The 2025 New Mexico State Fair could be Albuquerque’s last hurrah for a tradition that has drawn crowds for 87 years, as government leaders weigh relocation mere months before a state-imposed deadline. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has set a March deadline to decide the State Fair’s future, raising the possibility that 2025 could end nearly […]
Author Archives: Jesse Jones
Jesse Jones is a reporter covering local government and news for nm.news
Posted inLocal Gov.
Gateway contracts return to council after $70M program criticism
Albuquerque city councilors will vote Wednesday, Sept. 3, on millions in Gateway Center contracts that were postponed from the Aug. 18 meeting after calls for more accountability in the city’s $70 million homeless program. The contracts with Chicanos Por La Causa for women’s housing navigation and Community Bridges for men’s services were delayed last month. […]
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Marble Brewery inks deal to brew Bosque beers
What started as a regulatory snag for one of Albuquerque’s top breweries has turned into a first-of-its-kind partnership in New Mexico’s craft beer scene. Marble Brewery confirmed to City Desk that it will produce and distribute Bosque Brewing’s flagship beers statewide while Bosque works through wastewater compliance issues at its facility in the Town of […]
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Albuquerque eyes $777M investment in fusion energy research
Albuquerque city councilors may consider some of their biggest financial decisions of the year when they meet Wednesday, a few days later than usual because of the Labor Day holiday. The meeting could include a massive industrial revenue bond for a nuclear fusion facility, along with votes on previously deferred housing initiatives. Nuclear fusion development […]
Posted inHousing & Homelessness
Mayor Keller says city needs 100 sanctioned encampments, but his plan to get there is in danger
Keller says at least 100 Safe Outdoor Spaces are needed for those who “say no to the Gateway system,” but a council committee voted down his plan and his administration has no plan to get there.
Posted inAlbuquerque
Albuquerque parks ‘dying’ as city councilor proposes $2 million emergency turf fix
Albuquerque families may soon see greener parks after City Councilor Dan Lewis introduced an emergency resolution to spend $2 million from city reserves on immediate turf replacement, saying budget cuts left fields patchy and overrun with weeds. The proposed resolution, R-25-183, introduced Aug. 18, targets parks citywide that are suffering from dead grass and weeds, […]
Posted inPolitics & Elections
City council candidates clash over housing, immigration, labor policy
Albuquerque’s biggest challenges — from rising homelessness to federal immigration enforcement — took center stage Aug. 26, as ten City Council candidates squared off over high-profile policy topics in the city’s contested districts. The forum at Sheraton Albuquerque Uptown drew candidates from Districts 1, 3, 5, and 9 and was co-hosted by the National Association […]
Posted inHousing & Homelessness
6 months later: How Gateway Recovery’s pallet home experiment is changing lives in Albuquerque
Gateway Recovery, one of Albuquerque’s newest addiction recovery programs, is now 68% full. The pallet home micro-community near the Comanche exit on Pan American can house up to 50 people in 46 units — 42 for singles and four for couples. The facility’s success marks a sharp turn from the heated City Council debate that […]
Posted inHousing & Homelessness
Inside the council’s push to freeze more Gateway spending
City Councilor Joaquín Baca is threatening to block millions in new Gateway Center funding unless Mayor Tim Keller’s administration shows clear plans and real results from the $70 million-plus homelessness project. The ultimatum follows years of cost overruns, delays and missteps that have kept the Gateway’s main facility mostly closed since 2019, even after it […]
Posted inPolitics & Elections
Albuquerque Ethics Board approves expanded fraud investigation into city council candidate’s public financing donations
The Albuquerque Board of Ethics and Campaign Practices on Aug. 20 approved City Clerk Ethan Watson’s request to expand an investigation into fraud allegations against District 1 City Council candidate Daniel Gilbert Leiva. The board voted 6-0 to allow the city’s inspector general to audit an additional 5% of Leiva’s qualifying contributions and review who […]