The power outage did not prevent a core group of TVCA members and some new ones from gathering at the home of Jeanne Boyles. Those present for the eventually candle lit gathering included:

TVCA members of the Board of Directors: Lynn Pickard, Jeanne Boyles, Richard Renaldo, Jerry Barron, David Dougherty and Margo Cutler.

Community members included Rachel White and her son Max, Cam Duncan, Carol Sorenson, Kathy and Jack Lippincott, and Vance and Gina Williams.

The meeting was called to order by Lynn Pickard and the minutes from the previous meeting were promptly approved.

Jeanne Boyles gave the Treasurer’s report that a total amount of $3,838.79 was in the TVCA bank account at Enterprise Bank & Trust. Since @ $1700 of that is reserved for possible future legal expenses, it appears that the balance would more than cover the cost of food for another community BBQ at the Tesuque Fire Station.

Jeanne has served as the association’s Treasurer for many years now and hopes to be replaced by another board member before the December meeting.

The next item on the agenda was the BBQ and the need for new leadership of that event as well. Richard Renaldo and Cam Duncan have served as co-chairs for at least ten years, and are willing to provide guidance to those who would like to step into their roles. Rachel White volunteered to take on the task this year. They need to coordinate with the Tesuque Volunteer Fire Department to find a date in the late summer or early fall that will work for everyone. Then a save the date email can be sent out to community members.

Under New Community Updates Lynn mentioned that the county is still working on its update to the Sustainable Growth Management Plan.

Although the county’s virtual meeting re the Infrastructure Capitol Improvement Fund conflicted with the important Tesuque Fire Safety presentation at the school on 4/22/2025, Nate Crail of the county’s planning department stressed the importance of having Tesuque representation at the late June Board of County Commissioner meeting to adopt a list of capital improvements and priories. These include implementation of some of the Tesuque Road Safety Study recommendations that were made over two years ago, such as:
- Welcome signs and bulb medians at the entrances to Tesuque both on Tesuque Village Road and Bishop’s Lodge Road, also designed to slow incoming traffic.
-Sidewalks and crosswalks in the area near the Tesuque School.
-Construction of a bike lane adjacent to the southbound lane of Bishops Lodge Road as it climbs the big hill Santa Fe and to the City limits where it will meet a bike lane to be built by the City.

Another item of the list that was not part of the Road Safety Study would provide funds for the creation of a Winsor Trail/Bishop’s Lodge trail head.

There was a brief discussion of Protect Tesuque’s efforts to stop Bishop’s Lodge from being able to use the new leach field that they have built. A hearing is scheduled on May 19th in front of an appointed hearing officer. The NM Supreme Court has been asked to issue its opinion as to which of New Mexico’s water quality laws pertains to the application by Bishop’s Lodge for a discharge permit. The Supreme Court has given NMED and Bishop’s Lodge until May 19 to reply to Protect Tesuque’s petition.

Regarding Land Use, Lynn reported that she had attended a training regarding the Sustainable Land Development Code, requests for variances and how to deal with them, and the role of Community Organizations, such as TVCA.
Jeanne brought up the ongoing issues that she has had with the Mountain Center’s non-compliance with an agreement that was supposed to have been settled years ago. She has at least found a new employee in the county’s planning department to discuss the matter with.

Rachel White, the Firewise Coordinator for our community, reported on the panel that she had put together for the meeting at the school on April 22nd. There were 46 attendees and a panel of 8 experts including representatives of the forest service, Chris’ Trees, Erik LItzenberg the retired SF Fire Chief, and two women from the NM Office of Insurance. There were handouts, a question and answer period and a general impression that all are now more concerned about the danger of wildfire than previously and willing to work together on community wide solutions. A second free chipping day had been scheduled at the Fire Station for May 4th. Rachel and Lynn also mentioned that there are funds available for people to aid them in removal of fire hazards from their properties. Some of these funds may be geared to low-income people.

Jerry Barron spoke about the Tesuque clean-up efforts and mentioned that the next date would be May 18th and the section to be cleaned would be from the City Limits on Bishop’s Lodge Road north to the entrance to Tesuque Canyon. This will return these events to Sunday as it seems to be easier to attract more volunteers on Sundays than Saturdays. Jerry will try to finalize the schedule soon for the rest of the summer and fall so that people can save the dates and be able to participate. Jerry would also appreciate having someone else to help coordinate with the county for trash bag pick up if he is out of town.

The meeting was then adjourned and those present enjoyed a candle lit social hour with drinks and snacks provided by Jeanne and other board members.