By Richard Barish
As expected after its reception at City Council, Mayor Berry vetoed Ken Sanchez's Bosque resolution. The stated reason for the veto was a concern about the effect of the resolution on private property rights. However, the resolution only concerned the Rio Grande Valley State Park, and there is no private land within the Rio Grande Valley State Park. The veto message made note of language referring to private properties adjacent to the Bosque, but this was simply language taken from an already existing plan, the Bosque Action Plan, that was recited in the prefatory language of a "whereas" clause. This issue was only raised at the last minute by the City after nearly a year of back and forth about the language of the resolution in which all of the City's earlier concerns were, we believe, addressed.
The Mayor’s veto of the resolution was disappointing. The resolution merely reaffirmed the City's commitment to the plans governing the Bosque and, importantly, encouraged the City to try to ensure that the multiplicity of agencies that undertake projects in the Bosque comply with the governing plans. The BAT hopes that, moving forward, there can be better communication and more cooperation from the Mayor so that plans for the Bosque can be devised that meet the desires of City residents for their Bosque.
Thanks to Council President Ken Sanchez for introducing the resolution and to Councilors Diane Gibson, Rey Garduño, Ike Benton, and Klarissa Peña for their support of the resolution.
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