Albuquerque Archives - City Desk ABQ

Albuquerque paid $8 million in lawsuits while Council oversight went dark for a year

By Jesse Jones — For nearly 12 months, the City of Albuquerque’s legal department failed to deliver required reports detailing how much the city paid in lawsuits to the City Council. Editor’s note: In researching this story, a Council spokesperson told City Desk that the last report received by the council was “in Q1 2025.” After […]

Can ranked choice voting save Albuquerque a fortune? Supporters will try again for next city election

The Albuquerque City Council uses ranked choice voting (RCV) for its own internal seats. Now, Councilors Tammy Fiebelkorn, Nichole Rogers and Stephanie Telles have introduced Ordinance O-26-13 to extend that same system to citywide elections by November 2027. Under RCV, voters rank candidates by preference. If no one secures a majority, the lowest vote-getter is […]

Albuquerque is making a new push to create more immigrant-friendly laws. Here’s what’s planned.

Albuquerque officials are launching a comprehensive strategy this spring to protect immigrants amid growing uncertainty about federal enforcement. Mayor Tim Keller and city councilors will introduce an ordinance in early March to permanently ban federal agents from using city resources. The move is part of the city’s Defend ABQ program. Alongside the new law, the city will […]

Albuquerque’s zoning rules are getting a rewrite — here’s what’s at stake Wednesday night

The Albuquerque City Council meets Wednesday, Feb. 18, with a packed agenda that could shape how the city grows and who helps run it. Councilors are set to take final action on the 2025 biennial update to the Integrated Development Ordinance, the city’s land-use code that governs where and how development happens. The sweeping citywide […]

Lawsuit between Mayor, Council over paramedic staffing comes to sudden end

Mayor Tim Keller’s administration and the Albuquerque City Council have reached an agreement to end a legal fight over paramedic staffing, ending a long dispute over who controls emergency response staffing. Announced Monday, the deal resolves all outstanding legal challenges, including a separation-of-powers dispute filed earlier this year. The agreement establishes a formal review process […]

ABQ legislators push to let City collect millions more in speed camera fines

A bill by two Albuquerque-area legislators moving through the Roundhouse could let Albuquerque keep an extra $2 million to $3 million a year in traffic fines — a shift that would cost the state roughly $5 million and remove current audit requirements. Senate Bill 91, sponsored by Albuquerque Democratic Sens. Heather Berghmans and Antoinette Sedillo […]

Will massive new funding push the New Mexico State Fair out of the city?

Jesse Jones, City Desk ABQ — The New Mexico Senate approved nearly $100 million in bonds Friday for the State Fairgrounds redevelopment, advancing a long-debated project. The investment could reshape Albuquerque’s International District with new housing and parks, or it could lead to relocating the State Fair after 87 years in the city. The Senate […]

NM United stadium stuck in extra time as legal battle reaches the Court of Appeals

Jesse Jones, City Desk ABQ — The proposed New Mexico United stadium has been delayed as the team’s plan for a new home at Balloon Fiesta Park sits in the state appeals process, awaiting assignment to a three-judge panel. Because of the legal delay, United would not move into a new stadium until 2028 at […]

A seat to spark change: Albuquerque’s tribute to Rosa Parks on her birthday

Albuquerque will honor civil rights icon Rosa Parks on Wednesday, Feb. 4, with bus tributes and school presentations marking Transit Equity Day and what would have been Parks’ birthday. The city’s transit agency will place Rosa Parks seat tributes on all Albuquerque Rapid Transit buses operating Routes 766 and 777 on Feb. 4. Officials are […]

Thousands flood Civic Plaza to protest ICE operations

Thousands of immigrant rights activists gathered at Civic Plaza Friday afternoon as part of a coordinated national protest against Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations following recent fatal shootings during federal enforcement actions. The demonstration, which drew roughly 5,000 people by mid-afternoon, was part of the National Shutdown movement that called for participants across the country […]