Despite some clarifications about a plan for the Corrales Interior Drain, some residents of the village are still vocally opposed to making any changes to the feature, and the plan is now in limbo.
A 36-minute July 9 presentation from a consultant hired to develop the Interior Drain Plan netted roughly 90 minutes of community input, much of which came from residents concerned about what changes might happen as a result of the plan.
Amy Bell of Anthropopulus Design and Planning was expected to make a recommendation to the Village Council at its meeting Tuesday. Village Clerk Melanie Romero said Friday the item was removed from the regular agenda and that Village Administrator Ron Curry will explain how the plan will be handled during his report at the meeting
Bell hosted the town hall meeting to update residents on the progress of the plan and again hear their thoughts.
Bell told the two dozen or so gathered in the council chamber that “master plan” is common terminology, but what’s really being developed is a guiding document that provides a framework for decision-making.
She said the plan was developed through extensive community engagement, including everything from community presentations and stakeholder meetings with village committees to hay rides and field surveys.
Bell said one overwhelming conclusion is that residents want the area to remain rural.
“We don’t want to have a heavy hand,” she said. We want to be very careful to try to address the needs that have been identified in a way that doesn’t overdo anything.”
She said the plan identifies four priorities: access management, enhancing safety, ecological stewardship and maintaining drain function.
Bell said the recommendations are incremental; if limited access control achieves the desired safety improvements, further work, such as a road resurfacing, would not be necessary.
She used the meeting to address some previous citizen concerns.
“This project is not going to cost millions of dollars, even if all of the phases were implemented,” Bell said.
She said flexible bollards and a crossing at Target Road would be $120,000 to $150,000, and habitat restoration would approach $300,000.
“So the entire project, if you did all of it, except for the road resurfacing, would be less than half a million dollars,” Bell said, adding that the village could apply for a variety of grants that would cover some or all of those costs.
Bell said while the plan is close to completion, no changes will be made anytime soon.
“The time frame depends on funding,” she said. “There’s no design that’s funded. There’s no implementation that’s funded. So no one’s going to be seeing bollards outside your house next week.”
She said, once funding is secured, the crossing would probably be done in about three months. Bell said design and implementation of any habitat restoration projects could take three to five years.
Those who spoke at the meeting discussed several topics, including the drain’s future utility for flood control, potential road surface materials, and the effectiveness of signs and bollards intended as traffic control.
Some said they wanted minor changes made, to beautify the drain, reduce dust and get drivers to slow down or avoid the path.
Bell said part of a memorandum of understanding between the village and the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District, which owns the drain, requires that the flood-control function remain intact.
Resident Fred Hashimoto said councilors should consider accepting, rather than approving the plan.
“‘Approve’ is pretty strong,” he said. “‘Adopt’ is pretty strong. ‘Accept’ means, well, you know, ‘we’ve seen it.’”
Other speakers said they either want a decision on the plan to be tabled pending more discussion, or abandoned altogether.
Several residents, including Nancy Baumgardner, later wrote letters to the Village Council, which were shared with the Corrales Comment.
Baumgardner wrote that she found the proposed changes, as shown in an artist’s rendering shared by Bell, “too urban-looking and manicured.”
She said other elements would take away from the natural feel of the area.
Rick Thaler, who served on a committee guiding development of the plan, wrote that the body’s vision was to make minimal changes to reduce the speed and frequency of motor vehicle traffic on the drain, provide a safe north-south pedestrian path for Corrales Elementary School students, preserve access for property owners east of the drain and enhance the habitat for birds and wildlife all along the corridor.
“My personal vision does include some bollards at various locations to allow property owners clear and easy access but discourage others from using the drain as a thoroughfare,” Thaler wrote. “The critical thing to keep in mind is that if we as a village don’t do something intentional, useful and permanent with the drain, then something will be done with it that we will have no control over and that we probably won’t like. Please don’t let disagreement over details derail the absolutely necessary process of turning the drain into a permanent public space.”
HOW TO PARTICIPATE:
WHEN: 6:30 p.m. July 22
WHERE: Village of Corrales Council Chambers, 4324 Corrales Road VIRTUAL: via Zoom; Meeting ID: 815 7457 9081 Passcode: 296538.