What happens when a town wants to unburden itself from the responsibilities of being a town? Or if residents conclude, as some in Edgewood have, that it’s time for the town government to go away?
A group of Edgewood residents, including Former Mayor John Abrams, say it’s time for the town to vanish. Abrams said factors supporting disincorporation include failure to keep financial records properly and the recent threat of loss of fire and EMS services in a dispute with Santa Fe County.
Janelle Turner, a local resident circulating a petition to force a vote on disincorporation, told the Route 66 Independent the latter was the last straw, and that incorporation in 1999 was an overreaction to perceived neglect by the county and a misunderstanding of the autonomy the town would have over subdivisions, she said he hasn’t decided how she would vote, but supports taking the question to the electorate.
In New Mexico, there’s a process for that. Chapter 3, Article 4 of the New Mexico Statutes Annotated 1978 governs the disincorporation of municipalities. It starts with a petition, which is submitted to the local county commission. Once the petition is certified to contain the signatures of one-fourth of the town’s voters, commissioners must adopt an election resolution within 14 days. If a majority favors disincorporation on Election Day, the municipality gets unwound (after making plans to pay off current debts), with the county taking over local government functions.
Abrams, who was mayor from 2018 until 2022, said the governance of the town has devolved thanks to a group of “miscreants” who took over without the expertise needed to properly run it, He said his requests for certain financial documents, including bank statements and wire transfers from town accounts, were only partially fulfilled, with some reports missing. Abrams said the annexation of Campbell Ranch was a mistake, and emblematic of Edgewood’s growth beyond its ability to manage itself. “The town doesn’t have the financial wherewithal to maintain 70 miles of public roadway within 56 square miles,” he said.
Abrams said if disincorporation happens, community members can still advocate for services from Sante Fe County. He noted that even if the town goes away, major retailers in Edgewood would remain, and the tax revenue those stores bring in should be invested in the area. Abrams said he’s not worried about the standard of services dropping if Edgewood is no longer a municipality. “How could the county be worse?” he said. “If the town is fully incapable of providing services to community members at a standard level other than just miserable, what’s the use of the town?”
Organizers say they need to obtain 1,264 signatures – 1/4 of registered town voters – to force the vote, though they have a plan to exceed that number to account for errors. Anyone interested in signing the petition may contact Abrams at 505-610-6067. He said organizers of the disincorporation effort plan to have a website (rebootedgewood.org) up soon and have asked for permission to set up at the town’s Walmart store.
