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Amid passionate public objections to a proposal to put more pressure on vacant property owners and ban sitting or lying on sidewalks in Downtown Albuquerque, city councilors voted down the bill almost unanimously Monday night.
After a long debate and a handful of amendments, councilors voted against the proposed Downtown Vacant Buildings and Properties Ordinance — save for the bill’s sponsor, Councilor Joaquín Baca.
YES: Joaquín Baca
NO: Brook Bassan, Dan Champine, Tammy Fiebelkorn, Renée Grout, Dan Lewis,Klarissa Peña, Nichole Rogers, Louie Sanchez
Mama Zeigh, a resident who frequently voices her opinions during council meetings, was among those who spoke against the legislation and singled out Baca.
“I am the only representative of Downtown’s homeless community here,” Zeigh said, while pointing at Baca. “How dare you tell a Mexican woman, who was born Downtown, where to sit, stand, kneel, how to think, what to believe. Are you kidding me?”
The ordinance would have implemented “no obstruction zones,” preventing people from “sleeping, sitting, kneeling, crouching or lying down” on Downtown sidewalks. It would have also required annual maintenance licenses, property inspections and vacancy registration fees for owners of vacant properties.
Read more about the ordinance here.
Jackie Davis, another avid public commenter and University of New Mexico student, told councilors she is “the biggest pedestrian advocate you can find, I don’t like when the sidewalk is obstructed,” and presented a photo of a traffic sign in the middle of a sidewalk Downtown.
“It brings the question of who is doing the obstructing of the sidewalk,” Davis said. “It’s the city of Albuquerque posting ‘road work ahead’ signs on the sidewalk. This ordinance seems misdirected at our unhoused neighbors as opposed to the actual obstruction pedestrians are facing on a daily basis.”
Davis said it would be a “bad use of resources” to require the city’s police officers to cite people for sleeping on sidewalks when they are “so overburdened that they can’t respond to a broken window or barely enforce traffic laws.”
Read more about how Davis got city officials’ attention over pedestrian safety by persistently speaking at council meetings here.
However, some speakers were in favor of certain parts of the legislation.
Jordon McConnell, a representative for Strong Towns ABQ, said addressing vacant and blighted properties would make Downtown “safer, more welcoming and better,” but urged councilors to have more “thoughtful amendments.”
“Our members believe this bill is a good step for revitalizing Downtown and ensuring a brighter future for the entire city,” McConnell said. “We would like to see a more compassionate approach that focuses on housing and support services rather than fines.”
Councilor Tammy Fiebelkorn had similar thoughts and said the legislation had “really great ideas” that she supports and hopes to bring it back without the sidewalk provision, which she said is “incredibly problematic for the citizens of Albuquerque.”
Before councilors voted against the proposed ordinance, Baca said the bill was a “good-faith effort” to address some long-standing issues.
“It’s not perfect by any means, but it is a first step,” Baca said. “I’m very much committed to making adjustments and changes as we move forward.”
