Prosecutor gets DWI sentence

A Santa Fe prosecutor pleaded guilty Tuesday to driving while intoxicated and was sentenced to 12 months unsupervised probation.

Barbara Romo, 49, received a deferred sentence during a hearing in Rio Rancho Municipal Court, meaning the charge will be dismissed if she has no other violations for the next year.

Romo, who has resigned from the Santa Fe District Attorney's Office, must also have an interlock ignition device in her car for the next year.

A charge of negligent use of a firearm was dismissed.

A Rio Rancho police officer pulled over Romo's car Jan. 9 after another motorist reported her car weaving. Romo's breath alcohol content was .12, more than the legal driving limit of .08, and she had a loaded .38-caliber handgun on the seat next to her.

Romo, who mainly prosecuted adults accused of sexually abusing children, had worked in the office since 2001. She submitted her resignation Feb. 25. She said Tuesday that her last day on the job will be Friday.

Inn of Santa Fe may see foreclosure

A Utah bank seeks to foreclose on the Inn of Santa Fe — a motel near the Fashion Outlets of Santa Fe mall on the southwestern end of town.

Zions First National in Salt Lake City says the motel's California-based owners in late 2006 took out a $3,540,000 note that has been past due since Nov. 1 and now owe nearly $3.7 million. The monthly payment is listed as $28,532.

A local group called Santa Fe Hospitality began trying to develop the property at 8376 Cerrillos Road as a hotel in 1996, then sold it to Creative Hotel Associates of Maryland, which opened it as the Sleep Inn in 1999. Early last year, the 98-room motel was purchased by four unidentified California hoteliers who reportedly spent $2 million renovating it, adding plasma televisions, granite countertops, new refrigerators and microwaves. Rooms go for $70 a night and up, including breakfast.

State corporation records for both the Inn at Santa Fe and the Inn at Santa Fe Cafe list the only organizer as Santa Fe Hotel Corp. of Santa Monica, Calif. Yolanda Hoemann, director of marketing for the motel, declined comment.

Plaza power box could be moved

The city is considering whether it could use the Plaza Community Stage to conceal electrical boxes.

A tall electrical equipment cabinet was erected in the historic park this spring, but facing criticism from the State Historic Preservation Office, Plaza merchants and others, the Public Works Department is weighing options for an alternative location.

In addition to the idea to put the box under the stage, department Director Robert Romero said his staff will also look at redesigning the cabinet so it has a lower profile, or relocating it to an off-Plaza corner, somewhere near The Burrito Co.

"We are evaluating these for aesthetics and for function," said Romero at Monday's city Public Works Committee meeting. "We will bring back details and cost."

After a meeting with interested parties, Romero also has ordered that a drinking fountain on the Plaza be painted dark green, along with other paint jobs for parts of a new irrigation system.

Foresters plan prescribed burns

Prescribed burns are planned for both Santa Fe National Forest and the Taos Field Office of the Bureau of Land Management to reduce fuels while weather permits.

The Española Ranger District plans to burn 15 acres of piled, previously thinned material in the Rendija Canyon area north of Los Alamos from March 11-13.

The Taos Bureau of Land Management plans prescribed burns west of Copper Hill west of Chamisal, at Arroyo de Plaza west of Española and northwest of Wind Mountain near Tres Piedras, weather permitting. Smoke may be visible from the burn sites through April.

Española bus contractor files suit

An Española school-bus contractor says one of his routes was discontinued after he spoke up about corruption at a public meeting.

Lloyd Trujillo claims in a lawsuit against the Española Public School District that he began operating school-bus routes in 1993. He said he had three routes until August 2007, when one was eliminated.

The complaint filed in state District Court by lawyer Lee Hunt of Santa Fe says the Española school board announced in May that it would eliminate five more routes from eight under consideration — none of which was Trujillo's.

But the complaint says another of Trujillo's routes was eliminated after a meeting where Trujillo questioned the relationship between Leroy Ortiz, a member of the committee deciding which routes would be eliminated, and Ortiz's wife, Lucille Martinez Ortiz, another bus contractor, and school-board member Andrew Chavez.

This action resulted from Trujillo's "lawful efforts to bring corruption and discrimination to light," the complaint says. It says school-board members later made false statements to the Rio Grande Sun to "discredit and harass Mr. Trujillo."

Efforts to reach the Ortizes or Chavez on Tuesday were not successful.

City well-pumping impacts mixed

Impacts from the city pumping its Buckman supplemental wells has varied greatly, according to a report that city water staff provided to scientists at a recent water conference.

The city has tracked well levels since October 2003, when the supplemental wells went into production. In the past five years, water levels rose in 24 of the wells, declined in 11 and were stable in two wells, according to the report by Claudia I. Borchert, Annie McCoy and Steve Finch.

Water levels in 12 of the 13 Buckman main production wells rose from 2 to 48 feet per year, because of less pumping, according to the report. Buckman Well 11 water levels remained steady. Water levels in 10 of 16 U.S. Geological Survey monitoring wells rose from 0 to 48 feet per year during the past five years.

Five of the USGS wells in Buckman and near Las Campanas had water levels that declined from 0 to 19 feet per year. Of eight private wells monitored, five showed a decline of 0 to 22 feet per year in water levels, while two showed an increase and one showed no change.

State stocks trout in San Juan River

The state Department of Game and Fish plans to stock 3,500 9-inch rainbow trout into the San Juan River on Thursday. The department also plans to stock an additional 80,000 4-inch rainbow trout next week.

Gov. Bill Richardson is seeking $400,000 to improve San Juan River habitat as part of his proposed 2010 state budget. Economic impact studies determined the San Juan fishery generates $40 million annually through angler fees, hotel and restaurant visitation, and more.

The rainbow trout are from the Lisboa Springs Hatchery in Pecos and the Red River Hatchery near Questa.

Because of the excellent conditions in the river, those fish are expected to grow about an inch a month. Local fishing guides and outfitters will move the rainbows throughout the upper four miles of the river.

Fisheries experts are concerned about encroachment of non-native trout species in the river. "Surveys of the San Juan have recognized a significant increase of brown trout in the San Juan," said Fisheries Chief Mike Sloane. The consistent fall flows of the river during the browns' fall spawning season may be contributing to their increase, Sloane said.

Lawsuit seeks artworks from home

A New York City woman, in a lawsuit filed last week, accuses a man of taking more than $10,000 in artwork from a house they shared on Canyon Road.

Margrit Pearson, treasurer of the Center for Contemporary Arts in 1995, claims Matthew Williams took photographs, paintings, porcelain dollars and miscellaneous household items from her home at 1590 Canyon Road on or around June 27.

"Williams unlawfully took and carried away the personal property and converted it to his own use ... in the amount of $10,220," says the complaint filed in state District Court on March 4 by lawyer Kristofer Knutson of Santa Fe.

Williams, who has finance and business degrees from The College of Santa Fe, was not available for comment, but he and Pearson were both listed at the Canyon Road address in late 2007.

Group hosts guided river walks

The Santa Fe Watershed Association is hosting a short, guided walk along the Santa Fe River from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday.

Participants will learn how the river became dry for most of the year and what the river looked like a century ago.

Walkers meet at the New Mexico State Land Office parking lot on Old Santa Fe Trail.

County could launch payment plan for taxes

Santa Fe County property owners might be able to pay their property taxes in 10 monthly installments in the coming tax year.

The County Commission on Tuesday approved a resolution that would allow County Treasurer Victor Montoya to develop a process for the monthly payment schedule.

Montoya said Tuesday he still needs to finalize the details of the program, including whether there would be a fee for the option and whether the county would send out monthly bills.