Jesse Jones, Author at City Desk ABQ

History made: ABQ confirms the first female police chief and new safety director

The Duke City just made history by shattering the glass ceiling as City Councilors confirmed Cecily Barker as the city’s first female police chief and approved a public safety overhaul that created a new public safety director role and filled it with former FBI official Raul Bujanda. On Monday, the City Council unanimously approved Barker […]

Albuquerque, Local Government

Burque’s policing pivot: How the mayor proposes to put more cops on the street without new hires

by Jesse Jones April 20, 2026April 21, 2026

By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — Burqueños looking for a fresh hiring surge to put more police on the streets will find a different strategy in Mayor Tim Keller’s $1.47 billion budget proposal. The city isn’t adding a single new sworn officer position; instead, it’s betting on a massive internal shakeup to put more officers […]

Inside the Oso Negro project: Bernalillo County’s newest weapon against power outages

By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — With an uncertain future for power rates and unreliable power grids, Bernalillo County residents may see more stable electricity rates and a stronger power grid, following the approval of a $175 million battery storage project on Albuquerque’s Westside. Bernalillo County commissioners approved an industrial revenue bond, 4-1, March 11, […]

Keller nominates Cecily Barker to permanently lead APD, pending City Council confirmation

By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — After 22 years of climbing the ranks from patrol officer to the Albuquerque Police Department’s top-ranking officer, Cecily Barker stands one vote away from making history as Albuquerque’s first female police chief. Mayor Tim Keller announced Barker as his official nominee for chief of police on Tuesday, choosing the […]

Gov, Board give final OK to $114M State Fair redevelopment with a stadium option

Burqueños and the International District moved a step closer to a major Fairgrounds transformation Monday after the state board approved the first phase of a $200 million redevelopment plan that includes a new multipurpose stadium and hundreds of housing units. The New Mexico State Fairgrounds District Board, chaired by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, approved the […]

Albuquerque moves quickly to remove César Chávez from streets, public honors following abuse disclosures by Dolores Huerta, others

By Jesse Jones, City Desk ABQ in The Paper. — City officials took swift action Wednesday to initiate the renaming of local sites honoring civil rights organizer and Chicano icon César Chávez following disclosures by fellow activist Dolores Huerta that he pressured her for sex resulting in pregnancies. City Councilor Joaquín Baca told City Desk […]

Council kills controversial tax hike after floor amendments slash rate

By Jesse Jones, City Desk in The Paper. — Albuquerque city workers filled the City Council chambers hoping a new tax would fund long-awaited raises, but they left empty-handed. Councilors voted 8-1 Monday night to kill a proposed gross receipts tax increase before the state deadline, shelving a plan meant to fund community projects and […]

Council OK’s ordinance to thwart ICE arrests in Albuquerque

By Jesse Jones City Desk in The Paper. — The Albuquerque City Council meeting opened Monday to a packed chamber as officials took up several controversial measures. The crowd thinned as the agenda moved forward, but a large group of community activists and immigrants, many wearing bright blue shirts from El Centro de Igualdad y […]

Albuquerque mayoral candidate Daniel Chavez has been charged with battery following an alleged incident at a Restaurant Association Board meeting in June, according to court documents filed in Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court and obtained by City Desk ABQ.

Whatever happened to Daniel Chavez, mayoral candidate charged with touching staffer?

By Jesse Jones, City Desk in The Paper. — In September, City Desk reported that prosecutors charged Albuquerque mayoral candidate Daniel Chavez after a campaign staffer accused him of inappropriate touching, a misdemeanor battery charge. Prosecutors have now dismissed the case. The 2nd Judicial District Attorney’s Office dismissed the case on Feb. 20, 2026, in […]

Commissioner’s claims that Gov has secret plan to move NM United stadium to fairgrounds fizzles under fact-check

By Jesse Jones, City Desk in The Paper. — Bernalillo County Commission Chair Adriann Barboa sent an early morning call to the community Wednesday for a press conference at the Expo New Mexico entrance that was long on rumors and short on facts. During the briefing, Barboa claimed that “people who represent the governor and […]