On February 27, the City of Albuquerque released a report and analysis announcing the top 3 preferred locations for the new 24/7 homeless shelter known as the “Gateway Center”. The 3 locations are:

1. University of New Mexico land next to the state laboratory, near Interstate 25 and Camino de Salud
2. Coronado Park at 3rd Street and Interstate 40
3. The former Lovelace hospital on Gibson

The Crowne Plaza Hotel, which City Councilors Diane Gibson and Trudy Jones had said should be considered as an option was eliminated by the City due to acquisition cost.

According to a city news release, 149 potential sites were originally identified through a community feedback process. That process included an “on line” survey” for people to take. Thirty 30 sites were identified. The Keller Administration scored the 30 sites “based on ownership of the location, lot size, zoning, acquisition cost, access to transportation, and proximity to services. ”

During a presentation of the report and analysis to a joint government board meeting of officials from the City, Bernalillo County and Albuquerque Public Schools (APS) government officials and community activists, officials from the Family and Community Services Department emphasized that even though 3 sites have now been identified, all the details have yet to be worked out for any one and the final site selection is far from over. Lisa Huval, the city’s deputy director for Housing and Homelessness emphasized that there is a chance the city creates multiple smaller shelters at different locations and keeps the West Side location open for overflow purposes.

City officials have said ground breaking is targeted for the summer of 2021 with starting operations in the spring of 2022.

Complete news coverage can be found at the below links:

https://www.abqjournal.com/1425469/city-releases-top-3-choices-for-new-homeless-shelter.html

https://www.krqe.com/news/albuquerque-metro/city-releases-top-three-sites-for-new-gateway-center/

https://www.koat.com/article/three-locations-chosen-as-finalists-for-new-homeless-shelter/31144656

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/city-of-albuquerque-releases-list-of-top-3-locations-for-new-homeless-shelter/5659063/?cat=500

BACKGROUND

On November 5, voters approved general obligation bonds of $14 million for a city operated 24-7 homeless shelter that will house upwards of 300. The actual cost will be $30 million and the City asked the 2020 New Mexico Legislature for the additional $14 million to complete phase two of the project, but the funding request failed.

City Hall has deemed that a 24-hour, 7 day a week temporarily shelter for the homeless as critical toward reducing the number of homeless in the city. The city owned shelter is projected to assist an estimated 300 homeless residents and connect them to other services intended to help secure permanent housing. The new facility would serve all populations, men, women, and families.

The city facility would have on-site case managers that will guide residents toward addiction treatment, housing vouchers and other available resources. According city officials, the new homeless shelter will replace the existing West Side Emergency Housing Center, the former jail on the far West Side.

The goal is for the new homeless shelter to provide first responders an alternative destination for the people they encounter on so-called “down-and-out” calls. Many “down and outs” today wind up in the emergency room even when they are not seriously injured or ill. According to city officials, in a recent one-year period, only 110 of 6,952 “down and out” people were taken by first responders to the Emergency Room with life-threatening conditions.

CITY SURVEY LOCATIONS

Initially, the City revealed 5 potential locations for the centralized emergency shelter for the homeless:

1.The old Lovelace Hospital on Gibson
2.University of New Mexico property near Lomas and Interstate 25
3.Montessa Park, south of the Sunport
4.An area near Second and Interstate 40
5.Continue to use the old West Side Jail 20 miles outside the city limits and build new facilities at that location.

Early in December, 2019 The Keller Administration set up an online survey that people were able to give input on where the 24-7 city homeless shelter should be built. There were only two specific places on the survey where the $30 million homeless shelter was being suggested to go. Those two areas were the area of 2nd Street at I-40 near downtown and a large empty lot that borders the UNM Health Sciences Center.

The survey results showed the community overwhelmingly wants the shelter to prioritize and have on-site mental health and substance abuse counseling. Further, survey respondents felt that the city needs to consider how to minimize the shelter’s impact on neighborhoods with 81% of respondents checking “appropriate public safety presence” and 67% saying on-site security needs to be included at the shelter.

DETAILS ON THE THREE TOP LOCATIONS

Following are details of the 3 locations with analysis that made the city’s initial cut:

CORONADO PARK

According to the report released by the City on February 27, building the new shelter at Coronado would cost a total of $12.7 million. The city would need to buy abutting land, which may include office space across from the park, to have enough space.

The overwhelming number of those who completed the on line city survey chose the Interstate 40 and 2nd street location as the best area for the shelter with upwards of 31% of the respondents saying the area was the best location. The area is in the same general vicinity as Coronado Park, a city park that has attracted for years many homeless people and those that feed the homeless. The city uses the park as a pickup location for those needing rides to the West Side shelter. No other location site received even half of the number of votes.

For decades, Coronado Park has become an “encampment” or one of the most popular places for the homeless to congregate during the day and sleep at night. Many times, over the years, charitable organizations or “good Samaritans” have set up “food lines” for the homeless at Coronado Park. City and zoning health inspectors have been dispatched repeatedly to the park to try and curb the serving of hot food in the area in order to curtail potential health risk to the homeless and feeding them tainted food. At one time the American Civil Liberties Union even threatened to take action against the city over its efforts to curtail serving hot food to the homeless at Coronado Park.

Marit Tully, the president of the Near North Valley Neighborhood Association said at Thursday’s meeting that Coronado Park has seen major problem over the years due to the park’s existing concentration of people who are homeless. The neighborhood area she was referring to is located north of the freeway. Tully said area residents have for years raised concerns with the city, but the city has made s little improvement. According to Telly, her neighborhood association could not support any shelter site unless the city invests just as much in the chosen neighborhood.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1425469/city-releases-top-3-choices-for-new-homeless-shelter.html

Police over the years have been dispatched over and over to take action against the homeless at Coronado Park. The use of Coronado Park by the general public is scant or significantly curtailed. To succeed at the Coronado Park location and to have the lowest impact to the area would require sufficient safety precautions including security fencing and law enforcement or security surveillance of the area. The advantage is that the City owns the land and the location is far enough from the down town area to reduce impact to downtown and residential areas. The freeway still would act as a buffer to businesses north of it.

UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO HEALTH SCIENCES CENTER

According to the city’s report and analysis, the UNM land would be free and development cost would be $12.4 million. The University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center laboratory area tied for second place in the city’s on line survey receiving 15% of the vote. UNM Health Services confirmed a few months ago in a statement released that they were talking with city officials so they can be part of the solution. Following is the statement released:

“The University of New Mexico has been in discussions with the city of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County on the best ways to address the needs of the homeless population in our community. In those discussions, the possibility of utilizing currently vacant land near the office of the medical investigator/state lab has been mentioned. Nothing has been decided and you will see from the survey that other locations are being considered.

Our mission at UNM Health Sciences is to treat every New Mexican with the highest level of care possible. Being part of the solution to address the mental health, substance use disorder and housing needs of residents goes to the heart of that mission. It is not enough to just treat those who enter our emergency department, we must invest in comprehensive, compassionate care. Partnering with local governments ensures we continue to deliver more to those in need.”

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/city-survey-results-reveal-top-picks-for-new-homeless-shelter-location/5635350/?cat=500

University of New Mexico leaders have sent mixed messaged on whether UNM land should be considered for the shelter. Dr. Paul Roth, chancellor of the UNM Health Sciences Center and chief executive officer of the UNM Health System, did say previously there are several advantages to using the UNM land for the homeless shelter including proximity to health and behavioral health facilities that are a critical part of the proposed shelter.

UNM’s Campus Safety Council, which consists of the dean of students, student body president, chief of university police and others, voted overwhelmingly in January to recommend to UNM officials and regents not to allow the shelter anywhere at UNM. According to UNM’s Campus Safety Council the facility will create a dangerous situation for students, burden campus police and hurt the university’s enrollment which has been on the decline the past 3 years.

UNM President Garnett Stokes has made it clear that no decision has been made. Stokes has said that she will keeping an open mind about the proposal, and will gather input from the campus community and others before making a recommendation to the Board of Regents.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1425469/city-releases-top-3-choices-for-new-homeless-shelter.html

LOVELACE HOSPITAL COMPLEX ON GIBSON

According to the report and analysis released by the city, the Lovelace Hospital Complex would be $14 million in acquisition and renovation costs.

Although the former Lovelace hospital on Gibson was not listed in the on line survey, 42 people who took the survey wrote it in as an option. It was not listed on the survey because the city did not have permission from the building’s owners to list it.

It was in 2007 Lovelace Medical Center closed down. It was later purchased by local private investors. The investors who purchased the former Lovelace Hospital on Gibson were Jimmy Daskalos and Nick Kapnison. Nick Kapnison is one of the owners of “Nick and Jimmy’s” Restaurant, Mikinos Creek Restaurant and Papa Fillipes. Mr. Nick Kapnison is a highly respected businessman and community activist.

The Albuquerque Journal recently reported that Nick Kapnison donated $3,500 to Mayor Keller’s Charitable Foundation. The Charitable Foundation has raised $250,000 from private donors for city initiatives. The Mayor’s Charitable Foundation recently gave the City $20,000 to provide additional housing vouchers for the homeless. The link to the Journal report on the donations is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/1421506/familiar-businesses-back-abq-foundation.html

The Loveless facility is a 529,000-square-foot building and upwards of 50% of it is said to be vacant. According to one news report, an estimated $10 million in upgrades in the Lovelace Hospital Complex, including remodeling for specific tenants, improving common areas and the parking lot and installing a 540-ton cooling unit out back were made. Parts of the building date back to 1950 and what was then known as the Lovelace Clinic, and as a result the need for any asbestos remediation is subject to speculation and has not been reported on by the news media.

https://www.abqjournal.com/774956/medical-center-at-old-lovelace-hospital-might-expand-to-other-uses.html

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Since assuming office as mayor on December 1, 2017, Tim Keller has said that a 24-hour, 7 day a week facility to temporarily shelter the homeless within the city is critical toward reducing the number of homeless in the city. Mayor Keller actively campaigned for voters to approve $14 million in general obligation bonds of for the homeless shelter that has an actual cost of $30 million.

During last year’s 2019 legislative session, the city sought $28 million for the Gateway project. The legislature funded only $985,000 last year for construction costs. This year Mayor Keller sought $14 million from the New Mexico legislature in state funding for the “Gateway Center” homeless to match $14 million that city voters approved in the last bond election. The 2020 legislature refused to fund the project.

With only $14 million in place, the city only has enough to complete the first phase of the project. The city will now have to find funding elsewhere within the city budget or wait another year to ask for funding in the 2021 legislative session.

The City of Albuquerque has an operating budget of $1.1 billion for the fiscal year that began July 1, 2019 and ends on June 30, 2020. It was the first time in city history that the city operating budget exceeded the $1 Billion figure. The 2019-2020 budget represented an overall 11% increase in spending over the previous year. On April 1, 2020, the Keller Administration will be releasing the 2020-2021 proposed city budget for review, public hearings and final approval by the City Council. It will be interesting if Mayor Keller will be including the additional $14 million to complete the “Gateway Center” Homeless Shelter.

The Keller Administration did say that although 3 locations have been identified, the city’s site selection is ongoing and new locations continue to emerge. Included in the process will be a fiscal analysis of each site and determining the financial limitations to complete the project. Each site under serious consideration will require a financial analysis, including land acquisition cost, before the Keller Administration makes any final recommendations to the City Council.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1416684/i402nd-street-choice-for-new-homeless-shelter-ex-more-survey-respondents-favored-centralized-location-for-homeless.html

There is no doubt as the debate rages on where to put the Keller 24-7 City Homeless Shelter, there is a likelihood a large segment of the voting public will get upset, no matter how necessary the shelter is needed. Keller wants to break ground for the new shelter in the summer of 2021 which is when the race for Mayor begins to heat up, which is what happened with the ART Bus construction project.

Many will be watching exactly what is Mayor Tim Keller’s preferred location for the shelter which is the location likely the City Council will adopt. If not handled properly by building a consensus, Mayor Tim Keller will be adding the location of the 24-7 city homeless shelter location he has advocated since being elected to the list of issues that could conceivably divide large segments of the city and deprive him of a second term.

Mr. Michael Dickson has been a resident of Albuquerque for over forty years. He is a former, two-term, City of Albuquerque Environmental Planning Commissioner. Michael Dickson is an artist and retired architect. He was the Director of Design, Principal Designer and Senior Principal at one of New Mexico’s largest and most prestigious architectural firms.

Recently, Mr. Dickson worked with the Greater Albuquerque Business Association, as a volunteer, to develop a conceptual masterplan for “Gabriel’s Village”, a not-for-profit residential homeless campus envisioned to serve homeless; families, veterans, men and women that have fallen on economic hard times and just need some help building their lives, finding the right job and learning new market-driven job skills, so they can reenter main stream society and become self-sufficient productive and contributing citizens.

Below is a guest column submitted by Michael Dickson to this blog for publication:

“The University of New Mexico’s proud motto, Lux Hominum Vita, means, Light the Life of Man. These well-chosen words are intended to encapsulate the beliefs and ideals of this heralded institution.

If done properly, ABQ and UNM could make this new on-campus Homeless Shelter the template and role model for our nation’s war on homelessness. Wouldn’t it be nice for us to be on the top of some “good” lists for a change? Let’s join the vanguard and be “part of the solution”?”

DISCLAIMER:

The opinions expressed in the foregoing guest opinion column written by Michael Dickson and are those of Mr. Dickson and do not necessarily reflect those of the www.petedinelli.com blog. Further, Mr. Dickson paid no consideration for its publication and has given his consent to publication. www.PeteDinelli.com has not been paid any compensation to publish the guest column.

On February 25 Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham held a major press conference to sign into law the “Extreme Risk Firearm Protection Order Act” also known as a “red-flag” gun bill that will allow firearms to be temporarily taken away from those deemed dangerous to themselves or others. The Governor placed the “red flag gun bill” on the 30-day legislative agenda thereby making it one of her top initiatives during the session. The new law will take effect May 20, which is 90 days after the 2020 New Mexico legislative session ended. New Mexico is now the 18th state to adopt such a “red flag” law.

NEW MEXICO’S “EXTREME RISK FIREARM PROTECTION ORDER ACT” PROVIDES FOR DUE PROCESS OF LAW

The “Extreme Risk Firearm Protection Order Act” or red flag law does contain significant safe guard provisions that protect a citizen’s 2nd, 4th and 14th Amendment Rights. The court proceeding and the process under the new red flag law and how it works is summarized as follows:

“A law enforcement officer, or a prosecutor in cases involving a law enforcement officer, are allowed to file a petition in State District Court for an order to prohibit someone from possessing firearms.

All firearms are required to be returned to their owner within 10 days after an order’s expiration.”

https://www.abqjournal.com/1424533/gov-lujan-grisham-signs-red-flag-gun-bill-into-law.html

Exclusive authority is given to law enforcement to make the decision to file a petition and the petition must be based on whether there’s “probable cause” to believe the individual “poses a significant danger of causing imminent personal injury to self or others.” Law enforcement officials will have to explain their decision with the filing of a court notice if they decide not to seek a judge’s order after receiving a report and evidence in support of the petition.

The “Extreme Risk Firearm Protection Order Act” signed by the Governor is a natural progression of the 2019 New Mexico Legislature passage of legislation which prohibits gun possession by someone who’s subject to an order of protection under the Family Violence Protection Act. Under the enacted legislation domestic abusers must surrender their firearms to law enforcement. The gun possession prohibition also applies to people convicted of other crimes.

GOVERNOR’S COMMENTS

On her FACEBOOK page, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham posted the following:

“Today I signed into law an important measure enhancing public safety and reducing the risk of mass gun violence, creating extreme-risk protection orders and empowering law enforcement officers to temporarily disarm individuals who present a clear danger to themselves or others in emergency situations. With this life-saving legislation, New Mexico has balanced individual rights and public safety in a responsible way that will reduce our unacceptable suicide rate and other forms of gun violence. Today we are standing up – we do not accept the status quo; we do not accept the risk posed by dangerous armed individuals who have articulated their desire to cause harm. This law is a good public safety measure, and if it saves even one life, and it will, we will have done good work here.”

During her press conference, the Governor said this:

“If we can make a difference for one person, that’s the right difference to make. … We know this is a meaningful tool to address gun violence.”

RENEWED OPPOSITION

During both the 2019 and 2020 legislative sessions, 30 of the state’s 33 elected county sheriff’s strenuously objected to the legislation as did virtually all Republican lawmakers. Elected sheriffs mounted a strong lobbying campaign to defeat passage to the point of appearing before the legislative committees in mass, fully uniformed and armed to make their point of disdain for the legislation.

The County Sheriffs repeatedly spoke out against the gun legislation during legislative committee hearings. Some elected sheriffs testified that they simply would not enforce the legislation if it became law. 28 of New Mexico’s counties and municipalities in the state also passed “Second Amendment Sanctuary” ordinances in defiance to the legislative enacted gun control measures.

https://bearingarms.com/tom-k/2019/03/22/nm-sec-state-rejects-gop-petition-put-gun-control-ballot/

After the Governor’s press conference, the New Mexico Sheriffs’ Association announced that a court challenge will be filed before the law takes effect in an attempt to block it from being implemented.

Cibola County Sheriff Tony Mace, the Chairman of the New Mexico Sheriffs’ Association had this to say:

“They’ve made this bill so horrible that we can’t [enforce it]. … Somebody hasn’t even committed a crime, and you’re taking their personal property.”

Chaves County Sheriff Mike Herrington said recently before county commissioners:

“This just violates too many constitutional rights for us to even enforce”

Despite the coordinated opposition to the “red flag law” by elected county sheriffs, some law enforcement officials backed it, including Governor Lujan Grisham’s appointed State Police Chief Tim Johnson and Albuquerque Police Department (APD) officials, including Deputy Chief Harold Medina who testified in favor of the legislation.

GOVERNOR’S RESPONSE TO SHERIFF’S OPPOSITION

During the press conference where she signed into law the “red flag law”, Governor Lujan Grisham was asked about sheriffs’ resistance. Lujan Grisham said elected law enforcement officials should resign if they are not willing to enforce the state’s laws including the new “red flag” by saying:

“They have to enforce the law. They take an oath to do that. … [They] don’t get to make those decisions.”

The Governor did say that her administration would not retaliate by withholding funding from any counties that do not enforce the law. She also added that she believes law enforcement officers will eventually come around and decide to enforce it.

REPUBLICAN OPPOSITION TO RED FLAG LAW

As all Republicans cast their votes against the “red flag law” , they held up copies of the Constitution to show their objections to the law. Democrats should have held up copies of “death certificates” to symbolize victims of New Mexico domestic gun violence and suicides.

NEW MEXICO’S SUICIDE RATE

Most gun deaths in New Mexico are a result of suicide and therefore the state’s suicide rate is a critical part of the debate when it comes to a red flag law. Overall, the state suicide rate is 21.9 deaths per 100,000 people, which is more than 50% higher than the national average. Ten counties in New Mexico that are largely rural areas of the state have suicide rates at least twice the national average, which is 14 suicide deaths per 100,000 people. Studies in states that have “red flag laws” and that have “risk-based firearm seizure laws” were associated with reduced suicide rates.

NEW MEXICO’S DOMESTIC VIOLENCE RATE

On September 16, 2017, according to an annual study published by the Violence Policy Center, it was reported women are more likely to be killed by men in New Mexico than nearly any other state.

http://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/new-mexico-s-rate-of-women-killed-by-men-among/article_eb7e4a2c-273d-5eb6-8007-e5936639b64f.html

The study found that New Mexio has the 10th-highest rate of women killed by men, marking the third straight year New Mexico had appeared toward the top of the list, while New Mexico’s overall homicide rate ranked lower.

Current statistics are 1 in 3 New Mexico women will experience domestic violence in their lifetime. 18,000 domestic violence calls were made in 2017 with 8,000 calls made in Albuquerque. 30% of the calls had a child as a witness. Nationwide 3 women are killed daily from domestic violence.

New Mexico has ranked among the top 10 states with the highest rates of women killed by men during the last decade. The Violence Policy Center promotes gun control and found that each state at the top of the list of women killed by men have a high rate of firearm ownership which no doubt includes New Mexico’s gun culture.

CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS

The 2nd, 4th, and 14th Amendments to the United States Constitution are part of the Bill of Rights. All three are often cited by the National Rifle Association (NRA), gun rights advocates and gun fanatics as prohibiting any meaningful and reasonable gun control legislation. The Amendments are as follows:

The 2nd Amendment to the United States provides in part:

“… the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

The 4th Amendment provides:

“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things … “

The 14th Amendment provides:

“No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham is 100% correct that elected law enforcement officials should resign if they will not enforce the state’s laws including the new “red flag”. The new red flag law is not a violation of the United States Constitution nor Bill of Rights as Republican law makers and County Sheriffs argue and it should be enforced. To refuse to enforce the law is a dereliction of duty and is grounds for removal.

WARPED INTERPRETATION OF THE BILL OF RIGHTS

Elected sheriffs who oppose the red flag law and refuse to enforce it show a serious ignorance of how the Bill of Rights and United States Constitution work. They also show a serious ignorance of the law. They have a warped interpretation of constitutional rights that have rotted out all of their common sense and prevent any reasoning with them which is the mentality of gun rights fanatics and the National Rifle Association.

The 2nd, 4th and 14th Amendments are not absolute rights and are often cited by gun fanatics and the National Rifle Association (NRA) to oppose any and all kind of reasonable gun control legislation. Each separately and together have limitations and exceptions, are subject to court interpretations and are not black and white restrictions with no exceptions.

The reality is that there are many limitations under the law and to our constitutional rights guaranteed by the 2nd, 4th and 14th amendments. Convicted and violent federal felons, who are still citizens of the United States, lose the “right to keep and bear arms” provided by the 2nd Amendment and in fact are given enhanced sentences for gun possession and use of a gun in the commission of a crime. Search warrants based on “probable cause” used by law enforcement for the seizure of personal property, including guns, are not “unreasonable searches and seizure” prohibited by the 4th Amendment. Despite what Sheriff Tony Mace says that property will be taken from people who have committed no crime, it is likely that his department and officers over the years have secured search warrants and taken property based on “probable cause” from people who have not committed a crime. Court orders and injunction relief secured with supporting sworn affidavits, evidence and testimony in civil petitions to the court provide for due process of law and do not violate the 14th Amendment.

In the “heinous world” of domestic violence and mass shootings, and the world mental illness and suicide where people cannot escape their demons and are imprisoned in their minds with no escape, those who use guns are more interested in doing harm to others or themselves and could not careless about their constitutional rights. In the “real world”, many would say law enforcement violate constitutional rights whenever they sign off on a search warrant based on “probable cause” to seize private property. Search warrants based on probable cause are used daily as an effective tool to gather evidence of a crime. Extreme Risk Protection Orders require probable cause that a person poses and immediate threat to themselves or others before guns can be seized and for that reason are similar to search warrants relied upon by law enforcement.

Given New Mexico’s high suicide rates, domestic violence killings with guns and the threat of mass shootings, it is shameful that any elected New Mexico county sheriff are far more concerned about “second amendment rights” that they believe exist that allows almost anyone, including those who are likely to harm themselves and others and to have a firearm of their choosing. The elected sheriff’s hide behind the 2nd, 4th and 14th Amendments so as not to protect or enforce the rights of others who have the rights of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” just as much guaranteed under the constitution as the right to bear arms.

The elected sheriffs who oppose the meaningful gun control legislation that the red flag law represents ignore their duty and responsibilities “to serve and protect the general public” that elected them. They choose to promote their own fanatical “pro-gun” political philosophy and their own personal interpretation of the law and constitutional rights.

New Mexico’s Domestic Violence cases make up a large share of violent crime cases. The public’s safety and enactment of laws for the protection of those that easily become victims of gun violence, even by family members, should be law enforcement’s priority, not enforcing only those laws they feel that conform to their own “pro-gun” philosophy. The enactment of laws is the responsibility of the legislature, not law enforcement. The meaning and interpretation of the laws enacted is the responsibility of the court’s, and not of law enforcement.

ELECTED SHERIFFS CANNOT ENFORCE ONLY THOSE LAWS THEY AGREE WITH

Elected County Sheriffs have an ethical and legal obligation to honor their oaths of office. They cannot pick and choose what laws the agree with and want to enforce. Elected County Sheriffs who refuse to enforce the law are also asking taxpayers to assume the financial risk of their decision to impose their personal views over the law. There is a real possibility that a relative of a dead crime victim in a domestic violence case will sue a county sheriff for negligence and wrongful death when that sheriff refuses to seek a protective order asked for by the crime victim to seize guns where there was enough probable cause evidence to secure it, but the sheriff declines saying such protective orders based on probable cause violate the constitution.

Any elected County Sheriff who refuses to enforce the new red flag law should resign immediately and allow elected county commissions to appoint law enforcement who will respect their oath of office and set aside political philosophy and political agendas. A refusal by sheriffs to enforce the law should justify the Attorney General to send letters suspending a sheriff’s law enforcement certification.

CONCLUSION

Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham is commended and deserving of major kudos with her signing of New Mexico’s new red flag law. It should not come as a surprise to anyone that she supported and signed the legislation. Throughout her many years in congress, she consistently supported reasonable gun control legislation. For decades reasonable gun control legislation has gone nowhere in the National Rifle Association Republican controlled congress.

The Governor’s Office now needs to send copies of the “EXTREME RISK FIREARM PROTECTION ORDER ACT” to all 33 elected County Sheriffs as well as elected District Attorneys along with a letter. The letter should tell the elected County Sheriff’s in no uncertain terms that they have the legal obligation to enforce the red flag law. In the event they refuse to enforce the law they should resign or the District Attorneys should seek the Sheriffs removal from office. Further, the New Mexico Attorney should suspend the law enforcement certifications of any sheriff who refuses to enforce the law.

Too many have died in New Mexico from suicides and domestic violence to the point that “gun rights fanaticism” that places gun rights over victims rights has no place in law enforcement.

For a related blog article see:

Elected County Sheriffs Who Refuse To Enforce Reg Flag Law Need To Resign; Suspension Of Law Enforcement Certifications Appropriate Remedy

Albuquerque City Councilors Diane Gibson and Trudy Jones are suggesting that the Crowne Plaza Hotel near the Big I interchange be acquired and be converted to the new Gateway Center for the homeless. The property has 450 guest rooms spanning the 12-story Crowne Plaza-branded tower and the neighboring three-story Fairfield Inn. The two hotel/motels are located at Menaul and University boulevards and are currently packaged together for sale. The asking price is $16 million. City Councilor Diane Gibson never disappoints being an embarrassment to her constituents. This is the same City Councilor who wanted the city to buy vacant or foreclosed upon homes in her District 7 district to convert to homeless shelters.

https://www.krqe.com/news/albuquerque-metro/city-considers-hotel-near-big-i-as-potential-site-for-homeless-shelter/

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/city-councilor-suggests-crown-plaza-hotel-as-potential-location-for-new-homeless-shelter/5649042/

Making a high-rise hotel into a homeless shelter, complete with pool and spa type facilities, now that’s the ticket to disaster with so many balconies available for the mentally ill to be talked down from by authorities. The Gateway Homeless shelter is supposed to be transitional housing that will also provide medical care and psychiatric care and not provide a vacation from living on the streets. Nothing like a 12-story homeless shelter tower adjacent to the Big-Eye for thousands to see each day who take the freeway to remind us all just how serious the city is struggling with with some of the highest homeless rates in the country.

This blog article is a deep dive discussion of the many locations that are being considered for the Gateway Homeless shelter.

BACKGROUND

On November 5, voters approved general obligation bonds of $14 million for a city operated 24-7 homeless shelter that will house upwards of 300. The actual cost will be $30 million and the City asked the 2020 New Mexico Legislature for the additional $14 million to complete phase two of the project, but the funding request failed.

City Hall has deemed that a 24-hour, 7 day a week temporarily shelter for the homeless as critical toward reducing the number of homeless in the city. The city owned shelter is projected to assist an estimated 300 homeless residents and connect them to other services intended to help secure permanent housing. The new facility would serve all populations, men, women, and families.

The city facility would have on-site case managers that will guide residents toward addiction treatment, housing vouchers and other available resources. According city officials, the new homeless shelter will replace the existing West Side Emergency Housing Center, the former jail on the far West Side.

The goal is for the new homeless shelter to provide first responders an alternative destination for the people they encounter on so-called “down-and-out” calls. Many “down and outs” today wind up in the emergency room even when they are not seriously injured or ill. According to city officials, in a recent one-year period, only 110 of 6,952 “down and out” people were taken by first responders to the Emergency Room with life-threatening conditions.

THE NEED EXISTS FOR SHELTER

Each year the “Point in Time” (PIT) survey is conducted to determine how many people experience homelessness on a given night in Albuquerque, and to learn more about their specific needs. The PIT count is done in communities across the country. The PIT count is the official number of homeless reported by communities to the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to help understand the extent of homelessness at the city, state, regional and national levels. The PIT count represents the number of homeless people who are counted on one particular night.

This year, the count in Albuquerque was made on January 28, 2020. According to the 2020 Point-In-Time count, there are 1,524 sheltered and un-sheltered homeless people counted in Albuquerque. Government agencies and nonprofits report that the city’s homeless numbers are greater than the 1,524 found by “a point in time survey” and the number of homeless in Albuquerque approaches 4,500 in any given year.
The Keller Administration estimates that 5,000 households will experience homelessness over the course of any given year.

According to some reports, approximately 80% of the cities chronic homeless are suffering from mental illness. The city does provide extensive services to the homeless that include social services, mental or behavioral health care services, substance abuse treatment and prevention, winter shelter housing, rent assistance and affordable housing development, just to mention a few.

CITY SURVEY LOCATIONS

Initially, the City revealed 5 potential locations for the centralized emergency shelter for the homeless:

1.The old Lovelace hospital on Gibson
2.University of New Mexico property near Lomas and Interstate 25
3.Montessa Park, south of the Sunport
4.An area near Second and Interstate 40
5.Continue to use the old West Side Jail 20 miles outside the city limits and build new facilities at that location.

Early in December, 2019 The Keller Administration set up an online survey that people were able to give input on where the 24-7 city homeless shelter should be built. There were only two specific places on the survey where the $30 million homeless shelter was being suggested to go. Those two areas were the area of 2nd Street at I-40 near downtown and a large empty lot that borders the UNM Health Sciences Center.

The city’s other options for the shelter in the survey were very broad. Those locations included the northeast heights, the south valley area, and the north valley area. There were only 5 questions on the survey. The first question on the survey was as follows:

“1.What is your location preference for the new Homeless Shelter?
I-40 and Second Street Area
Other location in Downtown Area
UNM Health Sciences Center south of the State Laboratory
Northeast Heights Area
North Valley Area
Southeast Heights Area
South Valley Area
Current Location (Westside Center/Former Bernalillo County Jail)
Other location in the Westside Area
Other – Please provide suggestions for a location in box below.”

The city survey was posted for 7 weeks on the city web site and ceased on January 15. The survey had more than 3,200 people who participated in it. The survey is only part of an ongoing process to get community input and the city has held meetings open to the public and has included focus groups.

SURVEY RESULTS ANNOUNCED

On February 4, 2020, the City released the results of the survey. You can read news coverage here:

https://www.koat.com/article/survey-asks-where-you-think-homeless-shelter-should-be/30773348

https://www.abqjournal.com/1416684/i402nd-street-choice-for-new-homeless-shelter-ex-more-survey-respondents-favored-centralized-location-for-homeless.html

The survey results showed the community overwhelmingly wants the shelter to prioritize and have on-site mental health and substance abuse counseling. Further, survey respondents felt that the city needs to consider how to minimize the shelter’s impact on neighborhoods with 81% of respondents checking “appropriate public safety presence” and 67% saying on-site security needs to be included at the shelter.

Despite the survey results, city officials are continuing to evaluate multiple locations. Mayor Keller has not made it known where he wants the shelter to be built, but has said he wants to start building it next winter. The Keller Administration is planning on discussing locations with the City Council at a meeting in March.

CORONADO PARK

The overwhelming number of those who completed the city survey chose the Interstate 40 and 2nd street location as the best area for the shelter with ppwards of 31% of the respondents saying the area was the best location. The area is in the same general vicinity as Coronado Park, a city park that has attracted for years many homeless people and those that feed the homeless. The city uses the park as a pickup location for those needing rides to the West Side shelter. No other location site received even half of the number of votes.

For decades, Coronado Park has become an “encampment” or one of the most popular places for the homeless to congregate during the day and sleep at night. Many times, over the years, charitable organizations or “good Samaritans” have set up “food lines” for the homeless at Coronado Park. City and zoning health inspectors have been dispatched repeatedly to the park to try and curb the serving of hot food in the area in order to curtail potential health risk to the homeless and feeding them tainted food. At one time the American Civil Liberties Union even threatened to take action against the city over its efforts to curtail serving food to the homeless at Coronado Park.

Police over the years have been dispatched over and over to take action against the homeless at Coronado Park. The truth is, the use of Coronado Park by the general public is scant or significantly curtailed. Given the fact that Coronado Park is South of I-40 and Second Street Area, one of the top tier sites being considered for the shelter, the city is probably seriously considering re-dedicating Coronado Park as the final location for the shelter.

To succeed at the location and to have the lowest impact to the area would require sufficient safety precautions including security fencing and law enforcement or security surveillance of the area. The advantage is that the City owns the land and the location is far enough from the down town area to reduce impact to downtown and residential areas. The freeway would act as a buffer to businesses north of it.

UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO HEALTH SCIENCES CENTER

The University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center laboratory area and the city’s existing West Side emergency shelter tied for second place with both receiving 15% of the vote. The “Other location in Downtown Area” received 9% of those surveyed.

There is a vacant owned by UNM Health Services and it confirmed in a statement released that said they’re talking with city officials so they can be part of the solution. Following is the statement released:

“The University of New Mexico has been in discussions with the city of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County on the best ways to address the needs of the homeless population in our community. In those discussions, the possibility of utilizing currently vacant land near the office of the medical investigator/state lab has been mentioned. Nothing has been decided and you will see from the survey that other locations are being considered.

Our mission at UNM Health Sciences is to treat every New Mexican with the highest level of care possible. Being part of the solution to address the mental health, substance use disorder and housing needs of residents goes to the heart of that mission. It is not enough to just treat those who enter our emergency department, we must invest in comprehensive, compassionate care. Partnering with local governments ensures we continue to deliver more to those in need.”

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/city-survey-results-reveal-top-picks-for-new-homeless-shelter-location/5635350/?cat=500

LOVELACE HOSPITAL COMPLEX ON GIBSON

Although the former Lovelace hospital on Gibson was not listed on the survey, 42 people who took the survey wrote it in as an option. It was not listed on the survey because the city did not have permission from the building’s owners to list it, but it remains under consideration. It was in 2007 Lovelace Medical Center closed down and was later purchased by local private investors. According to one news report, the investors spent an estimated $10 million on upgrades, including remodeling for specific tenants, improving common areas and the parking lot and installing a 540-ton cooling unit out back. The facility is a 529,000-square-foot building and upwards of 50% of it is said to be vacant. Parts of the building date back to 1950 and what was then known as the Lovelace Clinic, and as a result the need for any asbestos remediation is subject to speculation and has not been reported on by the news media.

https://www.abqjournal.com/774956/medical-center-at-old-lovelace-hospital-might-expand-to-other-uses.html

WESTSIDE CENTER (FORMER BERNALILLO COUNTY JAIL)

The inclusion in the survey of the current Westside Center, which is the former Bernalillo County Jail 20 miles outside of the city, resulted in severe criticism by the public and the media.

On December 23, the Albuquerque Journal published an editorial entitled “Keller must reverse course on his shelter bait and switch”. The Journal excoriated Keller in no uncertain terms for including the Westside jail on the list of shelter locations being considered.

The Journal pointed out that Keller campaigned aggressively to get the $14 million in bonds past for a new location saying the west side jail was not sustainable and there was a need for a centralized location in the city for the homeless to be able to easily get services they need. The Journal went so far as to say “Keller ought to be ashamed of himself”.

You can read the Albuquerque Journal editorial published on December 23, entitled “Keller must reverse course on his shelter bait-and-switch” at this link:

https://www.abqjournal.com/1403579/keller-must-reverse-course-on-his-shelter-baitandswitch.html

OBJECTIONS TO LOCATING IN DOWNTOWN AND NEAR UNM CANCER CENTER

On December 20, a KRQE News 13 investigative report uncovered emails that show the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce and the University of New Mexico Cancer Center are at odds over where the City of Albuquerque’s homeless shelter should be built. The emails obtained show groups representing both do not want the shelter to be built near them. In an email, chamber leaders make it clear they want the homeless shelter to go near the UNM Health Sciences center and ask people to vote for that location on the city survey.

There are proposed locations near downtown, but having the homeless shelter there does not fit with the Chamber’s vision of what downtown should be. The Chamber has said through a spokesperson that the homeless dissuades people from going downtown.

Norm Becker, who works for the Chamber of Commerce and leads a team trying to make downtown more appealing, was interviewed and said he thought the homeless downtown is the biggest problem in making downtown more attractive. He also said the University of New Mexico Health science location is the best location and not downtown and said:

“If it was downtown, the access to services, the behavioral health services, and the mental health services don’t exist downtown. They exist at the UNMH health sciences center. … I think if [UNMH] saw what I saw they would say this is not only good but it’s better than what we have today, even if it is in my backyard. … I didn’t say I didn’t want it downtown. There’s no place to put it downtown.”

Another email uncovered was written by the head of the UNM Cancer Center, Dr. Cheryl Willman. She says many of the 400 doctors and staff are concerned about the homeless shelter bordering their offices. According to Willman, they don’t know the homeless shelter design or what access to it will be like and it could cause safety issues to the hospital employees.

https://www.krqe.com/always-on/uncovered-emails-show-fight-brewing-over-location-for-new-albuquerque-homeless-shelter/

OBJECTIONS VOICED TO THE USE OF UNM LAND NORTH OF LOMAS, EAST OF INTERSTATE 25

Although some of the University of New Mexico (UNM) community have voiced support to build a homeless shelter on university property, opposition to the use of UNM land north of Lomas, east of Interstate 25 have now been revealed. On January 22, in a memo to UNM President Garnet Stokes from UNM’s Campus Safety Council, it was revealed that the Campus Safety council overwhelmingly voted v 11-1 against the shelter and to recommend that UNM not allow the shelter anywhere at UNM. According to the council, such a move could create a dangerous situation for students, strain limited police resources and hurt the school’s already sliding enrollment. The UNM Security Council is comprised of the Chief of University Police, the Dean of Students, the UNM Emergency Manager, the ASUNM Student Body President and others.

UNM’s Campus Safety Council wrote to President Stokes as follows:

“The [council] believes that campus safety and the perceptions of safety have led and will continue to lead to a decline in enrollment and having the Gateway Center located on university property will contribute and increase the safety issues we have experienced on campus and in the surrounding areas where students live. … If the [shelter] were located on university property the (council) wonders if that would impact our [crime] statistics, potentially leading to an even greater perception that the campus is unsafe.”

https://www.abqjournal.com/1421259/disaster-warning.html

CITY RESPONDS TO SURVEY RESULTS

Carol Pierce, the Director of the Family and Community Services Department, said the West Side shelter was included in the survey because it is property and a building already owned by the city. The city’s West Side shelter is 20 miles from Downtown and the is paying upwards of $1 million a year to transport people back and forth to the shelter, a cost the city says is unsustainable, especially for a 24-7 facility.

Pierce said the West-side shelter makes little sense as a long-term location given what was learned in the survey and what the community wants in a 24-7 shelter. Survey participants overwhelmingly chose “easy access to support,” such as medical and mental health care, and “easy access to transportation” as major requirements as to where the shelter should be built. While the city has not completely ruled it out for the shelter, Pierce said its limitations will be very problematic given lack of access services that are needed and that are located withing the city limits.

ONGOING PROCESS

The Keller Administration has said that the city’s site selection is ongoing, site wide-ranging, and new locations continue to emerge. Included in the process is identifying more sites, doing a fiscal analysis and determine the financial limitations to complete the project. Each site under serious consideration will require a financial analysis, including land acquisition cost, before the Keller Administration makes any final recommendations to the City Council.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1416684/i402nd-street-choice-for-new-homeless-shelter-ex-more-survey-respondents-favored-centralized-location-for-homeless.html

SOCCER STADIUM VERSUS HOMELESS SHELTER

During the 2020 legislative session that ended on February 20, Lawmakers voted to approve a $528 million spending package for public works projects. Each state senator and state representative was given $3.047 million for projects they deem were necessary in their districts.

The public works bill approved by legislators included $4.1 million to plan for a new professional soccer complex in Albuquerque. The $4.1 million will go toward the design, planning and construction of a sports and cultural center, including art exhibits, playing fields and dining and retail space. The $4.1 in funding is intended to be applied to the effort to build a soccer stadium for New Mexico United, a professional team in Albuquerque. The team now plays at Isotopes Park and within a year must have a permanent dedicated stadium.

It is estimated that it will cost $75 million to build a 15,000-seat stadium. United owner Peter Trevisani said the team is prepared to put $1 million or more funding into the planning and design phase for the stadium, which would include a site and project funding analysis. Other potential funding sources include naming rights and borrowing money backed by future stadium revenues commonly referred to as revenue bonds.

The $528 Million capital spending package contains no large infusion of funding set aside to help Albuquerque build the “Gateway Center” homeless shelter that would be open around the clock seven days a week. The capital outlay bill includes a mere $50,000 for the Gateway Center construction, fall short of what is needed to complete the project. The bill does contain $4 million for supportive housing for homeless, but that money cannot be used for construction costs of the shelter. With only $14 million in place, the city only has enough to complete the first phase of the project. The city will now have to find funding elsewhere within the city budget or wait another year to ask for funding in the 2021 legislative session. During last year’s 2019 legislative session, the city sought $28 million for the project. The legislature funded only $985,000 last year for construction costs.

No real reasons have been reported why the New Mexico legislature declined to help with the “Gateway Center” funding that is needed to complete it. Speculation from Santa Fe legislative observers have said that the New Mexico legislature does not believe. According to State Representative Moe Maestas, the lack of concrete plans and the city is still evaluating shelter probably affected legislative funding for the shelter.

Legislator’s feelings that the homeless is a City of Albuquerque problem is plain wrong and wishful thinking on their part. Each year, the “Point in Time” (PIT) survey is conducted to determine how many people experience homelessness on a given night, and to learn more about their specific needs. According to the PIT, New Mexico had the nation’s largest percentage increase in homelessness from 2018 to 2019 in the nation with an increase of 27%. New Mexico also had a 57.6% increase in chronic homelessness last year, also the highest in the nation. The percentage increase in Albuquerque’s homeless population alone rose by 15%. In New Mexico there were 2,464 homeless people in 2019 and of that total, 1,283 persons, or about 52%, were chronically homeless.

ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARY

Many business organizations, including the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Albuquerque Business Association (GABA) and neighborhood associations, believe that there is too big of a concentration of homeless providers in the downtown area. They believe that if the city builds yet another facility in or near downtown, it will only exasperate the problems, create even more problems and attract more homeless to locate in Albuquerque.

KELLER’S DIMINISHED INFLUENCE IN SANTA FE

Mayor Tim Keller is a former State Senator and former State Auditor who resigned each time in the middle of his terms to run for another office. Since assuming office as mayor on December 1, 2017, Tim Keller has deemed that a 24-hour, 7 day a week facility to temporarily shelter the homeless within the city as critical toward reducing the number of homeless in the city. Mayor Keller actively campaigned for voters to approve general obligation bonds of $14 million for the homeless shelter that has an actual cost will of $30 million.

Mayor Keller sought $14 million in state funding for the “Gateway Center” homeless project to match $14 million that city voters approved in the last bond election. With only $14 million in place, the city only has enough to complete the first phase of the project. The city will now have to find funding elsewhere within the city budget or wait another year to ask for funding in the 2021 legislative session.

During last year’s 2019 legislative session, the city sought $28 million for the project. The legislature funded only $985,000 last year for construction costs.

Although included in his 2020 legislative package request for the City, Mayor Keller suffered a major setback to his efforts to address what he considers a major priority of his administration indicating his influence in Santa Fe is diminished. Mayor Keller ostensibly attempted to get the city’s New Mexico House and Senate delegations to at least consider contributing portions of each of their $3.047 million for capital projects out of the $528 million spending package approved for public works projects, but no one made a contribution of funds. Instead the legislature decided to fund a new soccer stadium. Mayor Keller has been advocating for the construction of a new soccer stadium for United New Mexico with the city identifying 3 potential sites which reveals his own priorities for funding between a soccer stadium and a homelessness shelter saying the city needs both with the soccer stadium getting the funding.

2021 MUNICIPAL ELECTION ISSUE

Major issues that will no doubt be up front and center as Mayor Tim Keller seeks a second term in 2021 include the city’s murder rate, violent crime rates and property crime rates, the DOJ consent decree reforms not fully implemented, the failed disastrous ART Bus project that Keller embraced and completed that has now destroyed historical Route 66 and Mayor Keller signing off on a $55 million dollar tax increase without a public vote as he promised.

There is no doubt as the debate rages on where to put the Keller 24-7 City Homeless Shelter, there is a likelihood a large segment of the voting public will get upset, no matter how necessary the shelter is needed. Keller wants to break ground for the new shelter in the winter of 2021 which is when the race for Mayor begins to heat up, which is what happened with the ART Bus construction project.

Many will be watching exactly what is Mayor Tim Keller’s preferred location for the shelter which is the location likely the City Council will adopt. If not handled properly by building a consensus, Mayor Tim Keller will be adding the location of the 24-7 city homeless shelter location he has advocated since being elected to the list of issues that could conceivably divide large segments of the city and deprive him of a second term.

A February 20th KOAT TV Target 7 investigation into the Albuquerque Police Department’s (APD’s) response times revealed an alarming level of time time it takes APD to respond to 911 emergency calls. The time it takes for APD to respond to priority 1 calls in all likely has a major impact on increasing physical injury. It was reported that it takes APD 23 minutes longer to get to an emergency call than it did 8 years ago. There has been an astonishing 93% increase since 2011 with response times getting worse every year since.

In 2011, the average response time to all calls, whether it was a life or death emergency or a minor traffic crash was 25 minutes. In 2019, that time period spiked to 48 minutes in the average response time.

https://www.koat.com/article/apd-response-times-continue-to-climb/31028667

UNDERLYING CAUSE OF DELAYS

The main reason for the dramatic increase in response times is a reduction in the number of sworn police with a corresponding increase in calls for service and 911 emergency calls. Not at all surprising is that when you examine APD’s manpower levels over the past nine years, response times were quicker when there were more sworn police assigned to the field services.

On December 1, 2009, the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) was staffed at 1,100 police officers. At the time, APD was the best trained, best funded, best equipped and best staffed in the history of the police department. The city’s overall crime rates were significantly lower than they are today.

For the full 8 years from December 1, 2009 to December 1, 2017, APD spiraled down wards as a result of poor management, budget cuts, police salary cuts and an investigation by the Department of Justice (DOJ) resulting in a finding of a “culture of aggression” within the department. The DOJ investigation resulted in a federal lawsuit and a consent decree mandating major reforms to APD and included the appointment of a federal monitor. When Mayor Keller took office on December 1, 2017, APD had plunged to approximately 870 full time police officers and the numbers went down even further to 830 at one time.

Early 2011, APD was staffed with nearly 1,100 sworn police cops. In 2011, it took an average of 25 minutes for an officer to get to respond to a 911 emergency call. It was in 2016 that APD’s manpower dropped. Currently, APD has about 950 officers.

On August 1, 2019, the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) issued what it entitled “Staffing Snapshot” providing a report on the number of sworn police officers APD has and where they have been assigned. According to the report, APD as of August 1, 2019 had a total of 972 sworn officers with 600 officers in the field patrolling 6 area commands and neighborhoods. The snapshot does not account for time delays from Human Resources and Payroll that have effective dates and retirements into the future.

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/apd-staffing-numbers-how-many-officers-are-in-your-neighborhood-/5449523/?cat=500

As of January 1, 2020, according to pay stubs on file with the city, APD has 950 sworn police officers. The loss of 22 sworn police can be attributed to retirements and the Police Academy not keeping up with replacing officers. There is an APD Academy Class in session that should result in 35 to 40 more new officers added to the force in the Spring.

Although last year APD hired 117 sworn police, including laterals, not all of those officers are patrolling the streets with upwards of 60 sworn police assigned to the compliance bureau of APD for the Department of Justice Court Approved Settlement Agreement CASA) Order Consent decree.

APD ADDS NEW PRIORITY CALL CATEGORIES AS ATTEMPT TO REDUCE RESPONSE TIME

The Albuquerque Emergency Communications Center has been trying to reduce response times for several years. In March, 2019 it was reported that 911 changed what is called the “priority system.”

Before when a call would come in, it was given one of three priorities based on it’s level of importance. With so few priorities, however, calls like someone locking a dog in a car was given the top priority. That was the same importance as if someone with a gun was robbing someone.

On March 6, 2019, APD announced that the way it was dispatching police officers to 911 calls was changed. 911 calls expanded priority the list to include a total of five categories a opposed to 3.

Call priorities were generally on a scale of 1 to 3 with 1 being the highest or most important type of call.

For decades APD had a three priority 911 dispatch system defining the calls as follows:

A PRIORITY 1 call is a felony that is in progress or there is an immediate threat to life or property.

A PRIORITY 2 call is where there is no immediate threat to life of property. Misdemeanor crimes in progress are priority 2 calls.

A PRIORITY 3 call is any call in which a crime has already occurred with no suspects at or near the scene.

Routine events and calls where there are no threat to life or property are priority 3 calls.

http://isr.unm.edu/reports/2009/analyzing-calls-for-service-to-the-albuquerque-police-department..pdf

In 2018, Albuquerque Police Department (APD) police officers were dispatched to 476,726 calls for service. The 2018-2019 City general fund performance measures contained in the 2018-2019 fund budget, reflects significantly more calls for service with the projected number of calls for service reported as 576,480, and the actual number being 580,238.

Under the new system, a Priority 1 call is “any immediate life-threatening situation with great possibility of death or life-threatening injury or any confrontation between people which could threaten the life or safety of any person where weapons are involved.” A major goal of the new system was to determine what calls do and do not require a police officer.

A Priority 5 call is a where a crime has already occurred and there “is no suspect at or near the scene and no threat of personal injury, loss of life or property.”

In announcing the change in policy, APD Public Information Officer Gilbert Gallegos had this to say:

“What we want to do is get officers to the scene of a call as quickly as possible for the most urgent calls, and by that I mean calls where there is a life-threatening situation. … Basically we’re adapting to the situation where we’re trying to make the system much more efficient and much more effective “.

https://www.krqe.com/news/politics-government/city-changes-the-way-officers-are-dispatched-to-calls/1829973373

APD stresses every call is different and depending on the circumstances of that call the level of priority can always change. The single most compelling reason for the change is that it was taking way too long to dispatch police officers after a call is received. Police are now being dispatched to calls where an officer is not always needed freeing up resources.

Under the new 5 call policy, police officers only run code lights and sirens to life-threatening situations like a shooting, stabbing, armed robbery, or a crime where a weapon is involved. Under the system, the public are asked to go to the telephone reporting unit to make a report and APD will not dispatch officers unless it meets some other criteria elevating the call. For the lower priority calls where an officer isn’t needed, callers have three ways to file a report: online, over the phone, or at any police substation.

APD PERFORMANCE MEASURES REPORTED IN 2019-2020 GENERAL FUND BUDGET

Whenever response time for 911 of calls is discussed, it must be viewed in the context of how those calls are broken down with respect to types of crime, arrests, number of police officers. The City budget is a “performance based” budget where yearly, the various departments must submit statistics reflecting job performance to justify the individual department budgets.

According to the 2019-2020 approved budget, in the last fiscal year APD responded to the following:

Number of calls for service: 580,238
Average response time for Priority 1 calls (immediate threat to life or great bodily harm): 12:26 minutes, (NOTE: The National standard 9 minutes.)
Number of felony arrests: 9,592
Number of misdemeanor arrests: 18,442
Number of DWI arrests: 1,403
Number of domestic violence arrests: 2,356

You can review the performance measures of APD on page 211 of the budget here:

http://documents.cabq.gov/budget/fy-19-approved-budget.pdf

REAL NUMBERS OF SWORN OFFICERS RESPONDING TO CALL

APD has an approved general fund budget for fiscal year 2019-2020 of $188.9 million dollars, which represents an increase of 10.7% or $18.3 million above last year’s budget. According to the approved budget, APD has 1,560 approved full-time positions with 1,040 sworn police budgeted positions and 520 budgeted civilian positions. The links to city hall budgets are here:

http://documents.cabq.gov/budget/fy-19-approved-budget.pdf (Page 209)

https://www.cabq.gov/dfa/budget/annual-budget

The Albuquerque Police Department (APD ) has five major bureaus:

1. The Field Services Bureau
2. Investigative Bureau
3. The Compliance Bureau
4. The Administrative support Bureau
5. The Support Services Bureau

Each bureau has a Deputy Chief appointed by the APD Chief of Police.

APD divides the city into six geographical areas called “area commands.” Each area command is managed by an APD Commander (formerly called Captains) and staffed with between 82 and 119 officers, depending on size of the area command and level of calls for service. All officers are dispatched through the police communications operators by calling (505) 242-cops for non-emergency calls or 911 in an emergency.
APD also has 3 divisions that are separate from the other divisions and they are:

1. The Bike Patrol
2. Operations Review
3. Others

https://www.cabq.gov/police/contact-the-police/area-commands

UPDATED STAFFING REPORT

On August 1, 2019, the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) issued what it entitled “Staffing Snapshot” providing a report on the number of sworn police officers APD now has and where they have been assigned. According to the report, APD as of August 1, 2019 a total of 972 sworn officers with 600 officers in the field patrolling 6 area commands and neighborhoods. The snapshot does not account for time delays from Human Resources and Payroll that have effective dates into the future.

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/apd-staffing-numbers-how-many-officers-are-in-your-neighborhood-/5449523/?cat=500

It is the field services bureau that forms the front line of sworn officers that repond to emergency calls for service. Following is the complete breakdown of sworn police assignments:

FIELD SERVICES BUREAU — TOTAL STAFFING: 600 (Out of 970)

The field service bureau’s primary function is to provide uniformed police officers throughout the city and at the six police substations and area commands. Officers assigned to field services handle calls for service and patrol the area commands in 3 separate shifts. These are the sworn police in uniform that are on the front line of law enforcement dealing with hundreds of thousands of calls for service a year. This is where the “rubber hits the road” when it comes to keeping neighborhoods safe and community-based policing.

The number of sworn officers assigned to each area command is somewhat fluid and based on the number of calls for service in the area command. Area commands with higher crime rates have always had far more officers assigned than those that have lower crime rates.

One Deputy Police Chief is appointed to oversee and manage the Field Services Bureau.

Following is a breakdown of sworn police assigned to each one of the area commands:

SOUTHWEST AREA COMMAND

The Southwest Area Command is bordered by Interstate 40 the north, the Rio Grande to the east, the South Valley to the south, and Albuquerque city limits to the west. Following is the staffing reported:

58 Patrol Officers, 1 Commander, 3 Lieutenants, 7 Sergeants

VALLEY AREA COMMAND

The Valley Area Command is bordered by the Albuquerque city limits to the north and south, Interstate 25 to the east, and the Rio Grande, Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, and the North Valley to the west. This Area Command has an extensive history of having the second highest crime rates in the City. Following is the staffing reported:

67 Patrol Officers , 1 Commander, 3 Lieutenants, 6 Sergeants, 2 School Resource Officers

SOUTHEAST AREA COMMAND

The Southeast Area Command is bordered by Interstate 40 to the north, Eubank Boulevard to the east, Kirtland Air Force Base and Albuquerque city limits to the south, and Interstate 25 to the west. This Area Command has an extensive history of having the highest crime rates in the city. Following is the staffing reported:
89 Patrol Officers, 4 Lieutenants, 9 Sergeants, 2 School Resource Officers

NORTHEAST AREA COMMAND

The Northeast Area Command is bordered by Albuquerque city limits to the north, Eubank Boulevard to the east, Interstate 40 to the south, and Interstate 25 to the west. This Area Command has a more recent history of increasing crime rates in the city, especially residential break-ins and robberies. Following is the staffing reported:
78 Patrol Officers, 1 Commander, 3 Lieutenants, 8 Sergeants, 2 School Resource Officers

FOOTHILLS AREA COMMAND

The Foothills Area Command is bordered by San Antonio NE to the north, the Sandia Foothills to the east, Kirtland Air Force Base to the south, and Eubank Boulevard to the west. This Command Area has some of the lowest crime rates in the City. Following is the staffing reported:
57 Patrol Officers, 1 Commander, 2 Lieutenants, 8 Sergeants, 3 School Resource Officers

Northwest Area Command

The Northwest Area Command is bordered by Albuquerque city limits to the west and north, the west bank of the Rio Grande to the east, and Interstate 40 to the south. This Command Area has some of the lowest crime rates in the City. Following is the staffing reported:

59 Patrol Officers, 1 Commander, 3 Lieutenants, 7 Sergeants, 1 School Resource Officers

INVESTIGATIVE BUREAU – TOTAL STAFFING: 173

The Investigative Bureau consists of Criminal Investigations Division, the Special Investigations Division, Scientific Evidence Division and the Real Time Crime Center. This bureau deals primarily with the completion of felony investigations and prepares the cases, including evidence gathering and processing scientific evidence such as DNA, blood and fingerprints, for submission to prosecuting agencies, primarily the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office. Units in the bureau include homicide and auto theft. Following is the staffing reported:

142 Detectives, 1 Deputy Chief, 3 Commanders, 6 Lieutenants, 10 Sergeants

COMPLIANCE BUREAU – TOTAL STAFFING: 61

The Compliance Bureaus consists of the Internal Affairs Professional Standards Division, Policy and Procedure Division, Accountability and Oversight Division, Internal Affairs Force Division and the Behavioral Health and Crisis Intervention Section. One of the major concentrations of this bureau is the ongoing cooperation with the Department of Justice (DOJ) consent decree (CASA) and its implementation of its terms and conditions. Internal Affairs deals with investigation police misconduct cases. Crisis Intervention deals with the crisis intervention teams who deal with the mentally ill. Policy and Procedures deals with the review and writing of standard operating procedures.

Following is the staffing reported:

40 Detectives, 1 Deputy Chief, 3 Commanders, 1 Deputy Commander, 6 Lieutenants, 10 Sergeants

SUPPORT SERVICES BUREAU – TOTAL STAFFING: 116

The Support Services Bureau is comprised by the Homeland Security and Special Events Division, the Metro Traffic Division, the Records Division, the APD Police Academy, and the Public Safety Districts such as the Downtown Public Safety Division. Following is the staffing reported:

68 Officers, 1 Deputy Chief, 2 Commanders, 8 Lieutenants, 20 Sergeants, 6 Cadets/Pre-hires

ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT BUREAU – TOTAL STAFFING: 43

This bureau provides clerical, secretarial, administrative, budgetary preparation and grant application support to the entire APD Department. Following is the staffing reported:
34 Officers, 1 Deputy Chief, 1 Commander, 2 Lieutenants, 4 Sergeants

SPECIAL OPERATIONS AND TACTICAL UNIT – TOTAL STAFFING: 30

This unit consists of the Special Weapons and Tactics Unit (SWAT). SWAT is trained to deal with situations of unusual danger, especially when requiring aggressive tactics or enhanced firepower, as in rescuing hostages, thwarting terrorist attacks or assassinations, and subduing heavily armed suspects. Following is the staffing reported:

24 Officers, 1 Commander, 2 Lieutenants, 3 Sergeants

BIKE PATROL- TOTAL STAFFING: 16

The bike patrol is what the name implies: Uniformed police ride on bikes an patrol the areas assigned to show a police presence such as in the Downtown Central Area, the City Plaza and Nob Hill. A total of 16 officers are assigned to the Bike Patrol.

OPERATIONS REVIEW

Police operations is generally defined as standard operating procedures, review of job duties, responsibilities, and activities that law enforcement agents complete in the field. 7 Officers, 4 Lieutenants and 5 Sergeants are reported as staffing Operations Review.

OTHER SWORN POLICE: TOTAL STAFFING 51

There are 41 APD recruits, laterals and sergeants assigned to on-the-job training.

10 sworn APD are assigned to etro Court officers to provide security to the Metropolitan Court and Mayor’s security detail that provides protection to the Mayor and security to the Mayor’s Office.

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

It’s no wonder that with only 600 out of 980 sworn police in field services handling call for service that response times are dangerously high. The high response times by APD to Priority 1 calls for service are unacceptable on so many levels and pose a clear threat to the city’s public safety. Every year from January 8, 2010 to mid-2015, response times for Priority 1 by APD have risen.

https://www.abqjournal.com/608132/calling-911-expect-longer-wait-for-an-apd-officer.html

Midway through 2015, APD response time to “Priority 1” calls, which included shootings, robberies, finding dead bodies and car wrecks with injuries, was 11 minutes and 12 seconds. In fiscal year 2016, APD actual response time to “Priority 1” calls was 11 minutes and 35 seconds. In fiscal year 2017, APD actual response time to “Priority 1” calls was 12 minutes and 16 seconds. In 2019, that time period spiked to 48 minutes as the average response time.

There is no doubt rising response times over the years by APD was a side effect of the dwindling police force that went from 1,100 police officers in 2010 to 853 sworn police in 2017, the lowest number of sworn police officers since 2001. Aggravating the increase in response time to 911 Priority 1 calls was the increase in the overall number of calls for service. The dramatic increase in the city’s overall crime rates, violent crime rates and the city’s population also increased response times beyond the national average of 10 minutes.

The Keller administration is spending $88 million dollars, over a four-year period, with 32 million dollars of recurring expenditures to hire 350 officers and expand APD from 878 sworn police officers to 1,200 officers in order to return to community-based policing. The Keller Admiration also negotiated with the police union significant APD pay raises and bonuses and an aggressive hiring and recruitment program offering incentives to join or return to APD.

When it comes to violent crimes such as aggravated domestic violence cases, rapes, murders and armed robberies, seconds and minutes can make a difference between life and death of a person. City officials project that by the summer of 2020, APD will employ a total of 980 sworn police. With the establishment of new categories priority call and the addition of more police the APDs response time should have a dramatic decline, but it has not.

With more police officers and the change in Priority 1 categories, APD should be able to better dispatch and save resources, yet overall response times continue to climb to dangerous levels.

Erika Wilson, the 911 Director had this to say:

“I think APD is doing the best it can with the resources it has.”

The truth is, that is a very weak excuse by any one’s standard as is 48-minute average response time being inexcusable.

Currently, there are 61 sworn police assigned to the compliance bureaus, which includes APD Internal Affairs. There are 40 detectives involved with the Department of Justice reform enforcement. Those 40 officers would be better utilized in the field services patrolling the streets and bringing response times down to more respectable levels.

People in Albuquerque will never genuinely feel safe or have confidence in APD as long as they know when they make a 911 call for help, it may take upwards of 48 minutes before you see a uniform, if not longer, or perhaps not at all.

Over a year ago on January 7, 2019, Mayor Tim Keller announced the creation of the One Albuquerque Foundation. It’s a foundation formed by the city to collect donations from the general public to support city initiatives and projects. According to the city’s website page:

“… the endowment Fund raises funds in support of and to supplement measurable city priorities, including the housing voucher program for people experiencing homelessness, recruiting and retaining public safety officers, expanding opportunities for young people in Albuquerque, and equipping our workforce with the skills they need to succeed. Additional funding for these priorities will accelerate progress and help scale significant investments the City is already making go much farther, much faster.”

The web page described the fund as akin to the Mayor’s Charity Ball which raised money to be distributed to charitable efforts. It really is not, because with the Mayor’s Charity ball, the money raised was given to charitable causes, while the One Albuquerque Fund collects donations for the city and gives it to city priorities and projects, not charitable organizations or causes.

ONE ALBUQUERQUE FOUNDATION IS A 509(A)(3) SUPPORTING ORGANIZATION

On September 23, 2019, city officials estimated that the One Albuquerque Foundation could bring in as much as $400,000 annually. At the time, the city said it intended to apply donations to first responder recruitment, homelessness reduction efforts, youth programming and workforce development. Mayor Keller for his part said of the One Albuquerque Foundation:

“Every day, people in Albuquerque ask how they can step up and be part of addressing our city’s greatest challenges.”

According to news reports, the One Albuquerque Foundation is a 509(a)(3) supporting organization under the Internal Revenue (IRS) Code. Internal Revenue Service regulations state:

“A supporting organization is a charity that carries out its exempt purposes by supporting other exempt organizations, usually other public charities. … This classification is important because it is one means by which a charity can avoid classification as a private foundation, a status that is subject to a more restrictive regulatory regime.”

The One Albuquerque Foundation has no designated staff but it does have a board of directors. The board president is Charles Ashley III. A contract for fundraising has been negotiated by the board and the board makes necessary staffing decisions according to city spokeswoman Jessie Damazyn.

The city says the foundation complies with the Inspection of Public Records Act (IPRA), New Mexico’s sunshine law. Some local foundations that exist solely to support public entities do not adhered to IPRA. The University of New Mexico Foundation is the best example. According to city spokeswoman Jessie Damazyn, the foundation “will comply with IPRA at the direction of Mayor Keller.”

https://www.krqe.com/news/albuquerque-metro/one-albuquerque-fund-raises-17000-to-help-the-homeless/

https://www.abqjournal.com/1369627/donations-support-police-retention-recruitment.html

DONATIONS ANNOUNCED

On January 6, 2020, a year from the date it was created, Mayor Tim Keller held a press conference at a Downtown restaurant attended by city officials and members of the business community to formally launch the “One Albuquerque Fund”. Mayor Keller announced that since the One Albuquerque Fund was announced, the fund has raised $200,000. According to One Albuquerque Foundation president Charles Ashley III, none of the money currently in the fund came from diverting money from existing city programs.

During the press conference, the foundation presented checks of $5,000 to fund APD police recruitment efforts and $20,000 to provide additional housing vouchers for the homeless. The foundation’s board of directors has identified four areas that it wants to provide funding to:

1. Police recruitment
2. Job training
3. Homeless and
4. Youth initiatives

During the press conference Mayor Tim Keller had this to say about the One Albuquerque Foundation:

“[This is] the best way for the city to partner with businesses, individuals, nonprofits and foundations, because we’re all in this together as One Albuquerque. [It allows the city to better] facilitate public-private partnerships to deal with some of our biggest issues.”

https://www.abqjournal.com/1407588/new-foundation-will-support-city-initiatives.html

35 ENTITIES AND INDIVIDUALS DONATE $248,250 TO KELER’S FOUNDATION

On February 7, the Albuquerque Journal reported that the Albuquerque One Foundation has raised nearly $250,000. Records provided by the city pursuant to a request for public records show most of the money is not coming from individual citizens but rather a cross section of well-known businesses and individuals. The donations that make up the $250,000 are not small donations from people but are in the thousands made by a few.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1421506/familiar-businesses-back-abq-foundation.html

All told, 35 entities and individuals donated $248,250 to the fund. A breakdown of the larger donations made are as follows:

Garcia Subaru: $50,000. This is the single largest donation. Garcia Subaru is owned by the Garcia family, which also own several car dealerships, including Honda, Volkswagen, Infiniti, Cadillac, Mercedes, Jaguar, Land Rover and Alfa Romeo. The Garcia family also own significant parcels of commercial real estate in the Old Town Area and has a stake in the New Mexico United professional soccer team, with the city currently looking for a new site for a soccer stadium.

Comcast: $10,000 Comcast is the city’s cable contract provider.

New Mexico Gas Co.: $10,000. New Mexico Gas Co. has a utility franchise agreement that is subject to renewal with the city and pays a franchise fee to the city.

Blue Shield of New Mexico: $10,000. Blue Shield in the past has been a health care provider insurance carrier to city hall employees.

Netflix: $10,000. In 2018, Mayor Keller signed off on a $4.5 million city economic incentive package to assist NETFLEX in its purchase of Albuquerque Studios.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1239976/mayor-signs-off-on-netflix-deal.html

Golden Pride Chicken: $20,000, owners Larry and Dorothy Rainosek.

Frontier Restaurant: $5,000, owners Larry and Dorothy Rainosek.

Restaurants such as Golden Pride and the Frontier Restaurant must maintain a license to do business with the city and are subject to the zoning and code enforcement regulations including health code inspections.

Fresquez Concessions: $20,000. Fresquez Concessions has the current contract to run all the food and beverage concessions at the Albuquerque International Sunport.

Bradbury Stamm Construction: $10,000. Braburry and Stamm was the main general contractor for the $130,000,000 Art Bus Project and consistently bids on city construction contracts.

Property management company RMCI: $10,000. RMCI currently lists commercial properties in Albuquerque for sale.

Only six people made donations under their individual names. Those individuals making donations include:

Doug Brown, the president of the University of New Mexico Board of Regents: $5,000

Gary Goodman, the real estate developer behind Winrock Town Center: $5,000. Winrock Town Center is being developed under a Tax Increment District (TID) with all construction and development subject to City Planning Department review and approval

Nick Kapnison, owner of Nick and Jimmy’s Restaurant, Mikinos Creek Restaurant and El Patron Mexican Restaurant: $3,350.

Restaurants must maintain a license to do business with the city and are subject to the zoning and code enforcement regulations including health code inspections.

MAYOR KELLER PERSONALLY INVOLVED WITH SOLICITING DONATIONS

Mayoral spokeswoman Jessie Damazyn confirmed that many contributions made to the One Albuquerque Foundation came in response to face-to-face requests made by Mayor Tim Keller himself to meet with donors. Damazyn did not say exactly how many of the existing donors Keller met with personally to solicit contributions, but said that he had talked with “nearly all” of those on the list of 35 as well as many others “in contexts from coffees to community events to speaking engagements about how they can play a role from volunteering to donating.”

Golden Pride and Frontier owner Larry Rainosek said he donated the $25,000 after a meeting with Keller that the mayor’s office had arranged with him. Rainosek said he did not think his contribution bought influence with the mayor. However, he said the meeting about the foundation that eventually cost $25,000 gave him a long-awaited opportunity to air his grievances about Albuquerque Rapid Transit (ART) project and some changes he would like to see in the future.

Rainosack was a strong opponent of the ART Bus project and made it known that the ART Bus project was a disaster to his Frontier Restaurant and destroyed the character of Route 66. Rainosek is a highly respected and successful businessman. He should be entitled to express his opinion just like any other citizen without having to make any kind of donation requested by the Mayor, but none the less he obviously felt compelled to make the donation especially when he said:

“[Mayor Keller] had his agenda … and I had mine. … We always try to do things that will benefit the city and community”.

OVERSIGHT DEPARTMENTS FOR CORRUPTION

There are two primary, independent departments that function independent from the Mayor’s Office and City Council that that are primarily tasked for investigation of misconduct within city hall: the City Office of Independent Audit and the Office of Inspector General. Both can initiate investigations on their own. The City of Albuquerque Office of Independent Audits is designed to promote transparency, accountability, efficiency and effectiveness of City government. The responsibilities of the office of Inspector General include:

• Investigation of suspected corrupt City elected and appointed leaders
• Investigation of employees suspected of misconduct
• Investigations of suspected fraud, waste, mismanagement and abuse

https://www.cabq.gov/inspectorgeneral

https://www.cabq.gov/audit

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

The propriety of Mayor Tim Keller scheduling meetings to solicit private denotations for his charitable foundation from those who do business with the city or who interacts with city departments and who want to talk with him is so very, very wrong on so many levels with respect to ethical conduct and the appearance of impropriety. The solicitations by Mayor Keller during city business smacks of “pay to play” at worst and at best gives the appearance of impropriety and the exertion of political influence to compel donations from those who do business with the City of Albuquerque, either by contract or being regulated by city departments.

Donations of $50,000, $20,000, $10,000 and $5,000 as were made in the political world more likely than not come with the expectations of at least access to the elected official or a candidate and even commitments to be performed. What is very disturbing is that Keller had his office arranged the meetings, had the private conversations, but nothing is disclosed as to what was discussed, how the donation amounts were determined nor what commitments, if any were made, by Keller to the donors or the donors to Keller. On November 5, election night, Keller made it known on an election night radio program he is running for a second term in 2021. It is reasonable to assume that Keller when he solicited the donors to his foundation also solicited their support of him for his reelection bid and even donate to his campaign when the time was right. Arm twisting to make donations, even with Mayor Keller’s smile and knack for pleasant conversation and likeability, is still arm twisting and influence peddling.

The biggest argument that is being made publicly for the creation of the One Albuquerque Fund by Mayor Keller is that institutions such as the Albuquerque Public Schools, Central New Mexico Community College and the University of New Mexico all have their own foundations to support those entities and the City of Albuquerque should have its own foundation. The argument is bogus. The City has unilateral taxing authority that can be enacted by the City Council whenever it chooses while all the other institutions must rely upon the New Mexico Legislature for their funding. It is highly doubtful the One Albuquerque foundation is a 509(a)(3) supporting organization because the city is not a charity that carries out its exempt purposes by supporting other exempt organizations or other public charities. It’s a government entity responsible for essential services.

It is difficult to understand Mayor Keller’s motivation with One Albuquerque Foundation when he says “[This is] the best way for the city to partner with businesses, individuals, nonprofits and foundations … .” Simply put, no its not. The Albuquerque Community Foundation has been in existence for decades that is doing many of the things being suggested for One Albuquerque. Charitable donations from the general public are difficult enough as it is for private charitable organizations such as the United Way and the Albuquerque Community Foundation and now they have to compete with the Mayor’s One Albuquerque Foundation so he can say “we are all in this together”. The “United Way” charitable foundation sends the very same message and at one time city hall employees were allowed to participate in “United Way” fundraising and it was discontinued by Keller’s predecessor.

It is a pathetic practice for any government entity and its elected Mayor to solicit donations from the general public to carry out it duties and responsibilities to the public, especially when it has already allocated millions to specific causes in a $1.1 Billion budget such as police recruitment, job training and vouchers to provide temporary housing for the homeless. The City of Albuquerque is bloated not only with a $1.1 Billion Budget, but $55 Million Tax Increase revenues from a 2019 enacted tax that Keller agreed to breaking a his campaign promise to raise taxes without a public vote, a $35 Million Orphan Month Windfall as well as $30.5 million in lodger tax bond revenues. Mayor Keller’s approach is to ask for even more funding for his charitable foundation. Such a request reflects a total disconnect from reality. It reflects management negligence and an inability to live within one means and always demanding more.

To be perfectly blunt, Mayor Tim Keller needs to knock it off with his solicitation of donations for his charitable foundation from people who do business with the city, disavow any connection with it and step back and have a clean break from the foundation. Further, the Offices of General Counsel and Independent Audit need to review the fund-raising activities of the Mayor for the foundation and determine if his efforts were unethical and the propriety of the Foundation. At a bare minimum, all 35 donors need to be interviewed to determine what promises and commitments were made and if done in the context of any re election bid.

In the eyes of many city hall insiders, observers and and a few city hall confidential sources, Keller engaged in unethical conduct with his Charitable Foundation, but his top Administration Officials have gone along with it without any objection because he is “the Mayor”. For Keller to continue with the solicitation of donations by him will only make things worse and tarnish his reputation even further and no doubt will become an issue as he seeks a second term.

_______________________________________

POSTSCRIPT

On Thursday, February 20, the Albuquerque Journal published the following editorial:

Editorial Headline: ABQ may need a foundation, but not fundraiser in chief

“The One Albuquerque Fund sounds like a good idea. Launched last year by the city, it is designed to attract additional resources “in support of and to supplement city priorities.” Some examples: spending on police recruiting, housing vouchers and workforce development.

If Keller wants the One Albuquerque Fund to succeed and prosper, with no political taint, he can’t be fundraiser in chief as well as mayor. He needs to remove himself from the fundraising process and let the foundation rise or fall on the work it does.”

This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1422529/abq-may-need-a-foundation-but-not-fundraiser-in-chief.html

COMMENTARY

The Albuquerque Journal editorial was a lot more diplomatic than I was in my blog article. As far as I am concerned the Journal let Keller off way too easy. My reasons are clear, Keller made a reputation as State Auditor to run for Mayor on the carefully cultivated image of being a crusader against “waste, fraud and abuse” of public money. Charitable donations are no different. To be perfectly blunt, Mayor Tim Keller needs to knock it off with his solicitation of donations for his charitable foundation from people who do business with the city, disavow any connection with it and step back and have a clean break from the foundation. Further, the Offices of General Counsel and Independent Audit need to review the fund-raising activities of the Mayor for the foundation and determine if his efforts were unethical and the propriety of the Foundation. At a bare minimum, all 35 donors need to be interviewed to determine what promises and commitments were made and if done in the context of his reelection bid.