Two veterans and a rookie vie for County Commission District 3 seat

May 28—The Democratic primary race for the Santa Fe County Commission District 3 seat will likely boil down to one question: Are residents looking for something new?

Two of the candidates, City Councilor Chris Rivera and incumbent Commissioner Rudy Garcia, have touted their experience as elected officials as one of the major reasons they should receive the community's vote.

Garcia did not respond to multiple requests for an interview for this story and did not submit answers to a candidate questionnaire.

In the other corner is Camilla Bustamante, the former dean of the School of Trades, Advanced Technologies and Sustainability at Santa Fe Community College for seven years and a relative newcomer to the political realm, who hopes to bring new vigor to county government.

"This round, this really is an opportune time," Bustamante said. "I wanted to give people options."

Bustamante, 58, previously ran for the County Commission in 2014 but had to drop out of the race due to the federal Hatch Act.

She worked for the state Department of Health at the time and was informed by the State Personnel Office she'd be in violation of the law if she didn't withdraw from the race. The law restricts political activities of public employees whose job duties are connected to federally funded programs.

Now, with no roadblocks, Bustamante said she wants to be a fresh option for Santa Fe County voters.

"I had far too many people say, 'I have reached out and no one has gotten back to me,' " she later added. "When it comes to feelings of not being present in the community, I think I can offer the difference."

Rivera, 56, who for the past 10 years has served as a city councilor, also wants to be that voice for the community, opting to make the shift to the County Commission after seeing "silos that have been present over the years with regards to city and county relations."

"Some things we work well on together, and others we don't," he said. "I have seen those gaps, and I am hoping that my city experience, the leadership experience and the government experience can make that difference.

"Somebody with city experience can get in and has an idea of one-half of the process than someone who only understands one side," Rivera added.

Because only Democrats are running in the June 7 primary for the commission seat, the winner of the race likely will face no opponent in the general election and will take office in January.

District 3 is the county's southernmost district, encompassing much of southern Santa Fe County, including Edgewood, Madrid, Stanley and other small communities.

While the paths that led Rivera and Garcia to the ballot may be different, both listed similar priorities for the district. In the wake of a string of wildfires across the state, both candidates noted water sustainability as a primary focus.

Bustamante, who according to her résumé was the dean of community, workforce and career technical education at Northern New Mexico College before working at SFCC, also has more than 20 years of experience in health and safety work and environmental sciences. She is now retired.

She said she's concerned not just for current residents, but also for future generations who may be faced with water and other utility insecurities.

"We're in a new place," Bustamante said. "We have the water we need, but we need to make sure that for whatever water is there, which is still questionable, that we know how much water we have, that the quality of that water matters."

Rivera also noted water as a policy concern, reiterating a point he made at a recent candidate forum he would be in favor of a regional water authority to help manage water in the Santa Fe area.

He also said the water authority would help keep all entities on the same page for projects that impact both the county and the city. He pointed to the development of the San Juan-Chama Return Flow Pipeline, which would carry water from the city wastewater treatment plant on Airport Road to the Rio Grande.

Today, that treated water flows into the Santa Fe River. Getting what's known as "return flow credits" for sending it straight to the Rio Grande means the city would be able to draw more water from the Buckman Direct Diversion.

"Instead of the city moving forward and then asking the county for help later on," he said, "I think being able to see things from both perspectives will be a benefit."

Rivera, a former city fire chief, cited public safety as one of his primary focuses, followed closely by water sustainability and affordable housing.

As the county faces a shortage of sheriff's deputies, Rivera said he would approach the situation similar to the recommendations he's made for city police: find more creative ways to recruit.

Rivera noted lofty ideas, like creating an internal recruiting office or team that could work in tandem with the county Human Resources Department to help create new recruitment techniques.

He also said the county needs to make sure it is keeping up with salaries in the wake of similar wage increases for other law enforcement agencies in the region.

"I think people generally like to work there," Rivera said. "But recently, as far as salaries have gone, they just made changes to get them to where they were at, but the city and the state just increased their pay, so now they are behind again."

Bustamante said she was willing to put her trust in the sheriff's office to determine what was best, but added she would like to engage the community in those discussions.

"This is not about being some kind of hyperpoliced community," Bustamante said. "What are we doing to encourage opportunities for people to get out and get to know each other?"

She added, "Yes, we do need our public security folk. We need that, but I also see that some of our woes are caused by a fractured community. We don't have a real sense of caring about where we are."

Rivera said the county has similar housing affordability issues as the city, but from his experience it's a little easier to build on county land, leading to a "ton of growth" that needs to be properly managed.

He said he would like to find ways to build more affordable housing in different parts of the county.

Bustamante took it a bit further, noting that while housing affordability is a major issue, so is making sure the utilities and physical infrastructure in some of the more rural areas are supported.

"We need housing, we need to address our infrastructure and we need to make sure our roadways accommodate residential areas as well as commercial zoning," she said. "Infrastructure is a critical part of making sure that our communities maintain the quality of life that people want to maintain."

When asked if his tenure as a city official might be a drawback for voters who see him as a known quantity, Rivera said he believed the contrary.

The race will come down to leadership capabilities, he said.

"People have the idea you can just come in and make changes right away, but to do something right takes a lot of time and collaboration," he said. "Knowing who to talk to and having those relationships is part of my leadership and my experience, and I think that will be important."

Bustamante agreed leadership will be a needle mover in the election, but she was undeterred.

"I have worked as a manager and overseen projects," she said. "In my capacity, even at the academic level, I have been manager of people, I have worked big projects, I have received those big grant funds.

"I have been a leader."