl of fruit out just to see what would happen because, you know, they, they never order it, right? They're never coming up to the kitchen and being like, "Oh, I could really use a banana or a carrot right now." But you put, you put the bowl of fruit out, and it was gone in an hour. So, we're really thinking about how we are. And also, when you notice that there is a youth who maybe needs to eat a couple of meals while we're there, then we can also have a bag of groceries waiting for him or her when they're ready to leave. So, it's a special way of being able to see and address needs in a way that really is meeting them as they arise. Okay, wonderful. Good. I'm glad to hear that and glad to hear you already connected with all of the groups. And last question: are we doing any type of evaluation and looking at outcomes on the impact? I know it's hard. I know this is, again, this is public health work. It's going to take a really long time to be able to get this information. But when I think about the Teen Center, right now we have had very supportive governing bodies for the last few who really have understood the importance of this. One challenge that we often have with public health is that once it starts working, people don't think that it's necessary. And so a lot of social programs, public health programs, it's like, "Well, we don't have a problem. It's fine." And it's because we're taking care of it. Have we established any way to evaluate the impact of the Teen Center on things like academic achievement, on moving into either certification programs with the community college, going to college, youth violence? Obviously, we know that's a big piece of some of the work that is happening. What is that starting to look like? Have we thought about that? And if you're like, "Yes, of course we thought about that." I mean, I think the answer is yes, and yes, definitely we are thinking about that. Right now, we have really good metrics around input and output, but outcomes are going to take longer. Also, that takes more, that would take maybe going out to RFP for an evaluator to actually really look at that. I think that would be great. I would love to work with an evaluation, to have an evaluation done to figure out where we are, where we could be, what impact the Teen Center is making, and also integrate that into a strategic plan moving forward. Yeah, I would love that too. And I've frequently brought this up with a lot of these community services programs, is I do get concerned that at some point there might be people sitting up here who don't understand the value. And so the way that we can make sure that it is measured and documented really brings forth the argument that, yeah, we do need to spend $750,000 per year. And this is why, and this is what it's bringing to our community. And so, I would love to work on that more. Please, please reach out to me. This is my world, and more than happy to support any possible way that I can. So thank you so much for your work. Really excited. This was a wonderful update. Thank you, Councilor Kaset, Councilor Travis. Thank you for the presentation. A few things: I initiated conversations early on in my term with Santa Fe Public Schools and our transit. So, there is already a seed in there for transportation. And we started conversations about how there could be some type of collaboration in getting kids to and from the Teen Center using some of their bus routes. And that kind of fell off with some changes in staff and stuff. So, if anyone wants to pick up that conversation, I think that would be a great place to collaborate, and it's not a new idea. And then I just wanted to go off of what Councilor Kaset was saying. So I was curious about how your initiatives and programming is chosen, because when we talk about program evaluation, the best way to do that is to base those on need or feedback from the community so that you can more accurately measure your success around addressing that need. And so I was just curious, and also it's just fun sometimes for engagement purposes, right? To just do fun things. But when we want to see the impact of programming, we really want to have a set goal to address a need that is clear to us. So I was just kind of curious about that process. Yes, thank you, Chair Castro, Councilor Chavez. Still working on that muscle memory. That's a great question. And one thing that we talk about a lot at the Teen Center is balancing the wants of youth and the needs of youth and how we can bring that together into programming. I forget, I think it was Councilor Fagali asked how the community could be involved, and my answer was something along the lines of, "Everyone really wants to be involved, and it's amazing." And we get a lot of calls of, "Oh, well, kids need college readiness, kids need this, kids need that." And actually, we kind of flip that a little bit and we ask kids what they want. And so every day we have a whiteboard right next to the kitchen, and we ask kids what they're interested in. And sometimes the question is, "What is your superpower, or what superpower would you have?" And sometimes it's, "If we were to do a STEM program, what kind of STEM activity are you interested in?" And so we take a photo of it, and it's very, it's a little bit basic, but also driven by the youth and what their answers are. And we have conversations. A lot of the day for our staff is just talking to kids and really validating their experiences and what they're doing. And then we turn that into a program. And sometimes that program is one of my favorite programs, which is "Nails, Hair, and More." Amazing. Huge following. And sometimes that program is a really great example is our Great Books Club, where it starts as a conversation about how your day is going, and our provider actually slips in some real education on picking up tones of literature and pieces like that. So, the answer is that we try very hard to make all of our activities led by teens and also reflective of what we as adults know that the needs are. So we try to find that balance. Yeah, and it's hard because you're working with youth, and youth struggles communicating their needs, right? So, what they're going to do is really side with social, and I'm sorry, I'm sick, so my brain's not working, but things that are just more socially acceptable or socially out there. And so, it's a very interesting thing. I'd love to explore that. I think a great way would really be allowing teens the opportunity to assess who goes in, to survey or to do surveys. I don't know if you do any leadership groups or little subcommittees. I know there's been talks about subcommittees in the past with them and them recruiting straight from participants in the Teen Center. And the reason why I say this is because parent perspective of need for youth is also really important in the services that we offer at these facilities. You know, we have many parents who are working two to three jobs. We have them doing the best that they can, and it would be great to kind of look through that lens of how can the Teen Center be there to support parents in those really necessary steps to set up youth for success. So, I was thinking like SAT/ACT support. I was thinking like career trade, college readiness, and that would also bring probably youth from all over Santa Fe into the Teen Center if there were days specifically targeted for that, right? We're going to do like career inventories, interest inventories, we're going to teach you how to search for colleges, like really engaging. And then we have a place for volunteers as well. But I think that I would just encourage youth need, and youth should be driving this, even driving collection of data in really assessing need. But I think when we talk about youth, we should also focus on caregivers in the sense of from a parent's perspective, a caregiver's perspective, how else can we meet the need of youth to be more supportive to the community through that perspective as well? And that's just a comment. So, transportation. Oh, and then I was wondering, and this is just another comment or idea, there's a lot of great programming in the schools that students have practiced with utilizing, right? Like wellness rooms, calming corners. They see these environments in their schools all the time. They know how to engage with them. They know how to seek support through them. They just, it's very familiar. So, I was going to just plant the seed. That would be a really great place for us to also collaborate with charter or public schools is just like what programs are working for the students you serve and how can we offer an extension of those programs at the Teen Center because utilization would be high, especially if it's like an extension. I think of like restorative justice practices and just like all of those things they're familiar with interacting with, and I think that would be really cool for them to see that familiarity in another safe place that they interact with on a daily basis. And I think that's it for now. I would love to work and explore how I can support you. I definitely think like with specific programming, you could probably even, we could expand our funding sources. I think if we're strategic in that way, that could be something where we could seek funding, especially if we have like the data, the goal, and how we're going to measure how it directly impacts youth. I think that that funding comes in very quickly when we're able to kind of set that track, and I would, like Councilor Kaset said, I would love to have those conversations with you all and be supportive as much as I can. So, please feel free to reach out to me. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Councilor Chavez. Councilor Barrett. I was just going to say thanks for all your work. I know you're doing double duty and thanks for wearing this hat and stepping into this job. You're doing an amazing job. I was wondering, because I know we talked about school buses, but how many, do you guys know approximately how many kids ride the city bus back and forth? Like, is that just out of curiosity, like how many kids are independently riding the bus? Probably don't know those statistics, but that would be like, do we know? One of the topics, and I'll touch on this in a second, with the last youth summit was transit and how inaccessible it was for young people. And so that might be a topic that we take up. I would say probably very few. Okay. Because I was going to say like in the evenings too, we were saying because there's no rides home, just like is the bus running to all areas like after like the clubs and meetings are over and if we need to work on like the how the bus runs back and forth. That was just a thought. And then I was going to see like do a lot of the youth take advantage of the tutoring? Like do you say like is that fairly like are they, and then are the tutors, are they outside contractors or are they staff? Okay, that was my question too. Just to answer verbally for the record, yes and yes, and not very many. So, there are probably about 15 to 20 youth that come in for tutoring and SAT prep. Yeah, our contractor has a pretty good following, so that has really helped bulk that up. And for that program, we require youth to sign in instead of being a registered member because they're just coming in and getting that tutoring service. And then we hope that we can pull them in and have them keep coming. Yeah, because I was wondering what we can do to amp that up too. So, more people are aware that there's tutoring because maybe not a lot of people—I mean, you guys probably do a lot to promote it, I don't know, but that seems like that's a really amazing thing to take advantage of, especially for those classes that can be really expensive. And tutoring—there's always people looking for tutoring, I think. I know working from SFPS and Thrive, there are lots of people looking for tutoring. And then I was just going to ask, your staff, who's city staff compared to contractors? Is it mostly city staff and just a few contractors come in or— We only have city staff. Oh, okay. It's just— And we have an array of purchase order contracts for providers to come in and provide specific services. So, our staff have job descriptions that they have to work under, and so anything above or different from that is an activity that we can bring an outside provider in for. Awesome. And you guys usually have enough, like, you have enough resources to have these little side contracts, like you said, and have therapists come in or have tutors come in and— I think we could definitely have more. Okay. Just covered. Okay. They are very—we are very conscious of the fact that this is city funding. This is fully city-funded, and so we really, we want to make sure that we can pay any of our contractors a fair rate and that we are also getting the most bang for the buck in that rate. So, we think really critically about the programs that come in. Maybe we don't do an interpretive dance session because we only have one child who's interested in that, but maybe we do do this other thing. So, there's a give and take, and there's also looking, listening to what the needs are and trying to be as responsive as possible. That's cool. So, you guys are—you said you're bringing in a dance studio, and that's free? Like, basically everything there is free? Everything? So that's amazing because that's so expensive, and so many people can't afford a lot of those extracurriculars. So that's amazing that you guys are doing that. Thanks for all you do. Thank you, Councilor Barrett. Agreed. So it is a wonderful facility. We have grown so much. I've been lucky to be able to spend some time with Maya, and now Councilor Barrett is going to do some amazing work with this upcoming year and the summit. There were some, and as Councilor Chavis alluded to, there were some discussions of splitting the advisory board out from Maya, but my understanding is that's happening. Do we have any updates on the advisory board and youth being involved in that programming? No, no worries. And so— I wasn't aware that was a plan, but I can work on that. I think it's great. I think when youth are engaged at the Teen Center, they are engaged. So, I think that there's a balance to be struck in having, pulling out an advisory board of the youth who frequent the center to really drive home the things that are important to the Mayor's Youth Advisory Board, which is super motivated youth with a pretty wide array of backgrounds. So, I think that is a really great combination of the strengths of all the kids that could be involved. So, I will take the opportunity to say that we are recruiting for that board of folks, and that we want to do more collaboration with people in the neighborhood that are using it for different things. So, I am lucky to also have our Director of Senior Services here to talk a little bit about—there was a discussion of a multi-generational space and some intergenerational programming. Is that still on the table, Madam Chair? We're still looking at expanding, you know, making another senior center, and all these things are in the works or in discussions, but nothing's been made final if we're going to be doing an actual intergenerational center. That would be the ultimate goal. Well, and as Councilor Cassid alluded to, right, we make these decisions and then years down the road, we sort of evaluate and see how they're working. And this was something that we got as input from the community that they wanted to see a more intergenerational center. So, thank you so much for looking into that, and that's something that we want to work on here. Equity, I know that there was some concern about Phase 2 and the need in the community. There was some request for soccer space for young folks. Has there been any discussion with the community members in the area around that Phase 2 redevelopment? Thank you, Madam Chair. We do have turf available. So, one of the things that I'd really like the committee and the council to be mindful of is the true intent of the space. And so if the space is intended for youth 12 to 18, no 18-year-old is going to come to the Youth Center if there's 5-year-olds playing soccer, unfortunately. So, where that community conversation and when it happens, I'm happy to be involved. I would love to critically think through it because I think more open space for kids—I would like every kid to be outside for most of the day. As a human, I would like that. So, I think that there are some great conversations to be had. I do know there is a little bit of space out there. There is a turf lawn at the Teen Center, but I would just encourage the council and the committee to be really thoughtful about what is going to bring youth ages 12 to 18 to the Teen Center and what is going to drive them away. Thank you so much. And that's a perfect transition of sort of the facilities need, right? And I think that we're all looking at the city as what we would like to see and aspirational, but we had this great community conversation around budgeting of what we're going to prioritize. And as we sort of start to tighten that belt a little bit more, we're going to have to make these difficult decisions. As Director mentioned, we would love to see that multi-generational facility and the new center, and there are young people and teens on this side of town that maybe we're underserving. And we are having these conversations. We are attempting to get there. It is in the long-term planning, but it might not be at the Teen Center next year. Is that what I'm hearing? Yes. Wonderful. Sorry, I should be phrasing these in questions. But I do appreciate all of the work being done. Is there anything that we can do? And I know we have a slide of needs. Is there anything else that we can do to support your work? No, I think just really being aware of what we have going on. I think we've, you know, outlined some areas where we definitely could use some support at the Teen Center. And I think just having, keeping the conversations going, I think is really helpful because needs do arise, things do arise, and you know, we have a new administration with all of you wonderful people. And so, as the new administration finds its footing, I imagine that these conversations are going to continue to be ongoing, and we really want to make sure that we are doing everything we can to meet the needs of the youth who are using the Teen Center. Perfect. Thank you. So we encourage all of those folks that wanted to reach out and be part of the Teen Center to apply to the City of Santa Fe. Yes, absolutely. Thank you so much. We appreciate you. Thank you. So, Marcella, if I am not mistaken, we are now onto the one thing pulled from the consent agenda, and we have Deputy Chief Valdez here to speak on that item. So, one item was pulled, item C, and it is a request for approval of the New Mexico Department of Finance and Administration certification for allocation 23-ZH5048-81-3 years in the amount of $93,750 for the hiring of law enforcement support positions at the Santa Fe Police Department for FY26 until June 30th of 2026. Thank you so much, and thank you, Deputy Chief, for being here. This is a little bit of a complicated thing as it is a multi-year grant, and we have to accept some money, and so I just want a little bit of an explanation, please. Thank you so much. Absolutely, Madam Chair. So, this agreement was initially entered into three years ago. This is year three of four. For year one, we received 100% funding to increase staffing for our crime scene unit, which was four positions. And then we increased our crime scene, I'm sorry, crime analyst position from one to two. So now we have two of them. Each year we get an agreement from the DFA to accept the funds, and the funds are reimbursed to the city for the salaries and benefits of those employees. So for year one, which was three years ago, it was 100%. Year two was 50%, and then this year is 25%. Then the city covers the remaining allocations. So for this year, the city is covering 75% of the salaries and benefits, and then as of FY27, we will be responsible for 100%. This might be a silly question. I'm sure the answer is yes, but we have planned for the future that we are going to be taking on these costs in perpetuity. I would imagine we want to keep these positions available. Is that correct? Yes, Madam Chair. That was a discussion that we started three years ago, and this program allowed us to allocate the funding and anticipate those recurring costs, and by having that breakdown in support from the state, allowed us to grow by five personnel. And with these positions, it's been a great success story. Once we received the funding and we recruited for the positions, they've been filled ever since. So they've shown a lot of great success. And they build our capacity on the ground as well, right? We are able to sort of free up some officers. Yes, Madam Chair. At some points in time during the department's years of operations for the last about, I'd say, eight years, we used to have a police officer serve as a crime analyst, which would have been better served in the field. So now we have two non-police staff members that do the crime analytics for our department. Any questions from the committee? I would entertain a motion. Move to approve. Second. Marcella, if we could have a roll call, please. Councilor Faggali. Yes. Councilor Barrett. Yes. Councilor Chavis. Yes. Councilor Casset. Yes. Madam Chair. Yes. Motion passes. Thank you so much. Moving on, I think we are on to item nine, if I'm not mistaken, because we don't have an executive session. Matters from staff. Director Nielsson, do you have anything for us? I do, Madam Chair, members of the committee. Thank you so much. Good evening. I wanted to share a little bit of big news, a little bit of news. We're just thrilled about this. This came out today on the press, and the State Economic Development Department announced that one of our organizations located on the Midtown campus, the New Mexico Innovation Hub, was a successful recipient of one of their innovation grants, an award of $700,000 to get the New Mexico Innovation Hub up and running. As you know, they are actively seeking tenants to occupy their space. We've used their community room many times, and we're absolutely thrilled that they are on Midtown and they're such great partners to support our commercial businesses. So, congratulations, congratulations to David Perez and their team. I'll also mention, Madam Chair, our Go Local Go Different fund is closing tomorrow right before midnight. We have received a lot of interest, close to a hundred applications. If you can remember, last meeting, this is our first rodeo to have an application window and it's really encouraging to see so much interest seeking community support, everything from art walks to outdoor recreation, entrepreneurial programming. We're really thrilled. I think we'll have some really good feedback for you all to see the types of programs that are being submitted. Councilor Cassett is also sharing something that we're continuing to be excited about. And I handed these out, I think last meeting, these lovely car magnets. If anybody is interested for our Go Local Go Different program, this is in full swing. We are continuing to sign businesses and residents up and soliciting businesses to participate in our rewards pass. So, what this means is that residents are incentivized to shop local and every time that you shop or purchase something from a local business, you check in, you get points, you're able to redeem them for prizes and gift cards. I'm going to call out Councilor Fagali. I saw on the rewards pass that she checked in at one of our local businesses. Thank you so much for your support. And this will be our ongoing rally as we continue to get people engaged in the community. We're starting to see the stickers and people participating in the movement. So, thanks for the shout out, Councilor Casset. Thank you so much, Director, and always some amazing work coming out of your office. We're all working so hard, but economic development is definitely doing a great job. Thank you, Ed, for all the work you do. Director, would you like to share anything with the committee or with the members of the community? Madam Chair, thank you. So, just a few things. Last weekend at the Rick GCC, we had a swim meet. There were 17 teams there that brought in about 350 swimmers to the center. There was also an ice hockey tournament with 10 teams that brought about 200 players in. So, they were pretty busy over there at the GCC. Fort Marcy started the women's basketball league. This year there's eight teams. That's up from six from last year. So, they're making progress there. Seniors, we have a Valentine's dance next Friday. So, once again, you're welcome to go say hi to everybody. The Senior Olympics 2026 State Winter Games are going to be held here in Santa Fe. They'll be February 23rd to 26th. At this point, there are over five or about 500 participants signed up, which is even larger than what the summer games were down in. They've met their expectation. It's going to be taking place in the Santa Fe, sorry, yes, ball is one of the events. So, there's, and it'll be taking place at GCC Convention Center, Fort Marcy, and other locations in Santa Fe. The library, they have a new program called Lena Start, and the program will work with parents of infants, toddlers on communication, speaking with their children. Research has shown that talking and communicating between children to parents is an important building block of literacy. It's a 10-week course where an early childhood literacy educator will be working with parents and guiding them through the process. There are two different sessions, one in English, one in Spanish. The English one is full, and they're still based at the program's based at Southside for the first and last sessions, which are in person. All the others will be. There's also a library got a shout out from New Mexico State Library on their Something Queer program at the Southside library happening. Wonderful. Thank you so much. Yes, and some amazing work also coming out. I mean, recreation, we're always doing above and beyond. We just met with some constituents around Fort Marcy Pool, and of course, we are always recruiting more lifeguards. So, if there are lifeguards out there in the city of Santa Fe that want to help us out to staff those pools, please. But yes, hey, if you want to get trained as a lifeguard, just part-time, it's a great job. Marcel, is there anything from your desk? Thank you so very much. Matters from the committee. Matters from the chair. I just want to congratulate us all on a very productive, in my opinion, legislative session. HB9 did pass the Senate floor. We have some great things coming. We are supporting working-class folks in New Mexico. And so, I wanted the work of this committee, as long as we have it, to continue to do that work. So, thank you so much. And we have our next meeting on February 18th. With that, we are adjourned. Thank you.