Board of Directors
The Railyard Stewards Board of Directors provides diverse community knowledge, expertise and leadership to help ensure that the Railyard Park succeeds as the community gathering place it was envisioned to be. They are:
M. Carlota Baca has deep roots in New Mexico and has enjoyed a long career as a consultant specializing in philanthropic and non-profit organizations, including the Santa Fe Community Foundation, Santa Fe Pro Musica, and the Museum of New Mexico Foundation.
Gayla Bechtol is an architect in Santa Fe and principal of Gayla Bechtol Architects. She has been involved in the Railyard since 1996 when she spearheaded the Regional/Urban Design Assistance Team (R/UDAT ) of the American Institute of Architects for the Railyard.
Marc Beyeler is a conservation consultant in California and the western United States, and was formerly a senior executive with the Trust for Public Land.
Suby Bowden is an Architect and Urban Planner; she has been a leader in the Santa Fe Railyard project for 24 years. Her company Suby Bowden + Associates has designed over 200 constructed projects, receiving over 28 National and Local Awards in the last decade.
Peter Brill (Acting Vice Chair) is the founder and owner of Sarcon Construction, which has provided construction services and consulting for many community-based institutions including St. Johns College and Warehouse 21 Teen Arts Center.
Anna Lucia Carlgren has a marketing management background and has been involved with numerous Santa Fe volunteer organizations.
Courtney Carswell was raised in Santa Fe and is the owner of La Choza (in the Railyard District) and The Shed Restaurants, popular eateries for locals and tourists alike.
Linda Churchill has actively participated in Santa Fe arts, community endeavors, and gardening for over twenty years. She is a docent and volunteer with the Santa Fe Botanical Gardens and a member of the Semi-Arid Guild, and co-owns Green Forward LLC, a Santa Fe landscaping firm.
Brian Egolf (ex-officio) is the representative from Santa Fe in the New Mexico State Legislature. An attorney, Representative Egolf specializes in water law.
Debra Garcia y Grieg0 has a seventeen year background in arts administration that includes experience with both visual and performing arts. Currently, she is the Senior Planner for the City of Santa Fe Arts Commission overseeing the grant-making program as well as the 2% for public art program. In this capacity, she works closely with a variety of nonprofit arts organizations as well as with numerous public artists, both locally and nationally.
Gretel Follingstad was born and raised in Santa Fe. Her career is focused on community planning and development with an emphasis in linking land use and water resource management. Gretel currently works as the Water Bank Administrator for the City of Santa Fe and holds a Masters degree in Community and Regional Planning from the School of Architecture and Planning at UNM.
Thomas M. Hnasko (Chair) is an environmental attorney and a partner in the law firm of Hinkle, Hensley, Shanor & Martin.
Molly Mehaffy was a principle partner in a Santa Fe landscape design/build firm for many years, and active as a consultant in the railyard park’s design. She is currently a graduate student at UC Berkeley in the landscape architecture program, MLA class of 2012.
Faith Okuma is the Principal of Surroundings, a landscape architecture firm based in Santa Fe. She has many years of landscape design experience in New Mexico.
Cara Scarola is a graduate of the University of Oregon’s Interior Architecture (M.Iarc.) program and Lewis & Clark College (B.A.). Cara has worked for architecture and interior architecture firms in both the Northwest and Southwest. In December of 2009, Cara began Ore Studios, an interior design firm with offices in Santa Fe and Providence, Rhode Island. Ore Studios works on both residential and commercial projects from coast to coast, with a particular emphasis on sustainable design.
Emeritus Board Members:
Ann Bitter is former Chief Operating Officer of Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where she oversaw the construction of the $125 million expansion of this contemporary art center. She is currently a nonprofit consultant with a national practice focusing on strategic planning and board governance.
Ellyn Feldman is a co-founder of the Santa Fe Children’s Museum and was a teacher for close to 20 years. She brings experience from several Santa Fe community programs and serves on several non-profit boards.
Rowan Ogden is a communication specialist and graphic designer. He has served as the creative director for an ecological engineering firm for the past four years.
Carmella Padilla, a Santa Fe native, is an award-winning journalist and author who has written extensively about Hispano art, culture and history in New Mexico. Her work has been published across the West.
Jenny Parks is the President and CEO of the New Mexico Community Foundation. Prior to that, Jenny served as the New Mexico State Director for The Trust for Public Land (TPL). Before joining TPL, Jenny worked for six years as a real estate attorney and for three years as a commercial real estate developer in Austin, Texas.
