At last Tuesday’s Bernalillo County Commission meeting, Commissioners Steven Michael Quezada and Walt Benson alleged they were not included in decisions regarding selecting a new county manager. These complaints reached the New Mexico Foundation for Open Government in the following days. City Desk ABQ asked Melanie Majors, executive director of the Foundation for Open Government […]
Category: Housing & Homelessness
Posted inCourts, Justice & Safety, Housing & Homelessness
Can former DWI officers under investigation still work as cops?
As news continues to unfold about the five officers suspected of working with a local defense attorney, Thomas Clear III, to get those accused of driving while intoxicated off the hook, many readers reached out with questions about what happens next. City Desk ABQ tracked down officials to get the answers. The five officers — […]
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WHAT TO EXPECT: Council may debate spending $5M in opioid funding
City Councilors will debate whether to approve an expenditure of $5 million of opioid settlement dollars. According to the request, there is a lack of transitional recovery housing facilities in Albuquerque and these funds will allow Family and Community Services to coordinate the acquisition, renovation, or expansion of transitional recovery housing facilities. In other city […]
Posted inHousing & Homelessness
New $12.8M site opens for families experiencing homelessness
An Albuquerque nonprofit using an uncommon model that provides two years of housing, education and support to families experiencing homelessness has expanded to the Westside. Saranam’s objective is to stabilize and make independent what are most often single mothers with children who have endured domestic violence and other trauma. The program helps narrow a gap […]
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Deaths at the Westside shelter are increasing
On Jan. 28, 2023, a 53-year-old woman was staying at the Westside Emergency Housing Center with her husband when she died. According to an incident report, Gina Kirwin’s husband told staff that she was not breathing and when they went to check on her she was already cold to the touch. Kirwin’s husband told police […]
Posted inHousing & Homelessness
How many homeless die in Albuquerque each year? It’s complicated.
Although it’s hard to get an exact count, advocates say more people experiencing homelessness are dying each year. Neil Greene, a fellow at the University of New Mexico’s Center on Alcohol, Substance Use, and Addictions and a scholar of homelessness, researched the issue for City Desk ABQ — using Office of the Medical Investigator records […]
Posted inHousing & Homelessness
Opinion: Parents, students have opportunity to help choose high school graduation requirements
Submitted by Mandi Torrez, educator With the governor’s signing of a new law updating the state’s high school curriculum, New Mexico families now have a prime opportunity to shape your local high school course requirements in a way that will reflect your community’s values while ensuring that your graduates are college and career ready. While […]
Posted inHousing & Homelessness
Politics Two Ways
Two New Mexico political groups are using opposite tactics to reach a common goal—elect Democrats. While the West Side Democrats in Albuquerque focuses on personal activism, Blue CD2 New Mexico uses data and remote messaging techniques to reach new voters. Both groups say their specific methods are helping win elections. The West Side group is […]
Posted inHousing & Homelessness
Is It Good PR, or Russian Propaganda?
You might have missed it. On April 7, the chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Mike Turner (R-Ohio) announced on two different Sunday news programs that members of his caucus were repeating Russian propaganda in their arguments against foreign aid for Ukraine. Just let that sink in for a minute. Turner said […]
Posted inLocal Gov.
Commissioners accused of violating the Open Meetings Act
Did Bernalillo County Commissioners violate state law? The Foundation for Open Government (FOG) — an advocate for transparency in government — has asked the New Mexico Department of Justice to investigate whether the Bernalillo County Commission violated the Open Meetings Act by engaging in a rolling quorum before it met this week. A rolling quorum […]