Santa Fe nurseries expect a busy season despite drought Local Business, A-9
Locally owned and independent
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
www.santafenewmexican.com 75¢
Police: Stabbing sparked by fear Duke City officials say man thought victims at church were part of secret society By Russell Contreras The Associated Press
ALBUQUERQUE — Lawrence Capener was shaking hands with his fellow churchgoers at Sunday Mass, exchanging the tradi-
Lawrence Capener
tional peace offerings when people next to him noticed something strange — his hands were quite sweaty and clammy. Then, as the choir began singing a hymn to wrap up Mass, the man bolted from his pew, ran to the choir area and started stabbing the choir leader and others, witnesses said. Parishioners screamed and ran for cover and others, including the church flutist, tried to subdue him. Police said the assailant thought the choir members were members
of a secret society. The episode caused panic among church members such as 12-year-old Jordan Schalow and his mother, Valerie, who had just heard the pastor at St. Jude Thaddeus Catholic Church read a Gospel message about the importance of loving everyone and had the recent bombing in Boston on their mind.
Please see STABBINg, Page A-4
Growth on Museum Hill
NBA’s Collins comes out Veteran player Jason Collins becomes the first active male athlete in a professional U.S. team sport to say he is gay. SPORTS, B-1
ELDORADO
Signs on bylaw vote go missing Tracking device helps Sheriff’s office recover piece from residence By Anne Constable
The New Mexican
The grand opening of the Santa Fe Botanical Garden at Museum Hill is scheduled to take place July 19-21. PHOTOS BY CLYDE MUELLER/THE NEW MEXICAN
East-side gardens begin to take shape as summer opening nears By Julie Ann Grimm
The New Mexican
A
few months from now, there will be a new reason to visit Museum Hill. The grand opening for the Santa Fe Botanical Garden at Museum Hill is planned in late July as a three-day community celebration. It’s been about six years since the nonprofit organization first leased land from the city and the state for the project. Until now, the group has mostly concentrated on educational programs at a wetland
preserve near La Cienega and an educational preserve in the Ortiz Mountains. Now, progress on the new facility is beginning to attract attention. “It’s coming along,” said Managing Director Linda Milbourn during a sneak preview Monday. Dozens of trees and shrubs that are expected to thrive in Santa Fe’s climate were planted a month ago on the 2 acres that comprise the first phase of garden development on Camino Lejo. Already, colorful blooms are attracting bees to crab apple
Please see gARDeNS, Page A-4
Santa Fe Botanical Garden Managing Director Linda Milbourn says the Museum Hill garden will open in phases, beginning with the orchard gardens in July.
Neighbors, officials discuss rodeo arena By Chris Quintana
The New Mexican
About 20 people needled Rodeo de Santa Fe officials Monday night during a public meeting on plans for an indoor arena to replace the old, open-air rodeo grounds at 3237 Rodeo Road. They said their chief concerns involved inadequate notification about the project, possible noise and light pollution, and added traffic
Index
Calendar A-2
around the south-side property. Officials, including Pilar Faulkner, community liaison for Rodeo de Santa Fe, said repeatedly that the plan wasn’t final and that they were ready to listen to community concerns. “This is just in the beginning stages,” Faulkner said of the project. “We’re just giving the community all the information.” Bob White, who lives in the nearby Park Plazas residential development, said he wasn’t sure why a new facil-
Classifieds B-6
Comics B-12
Lotteries A-2
ity for the annual summer rodeo is required at all. David Copher, president of Rodeo Property Inc., a subsidiary of Rodeo de Santa Fe, said the current rodeo venue is old and unsustainable in the long run. The estimated cost of proposed improvements is about $30 million, according to a feasibility study issued by Rodeo de Santa Fe. Faulkner said the money would come from private
Please see RODeO, Page A-4
Opinions A-10
Police notes A-8
Editor: Rob Dean, 986-3033, rdean@sfnewmexican.com Design and headlines: Kristina Dunham, kdunham@sfnewmexican.com
Sports B-1
Pasapick www.pasatiempomagazine.com
Fiesta Court contest Contestants vie for the roles of Don Diego de Vargas and La Reina de la Fiesta de Santa Fe, 7:30 p.m., the Lensic, $5, ticketssantafe.org, 988-1234. More events in Calendar, A-2 and Fridays in Pasatiempo
An Eldorado man was caught redhanded after he removed a roadside sign opposing changes to the subdivision’s bylaws from its location near the subdivision’s first entrance off U.S. 285 on Sunday. A GPS device embedded in the sign tracked the man as he drove toward the western end of the community and then back to his own residence on Monte Alto Circle. James Lightner reportedly first denied he had the sign, then turned it over to deputies from the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office, who cited him for a misdemeanor larceny. Lightner declined to comment on the incident. He is a member of Action Eldorado, a group that is recommending a vote in favor of the bylaws changes. The group also supports a lawsuit brought by the Eldorado Community Improvement Association against nine residents for keeping chickens in violation of community covenants, which the homeowners association says prohibit backyard poultry. An Albuquerque judge was recently appointed to preside over the case after all the judges in the First Judicial District excused themselves because of potential conflicts of interest. The sign, using materials recycled from Stephen Easley’s 2012 campaign for the state Legislature, said, “Vote No/By-law Changes/Stop E.C.I.A. Abuse.” Ron Dans, an Eldorado puppeteer who put up the signs with friend Bob Christie, accused Lightner of suppression of political speech. “This is ridiculous,” he said Monday. “You can’t take people’s signs away.”
Please see SIgNS, Page A-4
Obituaries Florence Christine Chavez, 66, Santa Fe, April 2 Lee Ingerman, 98, Santa Fe, April 26 Joe E. Montez, 87, Santa Fe, April 27 PAge A-8
Today Mostly sunny. High 83, low 46. PAge A-12
Time Out B-11
Local Business A-9
Main office: 983-3303 Late paper: 986-3010
Two sections, 24 pages 164th year, No. 120 Publication No. 596-440