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Fischmann Accuses Rawson of Conflict in Paving ‘Road to Nowhere’

The Albuquerque Journal, in a copyrighted story published Sunday, Sept. 28, reported that District 37 Senate Democratic candidate Steve Fischmann is charging his Republican opponent, incumbent Leonard Lee Rawson with a conflict of interest in connection with state capital outlay funds of $111,000 he obtained in 2003 and used outside his district, on a street where he owns property.

Fischmann, founder of Quality Growth Alliance, and his supporters made public last week documents showing Rawson requested $127,097 for improvement and construction to 14th Street, which runs between West Hadley and West Picacho and was unpaved at that time.

The Journal reported that Rawson, a senator since 1987 and currently Republican minority whip, owns a commercial development built by his late father, Barney Rawson, the primary access to which is provided by 14th Street.

Fischmann told the Journal that obtaining funds for paving the street appears to be a conflict of interest because the street is not in Rawson’s district and the improvement enhanced the value of his property. Rawson’s district runs north and south on the east side of Interstate 25 and includes the East Mesa.

The Journal reported that Rawson said he has not “directly benefited” from the improvement project. “It’s not like it enhanced the value of the property,” he was quoted as saying by Journal Southern Bureau reporter Rene Romo. Rawson did not immediately respond to an e-mail from Grassroots Press seeking comment.

Fischmann told Grassroots Press, “This move is self-serving. Rawson has miles of unpaved roads off of Highway 70.”  He said it would have been more appropriate for Rawson to use the state funds to improve roads in his own district and described 14th Street as Rawson’s “Road to Nowhere.”

According to the Journal account, “Rawson said he obtained the capital outlay funds to pave 14th Street between Picacho Avenue and Hadley Avenue so that the city of Las Cruces could complete the street project and fulfill a 1994 commitment made to his late father, Barney Rawson. The senior Rawson received approval in 1994 to develop Buildtek Court, a commercial subdivision with access from Fourteenth Street.

“Rawson said the Buildtek Court development’s value was enhanced by the 1994 agreement with the city, not by the Legislature-funded 2004 paving project itself.

“’The city didn’t fulfill its responsibility,’” said Rawson, who is president of Rawson Inc. Builders Supply. ‘The entity that benefited was the city because the city didn’t hold up its end of the commitment. That’s the entity that received value.’”

Las Cruces Door LLC, owned by Rawson, is listed as owner of a commercial property at the corner of Hadley and Fourteenth, with access to the back from 14th, according to the County Assessor’s Office.

The paving project was finished in 2005, the Journal reported, and included new sidewalks, drainage improvements, and the installation of five street lights and new eight-inch water mains. The city of Las Cruces spent $159,000 on the improvements, including $111,000 in capital outlay funds from the state.

The Journal story can be found at:

http://www.abqjournal.com/news/state/28105425state09-28-08.htm

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