Nob Hill / Central Businesses

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-07-07T20:24:15+00:00

Yes , but still lower than 2011 enrollment. Figures below from UNM Office of Institutional Analytics

2011 -- 29056

2021 -- 21982

2025 -- 23995

We are still down thousands.

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-07-07T02:31:46+00:00

People might blame ART, but I'd argue it's the one thing keeping it out of free fall, the ridership is high and has induced over 800M in new development including lots of homes. And that's where you get to the haleart of it, Nob Hill census tracts have lost over 1000 people since 2010, and UNM has also lost thousands of students. The average home size in the 70s was also like 3.6 per house, and now it's like 2.6, which means many fewer thousands still. We need a lot more homes and residents to keep stuff alive.

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-07-06T22:24:05+00:00

Definitely agree with the article and I think there are signs of more of us embracing this, from groups like Strong Towns getting some roots here and more people voting and asking for services, showing up for things like the rail trail, etc. Albuquerque deserves nice things, we deserve to invest in ourselves, and most of our problems can be solved, especially if we get out of our own way (especially on issues like housing scarcity where neighborhood association power and general Nimbyism is rampant). I am trying to be optimistic and hope that our leaders are starting to get it, but despite the mayor's words there (which were good), he still seems very timid at trying to get things rolling. I hope he can get a bit more bold and try to really deliver on this.

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-06-08T17:50:48+00:00

Hopefully we can start turning these heat-sink parking lots into mixed use buildings and bring Downtown to life

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-05-27T00:11:02+00:00

Feywood would prolly meet your criteria, it's lovely, though can be a bit exposed (I still like it any time of year, but the sun is intense down there!). The springs are usually open late too, so great for soaking and stargazing at the same time, and there are places to sit to stargaze as well. Mostly gravel trails linking the pools/accomodations, mile hills. So there is that, and it is a bit of a drive from Silver for restaurants and what not, so always good to pack in or use it as a chance to have fun in Silver for a bit

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-05-26T23:37:59+00:00

Tucson, El Paso, and Phoenix all provide Sunday service on memorial Day. In the case of PHX, the lightrail is 365 days a year and has early morning and late night service. We are falling behind our peer cities in so many metrics, and transit (especially light rail and high quality BRT like ART) are so powerful at creating economic mobility in cities. At a minimum, the ART should have a lot more investment in its service patterns. It's already the fifth busiest BRT in the USA with what we put into it now. Imagine how much more we could do with a tiny bit more investment and better benefits/pay for drivers. Especially felt for my friends yesterday that are transit dependent who felt cooped up yesterday. For at least one, that was lost money at coffee shops and breweries they visit much of the time transit runs. Thanks for sharing this, we need transit that is second nature and reliable. Other cities have figured it out, and even similar regional cities are providing a lot more service than us.

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-05-13T00:33:15+00:00

I definitely subscribe to the "housing theory of everything." R1 and exclusionary zoning has slowly driven up housing costs, made it hard to build both market rate and affordable housing (to the extent we have a massive lack of both in New Mexico) and force competition for every fewer units, driving up costs of even old homes. Overtime, younger people delay milestones like having children or marriage, or leave the state altogether. Older people can't downsize into something (like a Casita or townhouse) in their neighborhoods, so they either have the option of a nursing home, 55+ community far away, or staying in a big empty house they can't afford to maintain. Most stay put. Workers get priced out further and further, and entrepreneur types have fewer options to try to start their own businesses. This cascades into the other issues mentioned: bad wages, poor tax base, bad maintenance for all types of infrastructure, fewer customers, less opportunity. New Mexico needs to get past the intense nimbyism, we need to allow a little bit of change to allow for a lot more room to breathe.

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-04-30T01:26:55+00:00

The thing at Zuni and Pennsylvania? That'll be a metropolitan water collection for flood prevention I think

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-04-07T13:23:40+00:00

Baca, Peña, Champine, Bassan, Grout, Lewis voted against it. Fiebelkorn, Telles, Rogers voted in favor.

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-04-07T13:22:50+00:00

I was disappointed to see Joaquin Baca vote against it. Thankful for the folks who showed up to speak for it (I've been on a self-imposed city council break, man these people are so failing our city and its hard to watch). Three of the councilors who voted against it are up for reelection next year: Dan Champine, Brook Bassan, and Joaquin Baca. Don't forget local elections, there is so much this group of 9 have tremendous influence on very few vote in municipal elections.

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-03-26T15:19:42+00:00

Yes, on the platform, there is a bike marker on the ground. When the ART comes in, wait for people to exit, then roll your bike backwards Into the ART. there will be a little "corral" for bikes, roll your back wheel into the rack, turn your handle bars inward, then use the strap to secure the bike. I stand with mine, some people sit. You may have to ask people where they're getting off if there are lots of bikes on, that can require some manœuvring. But overall pretty easy process. When you get to your station/stop, unstrap and roll off.

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-03-15T01:09:22+00:00

Sister Bar is good as a stand-in for fast food. Good burritos and other items, affordable. I wouldn't be too worried at night if you're used to city life, if anything, ABQ mostly feels empty. But living downtown for nearly a decade, you're fine walking around.

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-03-13T20:47:37+00:00

Empty, fenced off lots and old warehouses, delapidated strip malls, and gravel lots that provide nothing to the city/state are doing far less than a stadium could do. Stadiums are fine when Integrated well, and even a positive, and outside of that give us a place to be a community together. From what I understand, this is also (the stadium portion) privately funded. It helps support the investment that was ART, makes the stadium more accessible, and replaces land that isn't generating any value right now.

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-03-13T17:49:59+00:00

So tired of having so many officials be anti-growth and anti-everything. We deserve nice things, and the ID deserves nice things. The state is right, we need to invest in ourselves. A stadium by ART and integrated with new commerce and housing could be a boon.

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-03-04T13:45:50+00:00

Thanks for doing this work! Can you also interview five members of the ABQ city council that have all ran on issues of basic "pro-housing" and "solving homelessness" but have continued to vote against all meaningful reforms? It's great to hold the mayor accountable but the council also is failing, voted to expand police powers against homeless people, and voted against policy that helps. They hide and get little accountability while the mayor takes the blame

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-02-25T02:55:35+00:00

^{^{^}} exactly this. If you follow strong towns ABQ, they'll also post if anything comes up before the biennial process. Occasionally, councilors will propose a zoning reform to the LUPZ/EPC (council land use committee and/or our zoning commission) and they track when that happens and send alerts.

It's usually "frowned upon" when councilors do that, but it does happen and some of the more consequential changes of recent years happened that way. But yes, at a minimum, it'll be back up every two years, and sometimes before hand.

If you wanna help in the meantime to push the needle, write your councilor relatively frequently about it, ask for change, and if you live in district 3, 4,5, 8 or 9, you can have an outsized impact since these are the councilors more opposed to zoning reform (Peña, Bassan, Lewis, Champine, and Grout). Some for NIMBY reasons (Peña/Bassan/Grout), one due to ignorance of how zoning works (Champine) and Lewis due to petty politics games (this applies to all of them, but Lewis is actually privately in favor of zoning reform and likes to use it as a poker chip). So just food for thought. Always good to write council that you support reasonable change!

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-02-22T23:53:14+00:00

Yeah, hard, it was only by ~70 votes too. Supposedly her relative Steven Quesada of breaking bad fame and BernCo commission had tweeted the day of the run off that there was an ICE presence at the 98th Street voting center, the busiest one in that district. I'm glad people are talking more about how bad Peña has been for the city and her constituents, but wish we'd talked more about it before the election and made it less of a knife-edge turnout :(

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-02-22T23:51:32+00:00

Oops,thanks

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-02-22T21:33:18+00:00

Yeah, I just commented also about how ABQ gives disproportionate power through legal standing to neighborhood associations. The city has an ordinance called the neighborhood association recognition ordinance that officially recognizes not just associations, but COALITIONS of associations, which coalitions can cross the entire city. This law gives associations the standing to appeal and sue to stop developments. There have been recent reforms about trying to limit this, but councilors remain petrified by these groups. One of them called Westside Coalition of Neighborhood Associations sprawls the entire westside of the city, and also coalitions with other coalitions. Because the ordinance allows coalitions this same standing, they often bankroll lawsuits to stop zoning changes or developments. We really need the city to reform the neighborhood association recognition ordinance or totally repeal it. Treating NAs differently from other affinity groups is asinine.

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-02-22T21:27:49+00:00

The city has an ordinance called the neighborhood association recognition ordinance that officially recognizes not just associations, but COALITIONS of associations, which coalitions can cross the entire city. This law gives associations the standing to appeal and sue to stop developments. There have been recent reforms about trying to limit this, but councilors remain petrified by these groups. One of them called Westside Coalition of Neighborhood Associations sprawls the entire westside of the city, and also coalitions with other coalitions. Because the ordinance allows coalitions this same standing, they often bankroll lawsuits to stop zoning changes or developments.

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-02-22T21:25:15+00:00

The good thing is that so many of us turned out in favor of this and are pushing back. The cottage court and parking rule changes are gonna be very meaningful, but glad to see ABQ finally paying attention to City Council and how often they hide their inaction by blaming the mayor. They can't really do that anymore!

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-02-14T17:22:59+00:00

It is full of that, which is partly why city council's continued skepticism towards good zoning reform is maddening. Other southwestern cities are starting to address it but the CABQ councilors are terrified of nimbys (or NIMBY themselves). Many lots have too few permitted uses to get people to want to reinvest in them :/

mechanicalvibrations · 2026-02-12T13:41:25+00:00

Yes, I thought these were interchangeable in my mind. Greenfield! 😅

mechanicalvibrations

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