New Vistas

Ron Garcia the Executive Director of New Vistas

1205 Parkway Drive
Santa Fe, NM 87505 

(SANTA FE, New Mexico) New Vistas, at the southern end of the Rocky Mountains has a mission “…to create access to opportunities and enhance quality of life,” in New Mexico. I spoke with the Executive Director of New Vistas for the past five years, Ron Garcia. He has 18 total years of experience in Independent Living and supervises a staff of over 80 throughout the wide area of northern New Mexico.

“There is an improving infrastructure for people leaving a nursing home,” Garcia said about the prospects of someone leaving a Tennessee institution and moving to New Mexico. “But, you have to be quite an architect to put them together.”

New Vistas has worked to make the structure work in New Mexico and has worked to implement Olmstead, but there is resistance from the sate.

David Arms, Advocate at New Vistas

“In my opinion home and community based services are ‘up in the air’ in New Mexico, said Ron. “The departments of health and human services in New Mexico held an Olmstead meeting where they simply stated what they were doing. I got up and said that they had not yet mentioned Olmstead.”

I also spoke with Dave Arms, an advocate at New Vistas with more than a dozen years in the field. David recently assisted a woman moving from another state to New Mexico. She had been told that her benefits and section 8 housing would no transfer; but David helped her with her self-advocacy to make the move. 

There is a demand because of the fine air-quality in Santa Fe at an elevation of approximately 7,000 feet above sea level. “We have the largest population of people with environmental illness,” asserts David, “because of the good air quality in Santa Fe and Taos. Many people call that have multiple chemical sensitivity that want to live here.”

Santa Fe is a challenge. Ron and David both agree that the high cost of living in the area prevents many people from finding a home there. Another problem, David pointed out is that “there is a two-year waiting list for housing.”

Ancient pueblos and various Native American Nations and Reservations surround Santa Fe. In addition to the huge size of the New Vistas service area the diversity is a challenge for Independent Living. 

“New Vistas is unique in creating inroads in the Native American communities,” said Ron Garcia.

New Vistas is working to assist Native American citizens who have physical or mental disabilities to gain employment. The plan called the American Indian Vocational Rehabilitation Program, is staffed by Native American Rehabilitation Technicians who collaborate with Tribal and non-Tribal service providers.

Another gage of the accessibility of a community is its transportation system. “The Santa Fe transportation system is better than Albuquerque,” said David Arms. “We have had no problems with the fixed-route; our paratransit is run by a cab company, one-dollar, one-way anywhere in town. I think we have worked the major bugs out.”

The front of New Vistas in Santa Fe

One example of the helpful assistance that New Vistas has in making the city more accessible is the theater north of the city. “The Santa Fe Opera, I think, is 100% accessible,” said David. However, he warns: “If you stay away from downtown you are okay. Some of the poplar restaurants downtown are not accessible, they are historical and do not have to change.”

Although Mr. Garcia said there was still need for progress, “Santa Fe has no general negative attitude, just the historical paternalistic need to protect.”

Memphis Underground Railroad Terminal in Denver PART ONE: Melvin Douglas

Memphis Underground Railroad Terminal in Denver PART TWO: Willie Robinson

-Tim Wheat