April Meeting Minutes

6:30pm | Preservation Station | Bonnie Anderson presiding

Here is a summary of the HHHDA meeting on April 3rd, thanks to Secretary Howard Dobin.

Minutes from the March meeting were reviewed and approved.

Officer Report: 

Brittany Martinez, Crime Prevention Specialist, introduced herself and her APD colleague Laura Kuehn to the association.  Officer Martinez has previously served in the Sex Crimes and Victim Assistance units.  Crime was low in March 2024, with one residential burglary and one auto theft.

Howard Dobin spoke about issues that have impacted the Albuquerque High Lofts expanding campus including a car toppling a light post on Central.  Laura clarified that only dire emergencies should be reported to 911.  Issues like suspicious activities are best reported to 242-COPS.  Issues reported to the 311 number and app are handled by email and will be the slowest to be addressed.  The APD officers recommended downloading the “Atlas One” app which enables citizens to send messages to APD.  It is available for Apple and Android.

You can contact Brittany Martinez at (505) 761-8805.

Holiday Hijinks 2024: 

Bruce and Fiona have selected Saturday Dec 14, 2024 as the date for our new annual holiday fundraising event at the Press Club.  That date was chosen in part because December 7th will feature some city sponsored events such as the Twinkle Light parade.  Scott Stine, a member of the club, has offered to help ensure things on the date go off smoothly.  A motion to approve the date and venue passed unanimously.

I-25 Update:  

There is a public meeting scheduled for 5-7:30PM on April 24th at CNM’s Brasher Hall located at 717 University Blvd SE.

Jane’s Walk:  

Bonnie reiterated that our neighborhood will be participating in the international Jane’s Walk on Sunday May 5th with guided walks scheduled for 8:30 and 10:30AM.  Those working on the tour reservation system hope to have an active link available soon.

Updates to the digitized walk guide are ongoing with many contributions of new text descriptions and photos.

Neighborhood Development:  

Nick Nuccio, owner of 401 Walter SE, reviewed the history of his attempts to develop the property, which included a plan to merge 3 structures into a one-family home and dividing the parcel into two or three separate homes.  He came to the association to solicit our input and opinions.  

Those with some knowledge on the zoning of our city said Nick would likely receive no pushback from our group on subdividing the parcel (which is needed for such a project to proceed).  He is on the fence on how to proceed.  The previous visions of a one-family house or the two or three house re-parceling remain options.  He also has an idea to convert the property to mixed-use with a café or something similar bringing a unique element to the neighborhood.  Some in attendance warned that he might have issues with the city regarding customer parking.

Nick asks anyone interested in providing input to email him at Nick@Scatterform.com.  He commits to following up with us as events warrant.

605 Arno SE:  

Lorraine Anderson spoke on the ongoing nuisance of the property near her. Plywood which had deterred people from entering the abandoned property has been removed.  311 has been contacted, but there is no appreciable action from them.  There have been fires in both the house and its casita.  District 3 County Commissioner Adriann Barboa suggested contacting the Bernalillo County Assessor at Assessor@Bernco.gov to aid in finding the current owner.

Spending HHHDA Funds:  

There were concerns raised regarding dark streets in the neighborhood.  Mid-block streetlights were proposed.  Asking neighbors to light their porch lights via flyer was suggested.  Providing residents with energy efficient or photo-sensitive porch light bulbs was voiced.  Also, looking into non-powered decorative lights was put forward.  Neighbors recommended that lighting should be partially covered to be dark sky friendly.

There were concerns raised about solar lights being stolen and the possible necessity of city permission.  The gathered were asked to bring proposals to the next meeting.  Nick volunteered to bring a sample to be tested.

Additional Issues:  

Bob Elwood raised concerns that those from the city responsible for properly keeping our association informed on proposed changes to properties were not communicating all proposals.  The issue in question regards the possibility of front facing solar panels which was not reported to our committee.  Lauren Austin, who sits on the Landmarks Commission, informed us that the issue is not on the current landmarks agenda.

Carlos asked who will be responsible for replacing the light post that was toppled in a collision this weekend in front of the Albuquerque High circle.  A resident of Broadway Marketplace reports that the building is currently being painted, but there are on-going concerns.  He has seen an increase in homelessness, and there have been fires.  Ruth reported that our Welcome to the Neighborhood Committee will be adding Lauren Austin, who along with being a long-time resident and on the Landmarks Commission is a real estate agent.  She will be a valuable resource for alerting us to new owners and renters.

The meeting was adjourned.  Next meeting will be on Wednesday May 1st.