Selling the Belen Harvey House Museum would be a big mistake
Editor:
It is mystifying that a city official with the city of Belen is entertaining the selling of the Belen Harvey House Museum.
The museum is a big draw to tourism in Belen and selling it, for whatever reason or benefit to some city officials, would be counterproductive to Belen. Remember the Alvarado?
Selling the Belen Harvey House Museum would be a regrettable mistake. There is a mural on a building on Second Street in downtown Albuquerque memorializing the moronic mistake made by the city of Albuquerque.
I hope the city of Belen does not make the same type of mistake by selling or changing the purpose of the Belen Harvey House Museum.
Marty L. Henderson
Docent at the Belen Harvey House Museum
New Mexico is at the forefront of space travel
Editor:
What once was a dream has now become a reality! Intermingled with some of the world’s most negative news was a very wonderful piece of news of an exciting event on July 11. I am referring to Richard Branson’s space flight originating in New Mexico. This event was over 17 years in the making.
The space flight idea began with Richard Branson. However, the Spaceport came long before that. In the early 1990s, as New Mexico’s lieutenant governor, I represented New Mexico on the Aerospace States Association and soon became its chair.
About the same time, then Congressman Bill Richardson and his friend Richard Branson conceived of the idea of a flight into space. The Spaceport became a reality during the Richardson administration. Gov. Richardson gave me the honor of serving on the Spaceport Authority.
After my term as lieutenant governor had ended, a succeeding governor asked me for an overview of the Spaceport program. Despite my briefing and personal enthusiasm, the new governor dismissed the Spaceport as a “Buck Rogers thing” and was far too dangerous.
Other governors, state legislators and local leaders never gave the Spaceport the support that it needed, despite its potential for huge economic development for New Mexico.
The state already offered God-given gifts that the space industry looks for, including 5,000 feet of altitude, huge amounts of open space and air space largely within restricted air space near White Sands, 360 days of sunshine per year, clean non-corrosive air and the availability of vacant land for research, development and storage, etc.
Several top aerospace companies have gone to Florida, Texas, California, Virginia and other places due to the lack of strong political and government support in New Mexico in the past.
New Mexico has now made history by being the first state in which a manned private space launch has taken place. We must never let politics and an ignorance of space and science stand in New Mexico’s way again. Si se puedo! (Yes, it can!)
Casey Luna
Belen
The books are a blessing
Editor:
A very big thank you to the Belen Public Library for the generous donation of books to the Don Jose Dolores Cordova Cultural Center in Jarales.
The adults and children who have already checked out books are very happy. What a wonderful opportunity for the people from Jarales.
We don’t have a formal schedule to check out books or for literacy classes yet, but it will be forthcoming. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, we are being cautious.
Susan Cordova, Kenneth Cordova, Miguel and Therese Hidalgo, Donna Tolbert, Mark Chavez and Isabel Molina
Jarales
Lena Benavidez
Valencia County Public Works director
The Valencia County News-Bulletin is a locally owned and operated community newspaper, dedicated to serving Valencia County since 1910 through the highest journalistic and professional business standards. The VCNB is published weekly on Thursdays, including holidays both in print and online.
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April 18, 2024
