May 3rd, 2026 

by Lisa Shin

Chair, Republican Party of Los Alamos

​

Dear Friends:   

​

Our LAFRW Freedom Tea proved to be another delightful event with fantastic turnout and fundraising effort.  

 

My brief response to Bill Enloe.   He says that ¨ I don’t believe the government should or can successfully subsidize private businesses. Which ones do they pick to support?"  

​

He may be unaware that our County has established the Local Economic Development Act (LEDA) and Metropolitan Redevelopment Area (MRA) public funds to do just that:  subsidize private businesses. 

 

Does he know that after years of closed meetings with our County Staff, Columbus Capital is about to ask for government funding to redevelop Marimac?   

​

Finding real and workable solutions require asking how and why shopping centers that were once full and vibrant are now economic dead zones.  Without addressing the root causes of downtown blight, attempts at "revitalization” are doomed to fail.   

 

There is a dark side to ¨public private partnerships.” Simply put, does this truly benefit the public or mostly the pocketbooks of Columbus Capital?  A slush fund created with our property taxes (TIF) is used to build high-end luxury apartments and the retail spaces that our community supposedly needs (even though there are vacant commercial spaces all over town).  Los Alamos Metropolitan Redevelopment Area Plans are nothing more than redistribution of our tax dollars from the¨uninformed many to the well aware few.”  

 

All citizens should ask the same question that Bill Enloe asks:  ¨What about the local businesses we currently have that have made it without government funding?¨  

​

Our local businesses do not have true advocacy and a voice in Los Alamos.  Chamber organizations across the Nation and our State serve this function.  However, in Los Alamos, our Commerce and Development Corporation must approve our Chamberś public statements.  The result?  Our Chamber is silent on issues of utmost importance to our local entrepreneurs.  

​

Mark your calendars for Councilor David Reagorś Townhall meeting on May 21st, 2026, 6pm at UNM-LA, Community Room in Building 2.  His topic is timely:  ¨The War on the Middle Class:  Housing and Economic Development.”  

​

Save the date for our annual Silent Auction Fundraiser on Thursday, June 18th, 2026.   I am thrilled to announce that we will have an honored guest, Didi Okparete, candidate for New Mexico Congressional District 1, as our speaker. 

 

​

See you soon,

​Lisa Shin, RPLA Chair

Email: chair@losalamosgop.com
Website: www.losalamosgop.com

Phone: 505-310-3254
Facebook: @RepublicanPartyofLosAlamos

Instagram:   @RepublicanPartyofLosAlamos