Loretta Naranjo Lopez Guest Opinion Column: Martineztown Is Not For Sale!; City Council Should Say “No” To Metropolitan Redevelopment Plan Zoning Increasing Higher Density Development In Martineztown Historic Single-Family Neighborhoods

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Loretta Naranjo Lopez was born and raised in Albuquerque. She is a life-long resident of Albuquerque and 6th generation Martinez from Martineztown in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She has a Master of Community and Regional Planning and a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of New Mexico.  Ms. Naranjo Lopez was employed with the City of Albuquerque for 25 years of which 15 years was in the City Planning Department. She retired as a City Planner and worked as a staff planner. This position required the review and analysis of all area plans, neighborhood plans, sector plans, and resolutions and ordinances. Loretta is an activist and organizer for 35 years.  Loretta formed ARCH + PLAN Land Use Consultants, LLC and she brings many years of relevant experience. She serves as the President of the Santa Barbara Martineztown Neighborhood Association (SBMTNA). Ms. Naranjo Lopez believes that the voices of neighborhoods should be heard and brought into decision making at the City Council level.

Following is a guest opinion column written by Loretta Naranjo Lopez who gave her consent to publish her guest opinion column on www.PeteDinelli.com. She was not compensated for the column. The guest column is being published as a public service announcement.

MARTINEZTOWN IS NOT FOR SALE!

In the 1970s, the City of Albuquerque had the goal to expand downtown into the historic Martineztown Santa Barbara Neighborhood.  At that time, Martineztown residents united and told the city “Martineztown is Not for Sale.” 

Today, Martineztown residents need to be united not only in the neighborhood, but with all of Albuquerque neighborhoods. The record indicates that the City of Albuquerque, City Councilor Joaquin Baca, Mortgage Finance Authority and the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District are on a fast track to destroy all of our historic neighborhoods. The City proposes to change the zoning laws to allow higher density in the historic single-family neighborhoods. A building over 30-feet can be built next to your home without any notification.

In December 19, 2024, Santa Barbara Martineztown Neighborhood Association (SBMTNA) attended the Albuquerque Development Commission hearing to stop the City of Albuquerque Development Commission under the Metropolitan Redevelopment Office from placing the 101 Lomas NE and 229 Broadway NE in the Downtown 2050 MRA Redevelopment Plan Area.  The committee listened to the association and did not include these parcels in approving Case #24-10 – Downtown 2050 Redevelopment Plan. 

However, Councilor Joaquin Baca decided to make an amendment at the April 7, 2025 to include 101 Lomas NE and 229 Broadway NE parcels in the Downtown MR Area Boundary.  He did this without informing the neighborhood of his intent. He possibly violated the Open Meetings Act of which I filed a complaint with the Department of Justice. His policy analyst never called the association to attend this meeting.  On Monday, April 21, 2025 before the full City Council Action to approve the Downtown MR Area Boundary with this amendment, I asked Councilor Baca why he didn’t inform the neighborhood?  “He stated to me he didn’t have to inform the neighborhood and that Martineztown Santa Barbara Neighborhood would be last to receive any capital outlay money.”

On Wednesday September 24, 2025 the City Council Land Use, Planning and Zoning Committee (LUPZ) will for a second time vote to approve the Downtown 2050 Albuquerque Redevelopment Plan.  This plan includes the Martineztown Santa Barbara Metropolitan Redevelopment Area of 101 Lomas NE and 229 Broadway NE.  Please email all Councilors and say no to not include the Martineztown parcels of 101 Lomas NE and 229 Broadway NE in the Downtown MRA boundaries and neighborhood boundary.  Martineztown Santa Barbara is an adjacent historical neighborhood to Downtown and these MRA economic funds should not be taken out of the neighborhood.

 If you thought that Martineztown Santa Barbara neighborhood could not get any more bad news, you are wrong.  The City Council staff Matthew Cox has proposed to remove from the Martineztown Santa Barbara boundary 229 Broadway NE into the Downtown boundary to give total control of this property to Mayor Keller who plans to give away tax dollars from the Downtown MRA Fund from this property to a developer.  The reason City Council is amending the Martineztown Santa Barbara is to downzone the property from nonresidential to mixed use.  Mayor Keller’s developer friends potentially want to build a high-rise complex at this location.  The City of Albuquerque with the support of Councilor Baca wants to control how this vacant lot can be built.  The proposal as we understand is without any input from the Martineztown neighborhood. 

Mayor Keller, Councilor Baca and MRCOG, NMFA plan to give MFA funding and Metropolitan Redevelopment funding to developers.  These government representatives plan to remove what they call obstacles such as removing land use and regulatory barriers.  These government entities call this “site ready properties.”

The Middle Rio Grande Council of Government (MRCOG) recommends to amend zoning regulations to prohibit single-family-only developments and allow for higher-density and mixed-use developments and adjust zoning laws to allow for higher-density rental developments in areas currently zoned predominantly for single-family homes. New Mexico Finance Authority is a quasi-government entity is also stating that they will provide funding if the land is ready to develop without any government interference such as applying for a zone map amendment.

MRCOG is stating they would like to combat resistance to development. It is recommended to encourage a mix of housing options. MRCOG is also recommending a regional inventory of government-owned vacant land. This inventory would help identify publicly owned land that can be utilized to support affordable housing initiatives and maximize public benefit. The question neighborhood leaders have who is this affordable housing for and what kind of public benefit?  Do these initiatives provide an equal portion of diverse income from middle income to low income?

According to the Housing and Neighborhood Economic Development Fund (HNDEF) 2022 Report states on page 16,  “high rents, lower vacancies, and increasing demand for new real estate development characterize the office, industrial, retail, and multifamily rental markets since 2002 and suggest that while the real estate market in the Pocket is growing, these conditions have not improved local residents’ economic prospects. The Impacts of current Albuquerque planning Initiatives – These pressures will only intensify as there are many new development projects in the pipeline that will impact the local real estate market, drive demand upward, and potentially place increasing costs pressures on low-income households and local businesses. While these new developments are exciting for Albuquerque residents, they may create inhospitable economic conditions that produce neighborhood displacement of residents and small businesses and overall gentrification.  These projects include but are not limited to – the rail trail and Greater Downtown Urban Trail projects, railyards redevelopment and proposed stadium for the New Mexico United professional soccer team.”

On September 9, 2025, Santa Barbara Martineztown Neighborhood Association met with City Council staff to ask what the City is proposing to develop at 229 Broadway NE vacant land.  Matthew Cox stated they do not know what they are planning to build.  He forgot to state that the City and the other government entities have plans to destroy historical neighborhoods without any input from the community.  According to Council staff, there will be no environmental studies or economic impact studies and the reason to take out these properties out of the neighborhood boundary is so the Martineztown Santa Barbara Neighborhood will have no input in the development.

Join Envision ABQ group on Facebook to stop the City Mayor, City Council, and the Legislatures from destroying our communities for the sake of displacing our neighborhoods to provide a playground for the rich investors, developers, and their friends.  Envision believes that housing is a right not a commodity and housing is an essential foundational social policy.

Please contact your city councilor and  voice your opinion and tell them not to include Martineztown in the Downtown 2050 Redevelopment Plan.

Your help would be greatly appreciated! 

Sincerely yours,

Loretta Naranjo Lopez, MCRP, BBA, ALA

PLEASE CONTACT CITY COUNCIL

On Wednesday September 24, 2025 the City Council Land Use, Planning and Zoning Committee (LUPZ) will meet  for a second time to vote to approve the Downtown 2050 Albuquerque Redevelopment Plan.Please contact city councilors and voice your opinion.  The City Council phone number and email addresses to the councilors and their council services assistant are:

CITY COUNCIL PHONE: (505) 768-3100

CITY COUNCIL AND COUNCIL ANALYST EMAILS

DINELLI COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

All neighborhood associations in Albuquerque should be very concerned about the efforts being made to increase higher density development in historic Martineztown’s single-family neighborhoods by enactment and use of  Metropolitan Redevelopment Plan zoning. It’s an effort all neighborhood associations and the entire city has seen before but rejected by the City Council’s Land Use Planning and Zoning Committee.

The effort is nothing more than an another version of Mayor Tim Keller’s proposed R 25-167 ordinance to create a voluntary rezoning process that would let property owners switch to higher-density zoning if they want to build more housing on their residential properties.  It would have allowed duplexes, townhomes and small apartment buildings in single-family neighborhoods to increase density over objections of adjoining property owners and neighborhood associations.

Supporters of the Metropolitan Redevelopment Plan  zoning  changes that include Martineztown suggest the rezoning will increase affordable housing in the area. It will not. It’s a “Field of Dreams” zoning philosophy of “if we rezone it, they will build it,” ignoring adjacent property owner rights, favoring developers and investors.

The proposed zoning changes to the Metropolitan Redevelopment Plan involving Martinez town favors developers and investors and  will destroy the character of the historic Martineztown and lead to gentrification. It will be developers and investors on the prowl who will purchase property for the development of duplexes, townhomes and small apartment buildings in single-family neighborhoods.

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POSTSCRIPT

Article References:

Albuquerque Affordable Housing Coalition website:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1J0XyLrhORQ68CMdaad4Kjinq4tgBZ00c/view

MRCOG, MRMPO – https://albuquerqueaffordablehousingcoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/2025_Presentation_AAHC_Fnl.pdf

HNEDF 2022 Report, https://www.cabq.gov/health-housing-homelessness/documents/2022-hnedf-plan-final.pdf

Broken City, Author Patrick M. Condon

 

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About

Pete Dinelli was born and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He is of Italian and Hispanic descent. He is a 1970 graduate of Del Norte High School, a 1974 graduate of Eastern New Mexico University with a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration and a 1977 graduate of St. Mary's School of Law, San Antonio, Texas. Pete has a 40 year history of community involvement and service as an elected and appointed official and as a practicing attorney in Albuquerque. Pete and his wife Betty Case Dinelli have been married since 1984 and they have two adult sons, Mark, who is an attorney and George, who is an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT). Pete has been a licensed New Mexico attorney since 1978. Pete has over 27 years of municipal and state government service. Pete’s service to Albuquerque has been extensive. He has been an elected Albuquerque City Councilor, serving as Vice President. He has served as a Worker’s Compensation Judge with Statewide jurisdiction. Pete has been a prosecutor for 15 years and has served as a Bernalillo County Chief Deputy District Attorney, as an Assistant Attorney General and Assistant District Attorney and as a Deputy City Attorney. For eight years, Pete was employed with the City of Albuquerque both as a Deputy City Attorney and Chief Public Safety Officer overseeing the city departments of police, fire, 911 emergency call center and the emergency operations center. While with the City of Albuquerque Legal Department, Pete served as Director of the Safe City Strike Force and Interim Director of the 911 Emergency Operations Center. Pete’s community involvement includes being a past President of the Albuquerque Kiwanis Club, past President of the Our Lady of Fatima School Board, and Board of Directors of the Albuquerque Museum Foundation.