Town of Taos News Update – 10/27/2009

Posted by Jim Kimmons, Broker/Owner • October 27, 2009 • Printer-friendly

Taos Local Color 1) Town of Taos Receives Additional Stimulus Funding - This Time to Increase Energy Efficiency: Mayor Darren Cordova announced that the Town has again been successful in federal securing stimulus funding. The Town of Taos was 1 of 21 local governments in New Mexico to receive funding, $490,490, for a solar-electric project at Town Hall and energy audits of Town-owned buildings to increase energy efficiency.

The projects are funded through the new Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program, which is managed by the U.S. Department of Energy. The program is administered by the New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department's Energy Conservation and Management Division.

The Energy Conservation and Management Division used a competitive process to select projects based on Recovery Act goals to create and retain jobs; save energy; reduce emissions of greenhouse gases; and increase renewable energy production.

The Mayor noted that this is one of the Council's top three priorities, "Initiatives in alternative and renewable energy - working towards a more sustainable community." Mayor Cordova recognized the Town Manager, Daniel Miera, and his staff for working diligently toward this goal. "The staff's aggressive efforts to carry out the vision of the Mayor and Council is evident - and it's obviously paying off," said the Mayor, “This project will further the Town's overall commitment to utilize and promote clean energy.”

2) Art in Town Hall is a new Town of Taos program, spearheaded by Mayor Darren Cordova, allows local artists to share their work within the 28,000 square foot space that is the newly renovated Town Hall. A public reception centered on formally acknowledging completion of the new Town Hall renovation, and this new art program, is planned for sometime this December, 2009, pending full Town Hall construction completion.

Assistant Town Manager Abigail Adame initiated the program several months ago at the Mayor’s request, and her outreach efforts met with wonderful response from the art community – specifically the Taos Artist Organization (TAO), the Taos Institute for Glass Arts, the Taos Gallery Association and the Taos Center for the Arts.

These organizations organized a ‘Curator Committee’ which would complete outreach, select art, complete the necessary forms and ultimately hang art in Town Hall, rotating it on an approximate quarterly basis to enable different Taos artists to participate. The current Curator Committee members include Bonnie Cooper from the Taos Artist Organization, ripwoman7@msn.com, Michael Miro from the Taos Institute for Glass Arts, mmiro@earthlink.net, Robert Nightingale, Taos Gallery Association, info@wnightingale.com, and Dancer Dearing, Taos Center for the Arts, dancer@tcataos.org

Two weeks ago the first art was hung in Town Hall by this Committee, assisted by the Town’s Buildings and Grounds Department. In includes wall art of various mediums, as well as sculpture – with each work having an information plaque next to it, and an overview of all the artists and their works in a notebook catalogue in the Town Hall lobby. In essence, the public is welcome to come and tour Town Hall and its new, wonderful art – it is an undertaking that can be self-guided given the overview in the lobby. More works are being hung next week, adding to the incredible visual display Town Hall now has – reflecting the incredible creative talent in our community.

The current featured artists include, in alphabetical order: Mark Asmus, Lyn Avery, Lorrie Bortner, Donna J. Caulton, Sandy Chestnutt, Bonnie Cooper, Erin Currier (painting on loan to the Town of Taos by The Parks Gallery), Balinda, Chuck Henningsen, Elizabeth Jose, Nancy Lay, Roger Daniel Martinez Y Mondragon, J. Mehaffey, Michael Miro, glass, Laurie Hill Phelps, Cris Pulos, Lynda Smith, Robbie Steinback, and Gak Stonn.

Interested Taos area artists should contact the Curator Committee (emails above) if they have interest in participating in this program as it moves forward. Artists should know that no sales can be enabled by the Town of Taos at the exhibit site, but that artist/gallery contact information is welcome in the information that is made available to the public.

3) Taos and the Enchanted Circle were ranked thirteenth in “133 Destinations Ranked” in the November/December issue of National Geographic Traveler. http://traveler.nationalgeographic.com/2009/11/destinations-rated/list-text/2. Per Rebecca Latham, Tourism and Economic Development Dir., Conference Center Dir., Red River, “If you have a chance to grab the actual issue you’ll see that we were tied with the Kruger National Park in South Africa! It even appears that we are ranked fifth in the country!” To find out more about the survey, click on “about the survey” to the left of the destinations.

4) September 2009 Griffin & Associates’ Marketing Report for Taos, attached. Thank you to all who made the Taos Summer of Love celebration a success. Looking forward, November 30 is the first deadline for new information focused on the 2010 visitor outreach effort, Return to Sacred Places. Calendar, photo and story content – along with other outreach elements – has begun to be organized, collected and shared at http://www.taossacredplaces.com/. It is a web site (work) in progress. National/international free media activities by Griffin are planned for early 2010, so please focus now on discussing/organizing/communicating information. Contact Joanie Griffin to discuss the effort and how you might participate, 505-754-4444, ext. 222, or jgriffin@griffinassoc.com.

5) “A Light In My Soul/Una Luz En Mi Alma”, a new drama based on the life stories of New Mexico Conversos, or Crupto-Jews, is being presented by Working Classroom and the Taos Jewish Center, 7 p.m., Friday, November 13, and Saturday, November 14, at the Taos Community Auditorium, owned by the Town of Taos. A gala VIP reception with cast members will follow the Saturday night show at 9 p.m., at Doc Martin’s Restaurant, Historic Taos Inn, proceeds to benefit The Taos Jewish Center. Tickets on sale now, http://www.taosjewishcenter.org/.