Moralez Cannot Run for Mayor: More Questions Raised About Transparency of Incorporation Leadership

I have learned this morning that Andrew Moralez, who has been widely discussed as a potential mayor for Anthony, does not live within the proposed boundary lines. If incorporation passes, Mr. Moralez will not be eligible to run for mayor. Several people have indicated in comments posted here they would vote for incorporation only because they thought Mr. Moralez might run for mayor.

Contacted by phone, Mr. Moralez said, "I support incorporation of Anthony under the right conditions. However, I have concerns about the way the lines were drawn."

News that Mr. Moralez does not live in the district renews questions raised earlier about why the boundary lines were drawn the way there were. Some people, for example, have asked why Green Acres was not included in the incorporation map, since the property tax base there would add considerably to the tax base, which is extremely low. Robert Medina, who attended both public meetings last month, told me he believes the lines were drawn strategically to avoid opposition. Green Acres would have opposed incorporation, knowing their taxes would be going up if it passed. Once incorporation is a fact, he said, he believed the city would annex Green Acres. Three other persons I've spoken to, all of whom asked not to be identified, confirmed they believed Green Acres was left out deliberately to avoid opposition.

Promoters of the incorporation were criticized last month by Betty Gonzalez in a meeting in Anthony for their lack of transparency and refusal to include more than a tiny minority about their plans, should incorporation pass.