A dispute over the city of 疯客直播 Fe鈥檚 approval process for a new building has sparked a lawsuit from the New Mexico Educational Retirement Board.
At issue is whether the board, as a division of the state government, is required to comply with city land use approval processes for the building under construction at 5211 Las Soleras Drive.
鈥淭he city is of the opinion that they have authority over the approval process associated with the entire development of the building, whereas according to state law, the state has oversight over the construction and development of state office facilities,鈥 Educational Retirement Board Executive Director David Archuleta said in a recent interview.
City officials have contested the board鈥檚 position.
The Educational Retirement Board, which oversees the state鈥檚 pension system for teachers and other educators, is building a new facility it hopes to complete in early 2025 and move into by the spring. According to a complaint filed in early November in the First Judicial District Court, then-city Planning and Land Use Director Jason Kluck asked the board to provide the city with 鈥渃onstruction drawings and similar documents related to the New ERB Building鈥 in April.
The board鈥檚 legal counsel told Kluck the documents would not be provided because they had already been approved by the state and were not subject to city approval.
Kluck said in response city code requires all applicants to agree that all future development of the property will comply with the city鈥檚 land development code 鈥渁nd that the City therefore would not approve water service to the New ERB Building until such time as the City approved its plans,鈥 according to the complaint.
鈥淗owever, New Mexico law is settled that a municipality may not subject an agency of the State of New Mexico to municipal ordinances,鈥 the complaint says.
The board suggested the city determine it was exempt from that section of the code as a state entity, the complaint said, a suggestion the city denied.
City Attorney Erin McSherry said in a statement she disagreed with the Educational Retirement Board鈥檚 framing of the issue.
鈥淭he City, acting in its capacity as the water utility, is required to enter a contract with customers such as ERB regarding the extension of the City鈥檚 service lines,鈥 McSherry said.
The city is in the process of responding to the legal complaint, McSherry noted, where it will outline its own position.
While the complaint says the dispute was initially academic, by October construction had progressed to the point at which its water lines were ready to be pressure-tested, which it could not do without a water supply.
Postponing the test while other construction continues will make any necessary repairs 鈥渆xponentially more difficult and expensive,鈥 the complaint says.
The board decided to file a lawsuit after reaching out to new Planning and Land Use Director Heather Lamboy without receiving response, according to the complaint. The board鈥檚 attorneys are asking the court to declare the city has no authority to require a state agency to subject itself to 疯客直播 Fe municipal ordinances. It also requests a preliminary and permanent injunction ordering the city to provide water to the new building.
Archuleta said construction on the building is about 70% complete and is still underway, though lack of water has been an impediment to some of the work.
He said the board鈥檚 staff has outgrown its current building at 701 Camino de los Marquez and decided to construct a new building instead of buying an existing one.
鈥淏ut obviously, we can鈥檛 move into a building without water,鈥 he said.
Archuleta said the board is not trying to subvert city codes 鈥渋n any way鈥 but that anytime state agencies build new buildings, approval goes through the Construction Industries Division of the state Regulation and Licensing Department, not the city.
He said he is not aware of any other state agencies that have had similar problems with other municipalities, nor was he expecting this to come to a head in 疯客直播 Fe.
鈥淲e had no indication that this would be an issue,鈥 he said.
