Sara Melton

Honored May, 2004

Sara Melton

It probably is no exaggeration to say that the face of Santa Fe would be different if Sara Melton was not here. A resident now for more than three decades, she has poured into the city more fierce love and unyielding architectural and historical integrity than perhaps any other Santa Fean. Her name is a synonym for the preservation of the structures, styles, areas, laws and organizations that make and keep Santa Fe unique.

A real-estate agent by profession, she became fascinated with the graceful, flat-roofed Pueblo and Territorial houses and other buildings that were erected long ago, and have been landmarks in the city's ongoing and dramatic history. But unlike passive citizens who merely appreciate Santa Fe’s ancient charm, she has fought ferociously for it.

She has worked with almost every board or organization dedicated to preserving what is best in the city's fabric. The full list is too long to cite here, but it includes: the Old Santa Fe Association, the Historic Santa Fe Foundation, the Historical Design Review Board, the Land Use Resource Center, the Planning Policy Commission, among other groups—always as a volunteer, never for pay. Moreover, she has attended countless meetings of the city council and county commission, where she is known as a watchdog.