Going into the 2024 legislative session, city officials had high hopes to secure a key request of almost $16 million in funds for projects at the Gateway Center at Gibson Health Hub. They ended up with $615,000. The city fared better overall, however, receiving about 29% of the funding it requested for a variety of […]
Housing & Homelessness
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Albuquerque Community Safety looking for new leader
The woman who led the Albuquerque Community Safety Department since its inception in 2021 is transitioning to a new role in city government. Mariela Ruiz-Angel is now the Associate Chief Administrative Officer, the city announced Monday. The position was previously held by Bob White, who retired at the end of last year. Ava Montoya, a […]
Posted inBusiness, Economy & Workers, Housing & Homelessness
Downtown Albuquerque reboot: Pockets of hope, a field of potential
Editor’s note: This is the final installment in a series titled Downtown Albuquerque Reboot, about the city’s center, its challenges and the plans to address them. Read about why the area matters here, about vacant buildings here, peruse a photo essay about lowriders here, and read about crime here. Beyond the crime, shuttered businesses, vacant […]
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March Sadness: Lobo fans gather, mourn after loss
Lobo fans gathered around the city to watch the team’s match-up against South Carolina’s Clemson Tigers Friday afternoon for the University of New Mexico’s first game in a NCAA basketball tournament in a decade. More than 100 people flocked to Civic Plaza where the city had set up a projector at the Al Hurrican Pavilion […]
Posted inEdgewood, Housing & Homelessness, Uncategorized, Westside Albuquerque
Advocates Claim Inhumane Conditions at Detention Center
At the March 13 meeting of the Torrance County Commissioners, business was as usual until public comment began. During public comment, representatives from the Immigration Law Lab and the New Mexico Immigrant Law Center discussed alleged conditions at the Torrance County Detention Facility. Aurora Arreola, the Policy Program Manager for the New Mexico Immigrant Law […]
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Council approves additional funding to help with increasing number of migrants
Helping asylum seekers and migrants and recognizing the impact of the atomic industry on downwinders topped the short Albuquerque City Council meeting held on March 18. Migrant Help An increasing number of migrants arriving in Albuquerque — “due to unforeseen circumstances at the southern U.S. border” — since early fall has stretched thin the nonprofit […]
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One man’s quest to help solve the city’s homelessness problem
The campaigning hasn’t stopped, but now the focus is homelessness. Daymon Ely, an attorney and former three-term state representative, has spent the past 12 months developing a proposal to address homelessness in Albuquerque. The problem is well documented: There are more people living on Albuquerque’s streets, some with severe mental health and addiction issues, and […]
Posted inCourts, Justice & Safety, Housing & Homelessness
Business owner, deputy commander talk crime in Albuquerque’s Downtown
Editor’s note: This is the fourth installment in a series titled Downtown Albuquerque Reboot, about the city’s center, its challenges and the plans to address them. Read about why the area matters here, about vacant buildings here, peruse a photo essay about lowriders here, and end with what the area has to offer here. On […]
Posted inHousing & Homelessness, New Mexico State Gov., New Mexico Statewide News
Legislature put ‘big infusion into housing’
New Mexico’s dual crises of a decrease in affordable housing and an increase in homelessness were hot topics in Santa Fe at the recently concluded legislative session. The New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority, one of the state’s most effective weapons in the fight, was the recipient of some key funding from lawmakers. The somewhat enigmatic […]
Posted inCongress & Federal Gov., Housing & Homelessness
When will Downtown’s unwelcome tunnel be gone?
Dark, loud, unsafe and foul: words commonly used for decades to describe the pedestrian tunnel that links East Downtown and Downtown along Central Avenue under the railroad tracks. The tunnel also connects vehicles — often with horns honking, tires screeching, and engines revving for an amplified sound effect. The link is an important one because […]