| Revision as of 21:31, 3 October 2007 editWeckerleje (talk | contribs)100 edits Undid revision 162092931 by Weckerleje (talk)← Previous edit | Revision as of 22:01, 3 October 2007 edit undoWeckerleje (talk | contribs)100 editsNo edit summaryNext edit → | ||
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| Town Council - Chuck Ring, Rita Loy Simmons, Glen Felton, Brad Hill | Town Council - Chuck Ring, Rita Loy Simmons, Glen Felton, Brad Hill | ||
| ''Despite requests to the contrary, certain parties appear insistent on using this venue to advance opinions, rather than allow this article to be simply a description of the community and its setting. These opinions were apparently posted by someone who clearly feels he or she has an axe to grind with the local government. Such opinions are also occasionally seen in local newspapers. In any community, there will be disagreement regarding issues such as development, and there will also be those who are unwilling to limit such disagreements to the appropriate venues. Not surprisingly, these comments are posted anonymously; this has been an occasional tactic of certain politically-motivated interests within the area. Readers should consider this, and the inflammatory tone of the comments. Content of this nature appears to violate the Misplaced Pages Neutral Point of View policy, and should not be posted here. It would be best to address such concerns to the Town government or local newspapers - and they would probably carry more weight if they were not presented anonymously or through proxies. '' | |||
| The town council and the Planning & Zoning Commission, under the guise of business development, are currently engaged in a campaign that is destroying much of the rural character of the town. Large swaths of prime residential neighborhoods are being sold off to the highest bidder for commercial development. Despite the town's original plan to commercially develop along historic Rt. 66 (where there is ample commercial space and the preponderance of the town's businesses) the town council and the zoning commission have continuously voted to permit commercial development along the previously residential Rt. 344 corridor as well as other areas. In complete disregard of often unanimous public opposition to checkerboard zoning and ill-advised development, both the town council and zoning commission routinely disregard such overwhelming public sentiment and change the zoning designations of large areas. When current regulations prohibit their agenda, they have been known to simply rewrite the regulations. It is widely rumored that many of these same officials routinely benefit financially from their development decisions and appear to be answerable to no one. It is very much a wild west and good ol' boy government structure. | |||
| The largest and most obvious example of this out of control government is the town's decision to allow the building of a Wal*Mart Supercenter in the middle of a prime residential area along Rt. 344. Representatives of the town readily admit being aware of numerous reports that show that most Wal*Mart's take more from a community in services than they give back in revenues but they approved it anyway and severely impacted the property values of hundreds of homeowners by its placement. Though Wal*Mart will occupy less than 50 acres of a 300 acre lot, rather than confine commercial development to that area, the town voted to approve residential zoning for the balance of that lot and rezone other residential areas to commercial use. Since there is apparent logic applied to this agenda, speculation is that such decisions are driven by the personal financial gain of the individual government members. | |||
| Most zoning commission meetings are missed by half of the members of the commission but the mayor consistently refuses to replace these no-shows with any citizen that is likely to disagree with his agenda. Therefore most decisions are made by half the appointees or less. In a typical scenario, a developer offers a residential property owner double what his land is actually worth (and half of the prevailing commercial property rates) if they can convince the town to rezone. The commission rarely refuses such a request. Most commercially zoned areas remain empty and other residential property owners are literally robbed of their home values. | |||
| The council has incessantly annexed large areas adjacent to the town while unable to provide basic services to even existing parts of Edgewood. Many roads through town are not maintained and are virtually impassable in heavy rain or snow. The only park facilities consist of approximately 1/4 acre of mostly skateboarding ramps, is located in the heart of the most crime-ridden area and is typically used by these criminals. They have no police department and a severe property crime and drug crime problem. | |||
| On its current track, Edgewood is becoming one of the least desirable towns in New Mexico. | |||
| ==Geography== | ==Geography== | ||
Revision as of 22:01, 3 October 2007
Edgewood is a town in Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States. It is part of the Albuquerque, New Mexico Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,893 at the 2000 census.
Culture
Edgewood, New Mexico boasts variety of cultural and entertainment events and festivals. Wildlife West Nature Park, a nature park and enhanced zoo which includes one of the State's best mid-size outdoor entertainment venues, hosts the Annual Wind Festival; two major summer music festivals; a mid-summer Bear Fair; a community melodrama; a series of Chuckwagon Dinners; and the Fall Harvest Festival. The Town, in cooperation with the Edgewood Chamber of Commerce, Wildlife West, and Rich Ford, sponsors the Annual Run, Rally and Rock festival celebrating the anniversary of the Town's incorporation in 1999. This festival, held mainly at the Wildlife West and Rich Ford locations, includes antique car and tractor shows, a business expo, and several entertainment events. Run, Rally and Rock is held at the same time as the August Bluegrass Festival at Wildlife West Nature Park (next festival is scheduled for August 3-5, 2007). The Edgewood Farmer's Market is held Mondays from 3-7 p.m. adjacent to NAPA Auto Parts, located on Route 66 west of NM 344.
Other assets within the town include public library, senior center, community center, a skate park, a small park and tennis courts. The Single Action Shooting Society's Founder's Ranch - at which several large events focusing on cowboy culture, shooting, and Old West Life are held each year - is located just south of Edgewood, and the society recently announced that it is moving its headquarters to the Town of Edgewood. The town is served by 2 newspapers: The Mountain View Telegraph and the Independent.
Government
The Town of Edgewood is governed by a Mayor and Town Council. Elected officials (as of June 2007) include:
Mayor - Howard Calkins Town Council - Chuck Ring, Rita Loy Simmons, Glen Felton, Brad Hill
Despite requests to the contrary, certain parties appear insistent on using this venue to advance opinions, rather than allow this article to be simply a description of the community and its setting. These opinions were apparently posted by someone who clearly feels he or she has an axe to grind with the local government. Such opinions are also occasionally seen in local newspapers. In any community, there will be disagreement regarding issues such as development, and there will also be those who are unwilling to limit such disagreements to the appropriate venues. Not surprisingly, these comments are posted anonymously; this has been an occasional tactic of certain politically-motivated interests within the area. Readers should consider this, and the inflammatory tone of the comments. Content of this nature appears to violate the Misplaced Pages Neutral Point of View policy, and should not be posted here. It would be best to address such concerns to the Town government or local newspapers - and they would probably carry more weight if they were not presented anonymously or through proxies.
Geography
Edgewood, New Mexico is located at 35°4′4″N 106°11′29″W / 35.06778°N 106.19139°W / 35.06778; -106.19139Invalid arguments have been passed to the {{#coordinates:}} function (35.067690, -106.191463)Template:GR, just 20 miles east of Albuquerque along Interstate Highway 40.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 22.6 km² (8.7 mi²), all land. It is located within the Estancia Valley, east of the Sandia Mountains and Manzano Mountains of central New Mexico. Most of the land cover in the area is woodland or grassland. The town's commercial district lies along New Mexico Highway 66 (part of the original, pre-1937 Historic Route 66) and Highway 344. The town is within minutes of the Sandia Wilderness, in which are located the Sandia Peak Ski Area and the upper end of the Sandia Peak Tramway.
Infrastructure
Infrastructure includes an interchange at the intersection of Highway 344 and Interstate Highway 40, 20 miles east of Albuquerque, the state's largest city. Expansion of the Town's infrastructure includes widening NM 344 from two to four lanes, currently in progress, and similar changes to NM 66 (formerly NM 333), scheduled for early 2008. The Town has begun construction of a sewer system serving the commercial district.
One airpark (Sandia Airpark) is located in Edgewood, and a municipal airport is located in nearby Moriarty. Broadband internet service in the general area includes cable, DSL, and wireless services. The town is served by one supermarket, a medical center, two national pharmacies, and a wide variety of restaurants, retail establishments, service stations, and rental services. Construction of a Walmart superstore began in 2007.
Demographics
As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 1,893 people, 676 households, and 529 families residing in the town. The population density was 83.9/km² (217.2/mi²). There were 755 housing units at an average density of 33.5/km² (86.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 86.53% White, 0.32% African American, 2.17% Native American, 0.21% Asian, 0.16% Pacific Islander, 8.24% from other races, and 2.38% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 20.34% of the population.
There were 676 households out of which 44.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.9% were married couples living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.6% were non-families. 18.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.18.
In the town the population was spread out with 32.9% under the age of 18, 5.3% from 18 to 24, 31.0% from 25 to 44, 24.4% from 45 to 64, and 6.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 98.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.3 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $42,500, and the median income for a family was $45,952. Males had a median income of $33,365 versus $24,135 for females. The per capita income for the town was $18,146. About 8.4% of families and 10.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.1% of those under age 18 and 11.8% of those age 65 or over.
Community Organizations
The Chamber of Commerce, which now maintains offices on NM 66 west of the intersection with NM 344, works in cooperation with the Town and other local organizations in support of Town cleanups, election forums, and other public service efforts. High Desert Riders and other local organizations are cooperating with the Edgewood Parks and Recreation Department (Stacey Boyne, Director) and officials of Santa Fe and Bernalillo Counties to integrate Edgewood's equestrian trails with the regional trail system. Edgewood Clean and Beautiful and the N.M. State Police work together sponsor a yearly Kid's Safety Fair and Carnival as well as 2 additional free child car seat safety clinics throughout the year. The Estancia Valley Economic Development Association provides support to the Town in attracting new businesses and assisting with business retention and expansion.
External links
Edgewood, New Mexico Chamber of Commerce
Estancia Valley Economic Development Association
Wildlife West Nature Park - Wildlife West Nature Park is a wildlife preserve and "enhanced zoo" with wildlife exhibits, educational opportunities, and entertainment facilities. The Park sponsors community events and music festivals.
Edgewood Soil and Water Conservation District
Game of chance decides Mayoral contest (2006) ] Template:Mapit-US-cityscale
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