SF soldiers monument argument requires transparency

The League of Women Voters of Santa Fe County suggests that city governments surpass open meetings and evaluation of public records in their efforts towards open, available governance. We also believe that local governments need to motivate input and listen to their constituents. They ought to make it simple for constituents to comment on local concerns. They must react to constituents' suggestions by changing practices and policies or offering descriptions when they turn down such input. These declarations are drawn from our Transparency Position, which was adopted by the city of Santa Fe in a resolution in 2011.

Relating to the personality of the Soldiers' Monument and the CHART (Culture, History, Art, Reconciliation and Truth) research study, the city paid for a study and report based on input from hundreds of city residents, resulting in 53 specific suggestions in the specified locations. The governing body did not accept the CHART suggestion to pursue a process to fix up these opinions and arrive at an equally agreeable solution and did not discuss why.

Rather, in a recent resolution, a majority of the governing body replaced their own ideas for the conclusions based on the contributions of the CHART participants, including the Community Solutions Table. The CHART leaders expressed their objections and their opposition to the governing body's suggestions in a letter dated Feb. 21, and the proposition was withdrawn March 15 after frustrating public opposition.

It is uncertain what techniques and assessments the governing body utilized to develop its proposals. For the future, the League recommends that the governing body accept the CHART Report suggestions to designate staff and financial resources to carrying out a procedure to reach a resolution of the two most favored alternatives. The CHART report states the process should be created to "promote reconciliation as a considerable part of the deliberation and decision-making procedure. The procedure ought to engage the diverse citizenry of the city and county ... and the four Pueblo nations … … in Santa Fe County, as well as the Navajo and Mescalero Apache people and other Indigenous neighborhoods."

To accomplish this, the League advises the city to engage the services of specialists in these processes. If requested, we have gathered information on several and are happy to supply it to personnel. To attempt this effort with existing resources may subject staff to interrupting opposition. Further, the League believes the governing body should respond methodically to the suggestions in the CHART report in one or more formal documents, discussing which are accepted, which are declined, and why, and how and why they intend to customize any others. These reactions ought to remain in the type of propositions that go through the committee review and public hearing process.

The League thinks any other strategy, one that overlooks or rejects the focused input of hundreds of locals, may even more the divisions within the community exposed by the CHART research study and, certainly, the actions leading up to it. It may also promote suspect of governance that claims to supply approaches for public input yet ignores it without explanation.