Under the City’s Zoning laws collectively known as the Integrated Development Ordinance (IDO), “Safe Outdoor Spaces” are organized, managed homeless encampments. It was Mayor Tim Keller who initially proposed the idea of “Safe Outdoor Spaces” in his 2022-2023 city budget requesting $750,000 in funding to set up Safe Outdoor Spaces in vacant dirt lots across the city with an additional $200,000 for developing other sanctioned encampment programs.
On June 6, 2022, despite significant public outcry opposing Safe Outdoor Spaces, the Albuquerque City Council enacted the legislation authorizing Safe Out Door Spaces passing it on a 5 to 4 vote. On December 5, 2022, after strong public opposition to Safe Outdoor Spaces and one City Councilor withdrawing support, the City Council voted 5 to 4 to remove all references to Safe Outdoor Spaces within the IDO and attempted to outlaw the land use, but Mayor Tim Keller vetoed the legislation.
The “Safe Outdoor Spaces” legislation passed allows for 2 homeless encampments in all 9 city council districts with 40 designated spaces for tents. They will allow upwards of 50 people, require hand washing stations, toilets and showers, require a management plan, 6 foot fencing and dedicated space for social service providers to offer food, mental and physical health services. Although the Integrated Development Ordinance (IDO) amendment sets a limit of two in each of the city’s 9 council districts, the cap does not apply to those hosted by religious institutions.
A map prepared by the city detailing where “Safe Outdoor Space” zoning would be allowed for encampments reveals numerous areas in each of the 9 City Council districts that abut or are in walking distance to many residential areas. Upwards of 15% of the city would allow for “Safe Outdoor Spaces” as a “permissive use” or as a “conditional use”.
Under the law, once such permissive uses are approved and granted by the city, they become vested property rights and cannot be rescinded by the city council. There is no requirement of landownership, meaning someone could seek a special use for a safe outdoor space and then turn around and lease their undeveloped open space property to whoever can afford to pay.
A city map reveals a large concentration of eligible open space areas where Safe Outdoor Spaces are allowed that lies between San Pedro and the railroad tracks, north of Menaul to the city’s northern boundary. The map reveals that the encampments could be put at next to the Big-I, the northeast heights, and on the west side not far from homes. The map does not account for religious institutions that may want to use their properties for living lots or safe outdoor spaces.
The Safe Outdoors Spaces program is intended to let community members, businesses and churches help those experiencing homelessness outside their doors by giving them a place to sleep off the streets and on private property.
TRUMP’S EXECUTIVE ORDER
It was on July 24, 2025 President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order that seeks to overhaul the way cities and communities across the United State manage homelessness. The Executive Order requires cities to take a far more aggressive approach to homelessness, mental illness and drug use. The Executive Order seeks to have cities break up homeless encampments and institutionalize the unhoused who suffer from mental disorders or addiction through the civil mental health commitment process. The Executive Order seeks to eliminate all federal funding for safe outdoor spaces and harm reduction programs, claiming that they promote drug use and “deprioritize accountability.
The link to read Trump’s July 24, 2025 Executive Order is here:
NEW MEXICO AND ALBUQUERQUE’S HOMELESS NUMBERS
According to the federal Housing and Urban Development’s 2024 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report Statewide, 4,631 people were counted in 2024 as homeless which is a 20.5% jump from the year before and the highest number ever recorded.
According to the New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness annual Point-in-Time count Albuquerque’s homelessness crisis has hit record levels, with 2,740 people experiencing homelessness in January 2024, including 1,231 living unsheltered. According to surveys, upwards of 75% of those counted decline and refuse city services and city shelter.
REDUCING OPERATION COSTS
On June 28, 2025 Mayor Tim Keller held a news conference to announce efforts to make major changes to the city’s Integrated Development Ordinance governing Safe Outdoor Spaces. Mayor Keller wants to ease costly rules that have stalled efforts to open more Safe Outdoor Spaces in Albuquerque, saying churches and nonprofits should be able to create legal encampments without facing major financial barriers.
With more than 2,700 people experiencing homelessness in Albuquerque, Keller wants to ease the requirements to expand the program. The proposed changes could reshape how the city responds to the homelessness over and above the shelters and programs provided by the city. The new legislation to amend the Integrated Development Ordinance is sponsored by progressive Democrat City Councilor Nichole Rogers at the request of the Mayor Tim Keller. Rogers represents District 6 in the South East area of the city which includes the International District and it has a high concentration of unhoused. Mayor Tim Keller said he is “working with Councilor Nicole Rogers to … make some tweaks” to the legislation.
NEW CREATION CHURCH SAFE OUTDOOR SPACE
As of April, 2025, New Creation Church on Zuni, is the only safe outdoor space approved by the city in the three years since the City Council authorized Safe Outdoor Spaces. Every other site was denied or applicants withdrew their applications.
In 2020, during the global pandemic, members of the New Creation Church saw an increase of people experiencing homelessness outside their doorsteps. In April 2025, the church became the first safe outdoor space approved by the city and open it in the International District. Pastor Jesse Harden said this:
“We tried to do it on our own for a little bit, thinking ignorance is bliss, right? We’re like, hey, let’s just do it ourselves, not knowing that there was laws and ordinances and things like that. We had to kind of go through the hoops, and it was a really long, painful process, a lot of paperwork, a lot of site plans and ordinances and trying to figure out all of that.”
Since opening in April, the New Creation site has served 11 people. It has space for up to 10 residents, including couples who can share tents. Pastor Harden said seven people currently live at the site. Harden said this:
“That number kind of shifts back and forth. … There’s several people on the waiting list that are being interviewed, going through the process to take those empty spaces right now.”
Residents have built what Harden called “a beautiful community,” planting flower beds, sharing meals, and supporting each other’s progress toward stability. Pastor Jesse Harden said this:
“We need as many solutions as there are people, right? Not everyone is going to go into a shelter not everyone obviously has family or friends to have a couch for.”
The link to a relied upon and quoted news source is here:
https://citydesk.org/2025/07/29/keller-seeks-to-cut-red-tape-for-safe-outdoor-spaces/
“BARRIERS” TO SAFE OUT DOOR SPACES
Pastor Jesse Harden of New Creation Church said current rules are the biggest barrier to opening more Safe Outdoor Spaces. The current ordinance requires 24/7 security, permanent showers and space for service providers, pushing security costs alone over $104,000 a year. Harden said this:
“I think the 24/7 security is probably the most significant obstacle to getting things started. It’s our highest expense. If you pay someone minimum wage to be there 24/7, it’s over $100,000 a year. So that, right there, eliminates 99% of people who try to do it.”
“Quirky Books” is a used bookstore off of Central. The stores owner Gillam Kerley attempted and failed to set up a Safe Outdoor Space. About 15 people camp each night in 10 tents in the store’s parking lot. After receiving complaints from one local business and other callers, the city gave Kerley a choice: clear out the encampment in two weeks or pay a $1,500 fine for ordinance violations. Kerley paid the fee.
Kerley said that for his business, the requirements to operate a safe space are too expensive and labor intensive. Kerley said this:
“Someone who is simply providing a place for people to camp shouldn’t be required to be a complete wraparound social services provider.”
The link to the relied upon or quoted news source is here:
https://www.abqjournal.com/news/article_af17fe14-4eba-4639-b18c-b5f1203f2ee0.html
KELLER WANTS 100 SAFE OUTDOOR SPACES ALL OVER CITY TO ACCOMMODATE 1,000 HOMELESS
Mayor Tim Keller wants to see more safe outdoor spaces throughout the city to help the unhoused. With more than 2,700 people experiencing homelessness in Albuquerque, Keller says he wants to ease the requirements to expand the Safe Outdoor Spaces program with the goal of increasing the number. The proposed changes could reshape how the city responds to record-level homelessness. Mayor Tim Keller for his part said this:
“We’ve over-regulated it such that it doesn’t even work. These rules are in our own way, and we owe it to folks [to make it easier]. The government should make life easier for people—both on the street and people who want to help—not make it harder.”
Mayor Keller said smaller Safe Outdoor Spaces locations will make a big difference and said the city needs to “scale up” by allowing smaller encampments all over the city. Keller said there are individuals either who are not ready for traditional shelters or can’t find available housing. Keller said to meet the need, the city may need as many as 100 smaller Safe Outdoor Spaces. Keller said there are many who would accept a Safe Outdoor Space and who have already turned down traditional shelters. Keller said this:
“This kind of option could make a huge difference on our streets. … It’s always worth it to help 10 people. … [Helping] even 10 people makes a huge difference in their lives and that’s never lost on me. … We think there’s at least 1,000 people on the street who would say yes to a Safe Outdoor Space and who currently say no to the Gateway system. … If you do the math, we’d need around 100 Safe Outdoor Spaces. … That’s a lot, but if each one shelters 15 or 20 people, the numbers add up fast.”
KELLER’S PROPOSED CHANGES
Mayor Keller is proposing four major changes to the Integrated Development Ordinance governing Safe Outdoor Spaces to make them more affordable and practical for churches, nonprofits and others. The four changes are:
FIRST: This change would ease the rule requiring 24/7 on-site security. Currently, sites must always have someone on duty. It’s a cost that eliminates 99% of people who establish safe outdoor spaces on their property. The proposed change would allow flexible security plans based on each site’s needs, especially for smaller communities where residents already look out for one another. Weekday business hours would be allowed for security, though one person must always remain on-call in case of complaints or emergencies.
SECOND: This change would drop the rule requiring on-site showers 24/7. Keller said that doesn’t make sense for small sites with just 10 people, where showers often go unused. Instead, mobile trailers could rotate between locations throughout the week. Keller said this
“The current law makes you basically have a shower 24/7 on the site. If you only have ten people at a site, the showers aren’t going 24/7. There are different ways to problem solve around and to have a temporary trailer that comes on different days a week. … If you’re, like living outside, you can typically find a shelter area, other than a day like today, where you can have those consultations and provide services. You don’t necessarily need dedicated space that’s then empty the rest of the time.”
THIRD: This change would eliminate the requirement for a dedicated space for service providers. Keller said many services can be handled off-site or as needed, and paying for a room that rarely gets used doesn’t make sense. Safe Outdoor Spaces would be allowed to offer a minimum of three social services, which can include peer support or recovery groups, connecting residents with housing resources or offering GED assistance or adult education.
FOURTH: This change would establish $100 application fees and $50 renewal fees, with permits lasting 12 months before requiring renewal. Sites would also be required to participate in a “Good Neighbor Program” with nearby property owners.
Mayor Keller said the updates would cut costs, reduce red tape and open the door for more churches and nonprofits to help.
KELLER’S MULTIFACETED APPROACH TO DEAL WITH HOMELESS
Since becoming Mayor in 2027, Tim Keller has made dealing with the homeless a top tier priority. Mayor Keller’s City budgets for the years 2021 to 2024 reflect the Keller administration has spent a staggering $200,000,000, or upwards of $60 Million a year, to operate shelters and provide homeless services. One major problem is that surveys and counts of the homeless reveal upwards of 75% refuse and decline city shelter and services.
Under Keller, the city is taking a multifaceted, all-in approach to get more people into houses and off the streets. The city’s Metro Homelessness Initiative has the goal to provide the unhoused staying at shelters with the opportunity of employment. The city has also overhauled its voucher program and improving collaboration with the nonprofits that do the work.
The city will have a total of 5 centers to deal with the homeless that is intended to be operated as an integrated system:
- The Gibson Gateway Shelter
- The Gateway West Shelter
- The Family Gateway Shelter
- The Youth Homeless Shelter
- The Recovery Shelter
The Gateway Center which is the former Lovelace Hospital on Gibson is the largest investment the city has ever made in health and homelessness with the goal of providing immediate help and a pathway into housing. The Gateway West shelter is the old westside jail being reshaped with no barriers to entry and wraparound services. The city is adding the Youth Gateway a Recovery Gateway, and the Family Gateway has already helped get 1,200 into permanent housing. The Recovery Gateway is for the unhoused who are struggling with drug abuse. The Family Gateway is a reworked hotel to house more than 50 families a night.
Links to quoted or relied upon news sources are here:
https://www.abqjournal.com/news/article_af17fe14-4eba-4639-b18c-b5f1203f2ee0.html
https://citydesk.org/2025/07/29/keller-seeks-to-cut-red-tape-for-safe-outdoor-spaces/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nE0UNStctTI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nE0UNStctTI
COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS
Mayor Tim Keller is seeking a third four-year term with the election to be held in 3 months on November 4, 2025. Notwithstanding it being an election year, Mayor Keller is resurrecting one of the most controversial and divisive issues dealt with by the city council in the last 3 years and which has angered the voting public in the past and will do so again. It will likely remind voters of Keller’s failures as Mayor.
RECALLING CONTROVERSY
It was on June 6, 2022 that the City Council enacted a series of amendments updating the Integrated Development Ordinance (IDO). One of the amendments was for “Safe Outdoor Spaces.” The legislation passed on a 5 to 4 vote. Voting YES to allow Safe Outdoor Spaces were 3 councilors who did not seek reelection. Voting YES were former city councilor Democrats Isaac Benton, Pat Davis and Republican Trudy Jones and Democrat Tammy Feibelkorn and Republican Brook Basan. The four city Councilors voting NO were Republicans Dan Lewis, Renee Grout and Democrats Louis Sanchez and Klarissa Pena. Mayor Tim Keller signed off on the legislation making it law.
After tremendous public anger and objections to Safe Ourdoor Spaces, Republican City Councilor Brook Bassan, who had voted “YES” and previously voiced support for safe outdoor spaces, did an about face and changed her mind. On June 22, 2022 just a few weeks after helping pass the Safe Outdoor Space amendment, Bassan introduced legislation to repeal the IDO amendment and she introduced two bills. One bill introduced would stop the city from accepting or approving safe outdoor space applications and the other would have eliminated safe outdoor spaces from the zoning code altogether.
After being repeatedly confronted at neighborhood association meetings and functions by angry constituents, Bassan issued a formal apology to her constituents saying after her initial support of Safe Outdoor Spaces she had serious doubts. She went so far as to say that the city was not ready to implement them and that they would not provide the type of relief she initially hoped. Bassan said this:
“Even though many are in support of safe outdoor spaces, way more are saying they don’t want them. … [Going forward with them] doesn’t feel right.”
Albuquerque City Councilor Louis Sanchez is considered by city hall watchers as the “swing vote” on the City Council, with the council divided with 5 Democrats and 4 Republicans. A swing vote is the deciding vote when council splits 4 to 4 on the council. There is a good chance that Keller’s elimination of Safe Outdoor Space regulation will result in a split vote of 4 to 4.
Sanchez along with former Albuquerque City Councilor Trudy Jones sponsored rules and regulations that were to govern the operation of Safe Outdoor Spaces. Sanchez said this about Keller’s now proposal to repeal of Safe Outdoor Space regulations:
“I firmly oppose any repeal of these regulations because they are essential for safeguarding both the surrounding neighborhoods and the residents living in Safe Outdoor Spaces. Without clear rules and oversight, these sites risk becoming unmanaged encampments that create more problems than they solve. I believe these regulations provide structure, accountability, and security, ensuring Safe Outdoor Spaces remain transitional, well-supervised, and focused on connecting residents to permanent housing and services. Public safety must come first, not just for those living nearby, but for the individuals using these spaces who deserve a safe, orderly environment that helps them get back on their feet.”
It is truly surprising that Mayor Tim Keller is advocating for more Safe Out Door Spaces and getting rid of the limitations and regulations on them in an election year. Perhaps voters will wake up and realize just how out of touch Keller really is on the issue. Keller’s proposed Safe Out Door Space legislation is a prime example of an elected official who refuses to learn from their own mistakes and who ignores what the public wants, demands and expects.
REVISITING “KELLERVILLE”
Mayor Tim Keller has always had an affinity for and has allowed and even condoned the unhoused to camp wherever they want and for as long as they want without enforcing vagrancy laws and prohibitions on outdoor camping on city or private property. Keller’s acquiescence and indifference to where the homeless camp has been an absolute disaster for the city. Corondo Park is the best example of Keller’s failed policies in dealing with homeless encampments.
Tim Keller was sworn in as Mayor on December 1, 2017. Up and until August 18, 2022, Keller allowed Coronado Park to become a de facto city sanctioned homeless encampment. Critics even called Coronado Park “Kellerville”.
For a full 5 year period, the Coronado Park evolved and eventually became 100% occupied by the homeless over the strong objections of surrounding property owners and businesses who pleaded with Keller to shut down the park.
With no rules, regulations on occupancy and no structure, the park degenerated into a “no man’s” land and a magnet for crime. At its height of occupancy, Coronado Park had well upwards of 125 to 150 unhoused camping at the park with no sanitation. Conditions became so bad at the park that every two weeks city crews were sent into the park, the unhoused were vacated and the park was cleaned only to allow the unhoused to return the very next day.
On August 18, 2022, the City of Albuquerque closed Coronado Park because it had become a de facto city sanctioned homeless encampment with the city evicting up to 125 unhoused who camped there nightly. During a press conference announcing its closure, Mayor Keller called the park “the most dangerous place in the state of New Mexico” even though he had the biggest hand in creating the cesspool of crime known as Coronado Park. Keller said it was imperative to close the park even without a fully formed plan for how to do it. He took no responsibility for what happened to the park yet he took credit for solving a problem he allowed to fester.
The city cited numerous reasons for closure of the park including lack of sanitation posing a severe health risks, overall damage to the park and extensive drug trafficking and violent crime, including rapes and murders at the park having reached crisis proportions. The city was spending upwards of $50,000 a month to clean up Coronado Park. The city park had an extensive history lawlessness including drug use, violence, murder, rape and mental health issues.
In 2020, there were 3 homicides at Coronado Park. In 2019, a disabled woman was raped, and in 2018 there was a murder. APD reported that it was dispatched to the park 651 times in 2021 and 312 times in 2022. There had been 16 stabbings at the park in 2 years. In 2023, APD had seized from the park 4,500 fentanyl pills, more than 5 pounds of methamphetamine, 24 grams of heroin and 29 grams of cocaine. APD also found $10,000 in cash. All the seized drugs were tied to a single bust that occurred at a nearby motel, not the park, though an APD spokeswoman said the suspect was “mainly doing all their distributions [at the park].”
https://www.koat.com/article/coronado-park-closed-homeless/40724118
SAFE OUT DOOR SPACES PRETEXT TO TRANSORMING CITY INTO SHANTY TOWN
Keller’s proposal to increase the number of Safe Outdoor Spaces and eliminate restrictions on them reflects a Mayor who has learned absolutely nothing from his failures as he only doubles down on his failure. Keller’s original legislation to allow two Safe Out Door spaces in each of the 9 city council districts has been an absolute failure with only one established. After doing nothing for 3 years in getting more established, Keller wants to get rid of the rules and regulations and is calling for 100 Safe Out Door spaces scattered throughout the city to accommodate1,000 homeless.
A major rationale for imposing the original restrictions on Safe Outdoor Spaces and limiting the number was to ensure that there would never be another “Coronado Park”. Instead, Keller wants “mini Coronado parks” throughout the city dotting the neighborhoods and landscape that residents will have to endure.
The Safe Outdoor Space restrictions are intended to limit the proliferation of homeless encampments in virtually every nook and cranny of the city. The restrictions are designed to prohibit and prevent illegal activity, such as drug use, with criminal activity and even violent crime being a major problem within the unhoused community.
Safe Outdoor Spaces and Coronado Park are Mayor Keller’s symbols and legacy of failure as the city deals its most vulnerable population, the homeless. If Keller had a lick of sense, he would abandon his efforts to establish Safe Outdoor Spaces and acknowledge that there is very little to no public support for such homeless tent encampments.
The homeless crisis will not be solved by the city, but it can and must be managed. Safe Outdoor Spaces represent a very temporary place to pitch a tent, relieve oneself, bathe and sleep at night with rules that will not likely be followed. Safe Outdoor Spaces are not the answer to the homeless crisis. The answer is to provide the support services, including food and permanent lodging, and mental health care needed to allow the homeless to turn their lives around, become productive self-sufficient citizens, no longer dependent on relatives or others.
“Safe Outdoor Spaces” represent disaster for the city. They will destroy neighborhoods, make the city a magnet for the homeless and destroy the city’s efforts to manage the homeless through housing. If the City Council allows an increase in the number Safe Outdoor Spaces and allows the reduction or eliminations of regulations for “safe outdoor spaces”, it will be a major setback for the city and its current policy of seeking permanent shelter and housing as the solution to the homeless crisis.
CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE HEARING
Mayor Keller’s proposed zoning changes reducing restrictions on Safe Outdoor Spaces will be heard by the City Council’s Land Use, Planning & Zoning Committee at 5 p.m. on August 13 in the Vincent E. Griego Chambers in the basement level of City Hall. The five members of the LUPZ committee are:
- Democrat Tammy Fiebelkorn, Chair
- Democrat Nichole Rogers
- Republican Brook Bassan
- Republican Dan Champine
- Republican Renée Grout
If the committee approves the amendments, the full City Council will take them up later this fall. Residents are encouraged to attend and voice their opinions.
CITY COUNCIL PHONE: (505) 768-3100
CITY COUNCIL AND SUPPORT STAFF EMAILS