New Mexico News
| Growth a Top Concern for District 4 Hopefuls |
| Posted by () on May 21 2008 at 6:17 PM |
It's a district that stretches from Albuquerque's far Northeast Heights to the West Side.
And for the first time in eight years, the campaign to represent District 4 on the County Commission is wide open, with no incumbent.
Three Republicans are vying for the seat in the June 3 primary election: Michael Wiener, a former city councilor and state senator; Ivonne Nelson, a county planning commissioner; and Ned Fuller, an attorney. No Democrats are seeking a spot on the fall ballot.
The area has been represented by Realtor Tim Cummins, also a Republican, since 2001. He is running for the Public Regulation Commission.
Taxes, public safety and congested roadways have emerged as top issues.
Wiener, who lives in High Desert, said property taxes have climbed about 7 percent a year, and homeowners are paying a greater share of taxes than they used to.
"We need to look at possibly going back and shifting more of the burden to commercial property," Wiener said. "I'm not saying we need to do it. I'm saying we need to consider it."
He wants to look at ways to make it easier for people to understand how their tax bills are determined, and he said he would work to control spending by the county government.
Nelson, who lives in North Albuquerque Acres, said public safety is top priority and that she would work with the sheriff and other law-enforcement agencies. The district needs expanded roads to help ambulances and police respond to emergencies.
West Side neighborhoods, in particular, "suffer from abysmal response times," Nelson said.
She also said getting jobs and businesses closer to people on the West Side is a good idea, though she's not a big fan of "new urbanism."
Fuller, who lives on the West Side, said the "size of government" is a major issue he'd tackle. The county's spending has climbed sharply over the last three years, he said.
Fuller believes the county can work more efficiently, perhaps by using the Downtown jail as a way to relieve overcrowding at the main Metropolitan Detention Center.
He also said he would work for economic development and "work with other government agencies to ensure we have the infrastructure we need."
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