U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., was in Las Vegas Sunday to participate in a Christmas gift distribution at the Plaza Hotel, followed by a discussion on job creation and economic development at Kennedy Hall.
Lujan thanked Plaza's Troy Denison, Las Vegas Motorcycle Rally members and Big Brothers-Big Sisters for their contributions to the children of Las Vegas as they handed out more than $3,600 in gifts to kids. The money came from the auction of Christmas trees.
As a member of the House Democratic caucus' Jobs Task Force, Lujan turned his attention to the economy and local job creation. He talked about a number of recovery programs for San Miguel County.
Lujan said the almost $3 million that went to both Las Vegas school districts helped keep teachers employed and children learning.
Lujan said his office was looking to team up with a wide variety of organizations to help bring economic development to Las Vegas and the rest of the state.
"And to hear your ideas on how to build economic opportunities in our communities, how to better partner with Luna Community College and Highlands University to make these opportunities happen. So we will be listening a lot more than we will be speaking," Lujan said.
San Miguel County Democratic Party Chairman Martin Suazo said there should be a focus on encouraging small businesses to become a viable part of the community and to bring some true industry into the area.
"I got into a bit of trouble with the local newspaper one time because I made the comment that 75 percent of our jobs are state-driven, and hence have a tendency of becoming very political," Suazo said. "I'm not saying it's a good thing, I'm saying it is a fact, and what do we do to get away from that? I own a small business, and I would like to see a hundred other small business owners open up tomorrow. So maybe that's something to look at.
"How do we encourage small businesses to become a viable part of this community and bring some true industry into this area?" Suazo said.
Suazo said that community leaders should also look at working with some of the corporate giants in town.
"Maybe we should look at working with a Wal-Mart philosophy because that's an issue here, especially for small businesses. It's OK to say we're going to work with some of the small businesses, but they are being eaten up by the giant over there on north Seventh Street. So we need to take that into consideration as we have these seminars, we begin to develop a philosophy that allows us to work with Wal Mart, as opposed to competing with them," Suazo said.
Lujan said he was interested in hearing from President Obama during his State of the Union address in January about his ideas about investments in small business and job training.
"All of which will benefit us here in Las Vegas and in the region," Lujan said. "How do we put our hands around programs like SBA and USDA grants that are out there, recovery money that is still out there."
* * *
Sen. Phil Griego, D-San Jose, said he was happy to hear directly from Lujan, because "the media makes it so confusing that we don't understand what's up or what's down."
Griego said it all comes down to money. He said the state was experiencing a $600 million shortfall.
"We're trying to pull pennies from here and there in order just to keep the important programs working," Griego said. "We appreciate all the help that government has given us through the stimulus dollars, but none of the stimulus money has hit the private sector. It has all gone into public jobs.
"Highlands is beautiful, our DOT guys are working, and that's great because that money is spent here in New Mexico, but our small businesses are hurting. There's very little stimulus money going into the private sector to help small businesses, and we'd like to change that," Griego said.
Griego said banks have been terrible in lending money to people who would otherwise be developing land and hiring workers.
"For example myself, I am a real estate developer and broker. We are in the process of developing a Walgreens on South Meadows and Airport Road (in Santa Fe). This has been in the works for over two years. we have a 75-year lease signed by Walgreens, but we can't get the banks to budge. And I'm not the only one who is saying this. Developers are walking away from half-built homes because they can't get the financing from the banks in order to complete their projects," Griego said.