Do District 1

Candidate forum to feature sole City Council race

Candidates in Santa Fe's only contested City Council race are scheduled to appear tonight at a community forum organized by the Neighborhood Network.

With the retirement of Councilor Patti Bushee, the northside District 1 seat is open. Hear from the four people who want to fill it: Kathryn Kennedy, a partner at Skylight Santa Fe; Renee Villarreal, a former planning commission member; returning candidate Marie Campos, who was recently redistricted from District 3 to District 1; and Frank Montaño, a former city councilor and school board member.

Rick Martinez, president of the network, will serve as moderator at the forum from 7-9 pm in the Southwest Community Room at Christus St. Vincent. Attendees may pose written questions.

The group, which typically hosts pre-election events, also will likely invite the two candidates for municipal judge to a later program. But the fact that the three other council seats up for election are uncontested doesn't bode well for good governance in the City Different, Martinez says.

Incumbent councilors Peter Ives and Chris Rivera are set to sail to another term,  and District 4 candidate Michael Harris is stepping up to fill the seat Bill Dimas is vacating.

"What really bothers me the most is that nobody else is running, and it just seems like everyone is afraid to deal with the issues like the budget. I don't know why we can't get more really good candidates," Martinez tells SFR. "It doesn't seem like a democracy if you don't have any challengers."

Not sure which district you live in? Here's a map.

Voter registration ends on Feb. 2 for the election that takes place on March 1. Absentee voting begins on Jan. 26.

District 1 candidates are also set to appear at 11:30 am, Wednesday, Jan. 6, in a joint event with the Santa Fe Green Chamber of Commerce and Santa Fe Area Homebuilders Association at the SFAHBA offices, 1409 Luisa St.


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