The Archdiocese of Santa Fe, N.M., intends to hire a land use planning consultant to help it shed dozens of properties as part of its bankruptcy case, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported. Consultants with James W. Siebert & Associates, a Santa Fe land planning firm, would be among numerous experts the archdiocese has hired — attorneys, real estate brokers and accountants — drawing accusations from critics of wasteful spending that ultimately will affect payouts to hundreds of victims of sexual abuse by members of the clergy. An attorney with the Roman Catholic institution said, however, the experts are needed and that bankruptcy court is the most efficient place for settlements between victims and dioceses. Court records show the archdiocese has asked U.S. Bankruptcy Judge David T. Thuma for approval to hire the Siebert firm. The records say that Siebert can help the archdiocese comply with subdivision statutes and regulations. A court document said the Siebert company would charge $180 an hour if a principal of the firm worked on the case, $120 an hour if an associate worked on it, $95 an hour for a computer-aided designer and $45 an hour each for research and clerical work. An attorney for the archdiocese, Ford Elsaesser, said that real estate issues can involve broken lot lines or lots created long ago. Elsaesser, who is based in Idaho, said he didn’t want to contract properties for sale and then learn a step was missed in the process. “So that’s the reason why they’re being engaged,” Elsaesser said of Siebert. An auctioneer hired by the archdiocese recently began trying to sell 732 properties around Northern New Mexico.
