© 2007 by Michael Swickard, Ph.D.
The annexation controversy in our area has people writing letters to the editor and calling me on talk radio. Many of the comments make me think of Josh Billings, who said, “The trouble with people is not that they don’t know but that they know so much that ain’t so.”
Many of the comments have been simply not true or not germane. For example, the fight over annexation is not about whether houses will be built; it is about which government entity will supervise the process. Regardless of whether the city annexes the land under consideration on the
Even more troublesome is the fact that the City of
The current semi-policy is that there are some rules and regulations; however, the final decision depends on how many citizens oppose that development. Can you imagine the business implications in any other endeavor if the applicant complied with all current rules and regulations but was subject to the vagaries of public opinion?
Worse, the City of
These citizens have gotten their five minutes of fame at the expense of the developers, who they portray as villains even though they have complied fully with city rules. The developers are justifiably mad. Specifically,
On the one hand,
Many of the benevolent areas of city operation such as the subsidized bus service, senior citizen centers and recycling are funded with the financial surpluses created by developers. We live a better life in
There are going to be more houses
As to more houses or not, the fact is that development cannot continue without demand for housing. The developer does not create that demand; rather, the developer meets that demand and, in the case of Mr. Philippou, has produced an excellent 20-year plan for development so that roads, curbs, gutters, lights, parks, schools and fire and police buildings have been addressed. The county rules do not require such a comprehensive plan.
Again, we are only deciding who will oversee the process. The city would rather be that entity since ultimately it must deal with the discharge of sewers and, regionally, the issues of water, natural gas and solid waste removal. If these houses are built outside of city control, the city must still provide resources, but without the ability to shape this demand.
Finally, an attempt to stop the housing boom could have long-term adverse affects on our area. It is like the line in the movie Bull Durham, where the old pro is saying that you do not mess with a winning streak. When things are going well you don’t jinx the streak. In
Still, I am more concerned that when we do business in
Swickard is a columnist for Heath Haussamen on New Mexico Politics. The Morning Show with Michael Swickard is on from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday on KSNM-AM 570 in