By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — Days after the City of Albuquerque’s Transit Department announced that its Christmas Eve Luminaria Bus Tour had been canceled this year, Mayor Tim Keller announced Wednesday that the popular holiday tradition is back on. In a news release, the administration said Keller directed the city to continue the annual […]
Category: +Communities
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Fed up Albuquerque renters put new city protections to the test
By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — For more than a year, City Councilor Tammy Fiebelkorn has pushed for stronger renter protections, one city ordinance at a time. In June, two of her measures became law: the Rental Unit Habitability Enforcement Ordinance and a resolution requiring the city to prioritize safety violations. Now those protections are […]
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‘Is the City the Grinch?’ Councilor slams decision to cancel Luminaria Bus Tour
By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — For 70 years, Burqueños have celebrated Christmas Eve aboard the Luminaria Bus Tour, riding city buses through the Old Town and Huning Castle neighborhoods to see glowing luminarias and neighbors gathered around bonfires. Now, the city has ended the tradition, saying the tour is no longer cost-effective. At Monday’s […]
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Council Preview: City Council faces decisions on shelter and multiple appeals
By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — Albuquerque city councilors on Monday will address development projects, city spending and the future of a controversial overnight shelter during a meeting that also includes a slate of routine appointments and contract approvals. During the Sept. 21 meeting, councilors are expected to formally adopt findings from the last meeting’s […]
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Bernalillo County wants to be a good neighbor when it builds housing
By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — Housing projects can raise concerns in a neighborhood long before the doors open. Bernalillo County wants to start those conversations on day one, bringing developers, property managers and nearby communities to the table through a new Good Neighbor Policy. Commissioners unanimously approved a resolution establishing the BernCo Builds Communities […]
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Albuquerque gets serious about AI with new citywide rules
By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — Residents in the Duke City will soon be able to track the artificial intelligence tools used by city government, voice concerns to a new advisory board and see new AI rules for city tech vendors after the City Council approved a trio of ordinances targeting AI in city government. […]
Posted inBernalillo County, Elections & Politics, Opinion & Analysis
Opinion: Why I oppose Sandia’s request to unilaterally control 10,000 acres of public land
By Walt Benson, Bernalillo County Commissioner — In 2003, the T’uf Shur Bien Preservation Trust Act was established by the United States Congress. Passage of the act settled a 1994 lawsuit and the Pueblo of Sandia’s claims of ownership of 10,000 acres in perpetuity. The act designated the land in question as National Forest and […]
Posted inAlbuquerque, Local Government
Scammers lose a tool as ABQ bans crypto ATMs
By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — Scammers have one fewer tool in their toolbox after the Albuquerque City Council approved a citywide ban on cryptocurrency ATMs. On Sept. 9, councilors voted 6-3 to pass the Virtual Currency Ordinance, sponsored by Councilor Stephanie Telles, banning cryptocurrency ATMs, also known as bitcoin teller machines, and cashier-assisted cryptocurrency […]
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$700 million Pajarito Mesa energy project seeks tax break under Bernalillo County’s new community benefits rules. What does it do?
By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — One of the nation’s largest energy infrastructure developers and builders wants nearly 3.5 square miles of land on the Pajarito Mesa in Bernalillo County for a solar and battery project, promising hundreds of jobs, millions in new revenue and a boost to the region’s power grid in exchange for […]
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Council to try to override another Keller veto in ongoing power struggle over city attorney
By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — With Monday’s Labor Day holiday pushing City Council’s meeting to Wednesday, councilors face an agenda heavy on technology alongside another fight with the mayor over who oversees the city attorney. Councilors will get another chance to take a crack at O-26-54, deciding whether to override Mayor Tim Keller’s veto […]