Patrick Lohmann/Source New Mexico The head of the stateโs finance authority tasked with doling out a windfall of housing loans said the authority is on track to OK loans in the fall โ so long as what she called the โtimeline godsโ are merciful. In the legislative session that wrapped up in February, lawmakers approved […]
Housing & Homelessness
WHAT TO EXPECT: Council may debate spending $5M in opioid funding
City Councilors will debate whether to approve an expenditure of $5 million of opioid settlement dollars. According to the request, there is a lack of transitional recovery housing facilities in Albuquerque and these funds will allow Family and Community Services to coordinate the acquisition, renovation, or expansion of transitional recovery housing facilities. In other city […]
New $12.8M site opens for families experiencing homelessness
An Albuquerque nonprofit using an uncommon model that provides two years of housing, education and support to families experiencing homelessness has expanded to the Westside. Saranamโs objective is to stabilize and make independent what are most often single mothers with children who have endured domestic violence and other trauma. The program helps narrow a gap […]
Deaths at the Westside shelter are increasing
On Jan. 28, 2023, a 53-year-old woman was staying at the Westside Emergency Housing Center with her husband when she died. According to an incident report, Gina Kirwinโs husband told staff that she was not breathing and when they went to check on her she was already cold to the touch. Kirwinโs husband told police […]
How many homeless die in Albuquerque each year? Itโs complicated.
Although itโs hard to get an exact count, advocates say more people experiencing homelessness are dying each year. Neil Greene, a fellow at the University of New Mexicoโs Center on Alcohol, Substance Use, and Addictions and a scholar of homelessness, researched the issue for City Desk ABQ โ using Office of the Medical Investigator records […]
Nonprofit Plans Annual Woofstock Festival
Planning for the annual Woofstock pet expo and adoption event is already underway. The Friends of Estancia Valley Animals are working with the Town of Edgewood on the 13th Annual Woofstock Festival. Woofstock is a long-standing Edgewood tradition and one of the largest pet adoption events in the state. The event is scheduled to take […]
Fined and Stripped of His Marijuana License, Dineh Benally Keeps on Growing
Three months ago, New Mexico issued a $1 million fine to embattled Navajo marijuana grower Dineh Benally and โ citing him for โegregiousโ violations โ ordered him to shut down his Torrance County cannabis farm. Benally has done anything but. Instead of closing up shop, he has expanded his operation along a rural highway near […]
City hunts for Westside shelter operator
The city is searching for someone to take on a complex assignment: staff and operate the Westside Emergency Housing Center (WEHC) for hundreds of people experiencing homelessness. The facility is located about 20 miles west of Downtown near the Double Eagle II Airport. Its remote location is typically accessed through shuttle services departing from pickup […]
Suspect arrested in deadly fight outside homeless services provider
Albuquerque police have arrested a man suspected of severely beating another man during a fight in front of a homeless services provider Downtown in late February. The victim, Mark Lavine, died a couple weeks later. Jose Gracia, 54, was arrested Wednesday. He is charged with an open count of murder. Both he and Lavine were […]
Danice May
Danice May, born in Athens, TX on August 12, 1936, peacefully passed away in Mesquite, TX on April 6, 2024. She was a former resident of McIntosh, and a devoted member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Estancia, New Mexico. Danice will be remembered for her commitment to friendships, caregiver role, […]

