Mayor R.J. Berry Not a Successful Business Man for Albuqureque

R.J. Berry promised to run the City of Albuquerque like a business. He has but the problem is that Berry is not a successful business man. He lacks the skills and abilities of former Mayor Chavez. Berry has failed to promote Albuquerque as a product worth investing in for businesses. As a result we are ninety fourth out of a hundred of the largest metropolitan cities when it comes to recovery from the Great Recession.

Mayor Berry lacks the vision to get behind large city improvements that would attract employers and tourist to our city. He has no skills in promotion nor does his staff. Berry has not reached out to the environmentalist in this city to help him promote a partnership between them and the city that would aide in the development of attractions along the river. Mayor Chavez built the channel in the nature center that not only attracted tourist but protected the silvery minnow. Berry has totally ignored that project over the last few years.

Look at Tingly Beach as an example, Mayor Chavez redeveloped that areas for fishing and recreation. He cleaned up a very dirty place and turned it into a show place. Yet, Berry has done nothing to expand that development. Where is the public and private partnership that would develop that area further? Why not upgrade the rest of that tract of land and build restaurants along a nice pond where people could sit out on a deck and watch the water and the local bird life. During the day you could rent little boats.

Lights and landscaping could be placed around the ponds to make the place more inviting to tourist. An entrance could be built to allow people to enter the Zoo. People could be encouraged to eat at the restaurants maybe do a little shopping, play some golf and then take the little train to either the Zoo or the Bio-park. That train could be expanded to make a trip to the Hispanic Cultural Center. Local hotels could be encouraged to provide van trips, which would take tourist to the area for activities.

One has to ask Mayor Berry, where is his vision for our city? Where is the push to expand and build upon the projects that Mayor Chavez so successfully started for this city? Why is he such a failure at working with community groups when it comes to the development or redevelopment of areas in our city? Why is he not working with state senators to improve parts of our city? .

No More New Jails and No More New Judges

In the past two years judges across the state have cut themselves off from the voting public. They have built walls and cameras between the voters and themselves. They think themselves about the normal voting public. They have no desire to spend even one minute with the voters in this city or for that matter this state.

Now that we are faced with another sixty day session in Santa Fe, they will be asking for more of our tax dollars. Well, we have limited resources this year. The money should go toward early childhood education and rehabilitation for people with drug problems and mental problems. If we solve these problems than we will not need more judges or more jail cells.

Judges already live in rich chambers with lots of staff to take care of their every need. They get paid far more that most New Mexicans. Maybe some of their pay could go toward staff that could work in rehabilitation centers. If people learn to control their anger issues and their drug problems than their families and friends would not have to asks an indifferent uncaring judge for an order of protection.

Perhaps if people got mental health care and drug rehabilitation than fewer jail cells would be needed. Rather than housing people they could get the real help that has been lacking so sorely over the years in our state. Harder laws and richer unconnected judges are the last thing we need in this state.

Our police force has only caused people to fear the law when it comes to reaching out for help. Than uncaring insensitive judges blame the victims of these type of crimes. Judges that have no training in how to prevent a drug addicted mentally ill individual from going off their medications and killing someone they know. These judges think that they are not there to prevent crime. If so than they should not be in the courtroom at all. The money for their rich salaries could be better spent on preventing the crimes in the first place.