It was on November 14, 2014 that the City of Albuquerque, the Albuquerque Police Department (APD)  and the United State Department of Justice (DOJ) entered into a stipulated Court Approved Settlement Agreement (CASA) after the DOJ  completed an 18^th month investigation of APD.  The DOJ found that APD had engaged in a pattern of excessive use of force and deadly force and that a “culture of aggression” existed within APD. The Court Approved Settlement Agreement mandates 271 police reforms, the appointment of a Federal Monitor and the filing of Independent Monitor’s reports (IMRs) on APD’s progress implementing the reforms.

On November 9, 2022, Federal Court Appointed Independent Monitor James Ginger filed his 16th Report on APD’s Compliance Levels with the settlement. The 16th reporting period  covers the time period of February 1, 2022, through July 31, 2022. The link to review the entire 16th Federal Monitors report is here:

https://www.cabq.gov/police/documents/959-221109-imr-16.pdf

HEARING HELD ON 16^TH FEDERAL MONITOR’S REPORT

On December 6, Federal District Court James Browning, who oversees the settlement, held an all-day remote  hearing  to review the report.   The Federal Monitor reported that as of the end of the IMR-16 reporting period, APD’s compliance levels are as follows:

Primary Compliance: 100% (No change)
Secondary Compliance: 99% (No change)
Operational Compliance: 80%. (10% increase from 70%)

Under the terms and conditions of the settlement agreement, once APD achieves a 95% compliance rate in the 3 identified compliance levels and maintains it for 2 consecutive years, the case can be dismissed. Originally, APD was to have come into compliance within 4 years and the case was to be dismissed in 2020.

During the December 6 hearing, Federal Monitor James Ginger reported that APD continues to make impressive gains in the compliance levels over the past year.  This is a complete reversal of  the downward trend found and reported in 3 previous monitor’s  reports. It was also reported that the City, APD and the  DOJ finally executed the stipulated order whereby the city will be allowed to self-monitor and self-assess upwards of 25%  of the 271 mandated reforms of the CASA.  It was also reported that the Internal Affairs Force Division (IAFD)  is meeting the mandatory deadlines in its investigations, and that the most recent use of force report found uses of force have decreased by more than 30% over the past 2 years.

CIVILIAN POLICE OVERSIGHT AGENCY REPORTED IN TURMOIL

During the December 6 hearing  it was revealed that the Civilian Police Oversight Agency  (CPOA) newly-appointed executive director Dierdre Ewing’ has resigned effective December 9.   She  was confirmed for the position by the City Council just 6 months ago to replace Interim Executive Director Diane McDermott who had replaced Ed Harness, the first CPOA Executive Director.  The creation of the CPOA was a settlement mandated reform and its purpose is to oversee APD and  to watch for police  misconduct, including excessive force.

The CPOA has been in turmoil the past few years  with the loss of Executive Directors  and  5 board member resignations out of  a board of 9.  Dan Giaquinto, a member of the monitoring team, said the office had to act quickly to “reverse the downward trajectory” of civilian oversight in Albuquerque by fully staffing the agency and board.  Giaquinto told Judge Browning:

“As APD marches towards compliance, CPOA must march in the same direction. … They really need to do it now.”

CPOA board chair Patricia French said the CPOA board is moving forward in a positive manner and said its members are committed to its mission. She reported that 7 of 9 board positions have been filled and she told Judge Browning this:

“During the short time that [Executive Director Dierdre Ewing has]   been with us, I will say that she’s been responsive to the board. … She has helped us move forward in an effective and efficient manner in our serious use of force and officer involved cases.”

SPIKE IN APD OFFICER INVOLVED SHOOTINGS DOMINATES HEARING

Although it was reported during court hearing that APD is making  gains in in implementing the reforms, it was also reported that there have been more APD police officer shootings in 2022  than during any other year before.  In 2022, there have so far been 18 APD Police Officer involved shootings,10 of which were fatal.  In 2021 there were 10, four of which were fatal.

A review of shootings by APD police officers  between 2018 and 2022 identified three common circumstances:

1. When officers are attempting to apprehend violent suspects;
2. When individuals are experiencing some kind of mental health episode;
3. When people with little criminal history are under the influence of drugs or alcohol and make bad decisions.

Albuquerque Police Department released data  that shows  there have been 54 police shootings dating back to 2018. Of the cases reviewed, 85% involved people who were armed with a gun or a weapon that appeared to be a firearm.  About 55% of the cases involved people under the influence of drugs or alcohol, while only 2  cases in which intoxication did not play a role. Without toxicology tests, it was unknown whether drugs or alcohol played a role in the remainder of the cases.  Statewide, authorities said the number of shootings in which officers opened fire stands at 50 for the year.

Barron Jones, a member of APD Forward and a senior policy strategist with the American Civil Liberties Union in New Mexico, said that more  transparency is needed to better understand what, if anything, could be done to prevent shooting deaths at the hands of officers. Jones also said that  recent cases underscore the need for a statewide use-of-force policy that includes clear, consistent protocols for deescalating interactions with the public “to avoid these kinds of tragic incidents.”

The link to the quoted news source article is here:

https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/albuquerque-marks-record-number-police-shootings-2022-93084096

The last two years have also been two very violent years in the city.  The number of homicides in the city have broken all time records.  In 2021, there were 117 homicides, with  3 declared self defense reducing homicide number to 114. In 2022, there were 115 homicides as of  December 3, 2022. 

The spike  in APD police shooting includes the years when the DOJ  found that APD had a pattern of excessive use of force and deadly force with a finding of a culture of aggression.  The increase in APD police officer shootings overshadowed the report on APD’s progress with the reforms and dominated the day long hearing.

Alexander Uballez, the U.S. Attorney for the District of New Mexico, said this about the shootings:

“[My job]  will not be complete until there’s a substantial reduction in police shootings and fatalities.”

Paul Killebrew, the deputy chief of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, acknowledged the frustrations.  He said that the DOJ wants to see how the city, APD,  the Civilian Police Oversight Agency, the Mental Health Response Advisory Committee, and the Force Review Board  respond to the spike.   Killebrew said this:

“The increase in officer involved shootings is unacceptable. … You see a spike in officer involved shootings and it feels like we’ve set back the clock by 10 years. … It’s clear from what we’ve heard today that it is inconsistent with the community’s values. … So we need to see action from the Albuquerque Police Department and from the groups [responsible to oversee APD] . From where we sit this is an ongoing crisis. This is an ongoing problem.”

APD Forward includes upwards of 20 organizations who have affiliated with each other in an effort to reform APD and implement the DOJ consent decree terms and reforms. Daniel Williams of APD Forward told Judge Browning that members of his group had been hoping to hear “concrete actionable steps that the city has taken” to address the increase in shootings by officers but were disappointed.

Taylor Rahn, an attorney on contract with the city to assist with implementation of the CASA, urged the court and the public to wait before passing judgment and said this:

“We recognize that concerns about the number of individuals who are suffering from some type of mental health issue during the use of force encounter is a pattern that the community is concerned about… The city will not jump to any conclusions and will allow all of the processes that are in place for independent review of individual incidents, officers and patterns to run their course.”

Over the past 18 months, 2 of the shootings have resulted in an officer being fired for violating APD policies.

Police Chief Harold Medina pointed out that the settlement agreement is meant to assess whether policies are in place to reduce an officer’s likelihood of using deadly force, whether officers are trained in those policies and whether they are being held accountable when they violate them.  Medina told the court:

“We will never 100% take out human errors, and we will always have officer misconduct. … This process was started for us to identify the officer misconduct and address the misconduct. … I don’t know if there’s ever been a period of time before in the Albuquerque Police Department when individuals were held as accountable. We will continue to hold individuals accountable. We will continue to monitor our policies. We will continue to monitor our training.”

Chief Medina told Judge Browning he has asked the executive staff and academy directors to see if there are missed opportunities for trainings or other tactics that could be used instead of deadly force.

The link to quoted news source material is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2555721/rise-in-police-shootings-worry-apd-reformers.html

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

There is no doubt that the community should be absolutely alarmed over the fact that there has been a spike in police officer involved shootings given the fact such shootings, and accompanying litigation and judgements against the city, is what brought the Department of Justice to the City in 2013 in the first plac. When it comes to APD Police Officer Involved shootings, history is repeating itself despite millions spent and implementation of the settlement reforms.

What is equally alarming is the city for the last 5 years has broken the record of number of homicides each year.  Crime rates in the city are also high across the board. According to the Albuquerque Police’s annual report on crime, there were 46,391 property crimes and 15,765 violent crimes recorded in 2021.  These numbers place Albuquerque among America’s most dangerous cities.  All residents are at increased risk of experiencing aggravated robbery, auto theft, and petty theft.  The chances of becoming a victim of property crime in Albuquerque are 1 in 20, an alarmingly high statistic. Simple assault, aggravated assault, auto theft, and larceny are just some of the most common criminal offenses in Albuquerque. Burglary and sex offense rates In Albuquerque are also higher than the national average.

https://www.volunteerworld.com/en/review/travellers-worldwide

It’s because of the city’s overall crime rates that no one should be surprised that there have been more police officer involved shootings this past year.  The reality is that the city can expect the trend of police officer involve shootings to continue even if APD achieves 100% compliance of all 271 mandated police reforms under the settlement.

District 7 Albuquerque City Councilor Tammy Fiebelkorn is sponsoring two new city ordinances that are targeting the city’s apartment industry. One ordinance is entitled the “Residential Tenant Protection Ordinance” and targets what  Fiebelkorn deems “deceptive” practices  and “unreasonable” fees.  The second is the “Residential Rental Permit  Ordinance” that mandates  a permitting system to operate residential rental properties.

Fiebelkorn’s  two  new city ordinances are being proposed  after the City Council  voted down  her city council resolution  asking the New Mexico Legislature to repeal a state law that prevents cities throughout the state from implementing rent control.  Fiebelkorn argues her new ordinances are a “logical progression” of the discussion on rent control.   She proclaims her Residential Tenant Protection Ordinance is a “relatively painless way” to help Albuquerque residents living on the margins to deal with soaring rental housing costs.

Since being elected to City Council on December 7, 2021,  Fiebelkorn said renters have alerted her to fees being charged she did not even know existed. Fiebelkorn claims she has heard from too many renters who have told her they have ended up paying a lot more for their rental housing than they expected.  She asserts the new ordinance will give renters a better understanding of  the total cost of their monthly rent  be before they sign a lease and move in to their rental home.

While Fiebelkorn says she  believes most landlords are not overcharging tenants, she says her proposals will keep some bad actors at bay and she said this:

“I think that there is always a role for regulation so that we can protect those that are most vulnerable in our community.”

NEW MEXICO OWNERS-RESIDENT RELATIONS ACT

In 1975, the New Mexico Legislature enacted the Owners-Resident Relations Act.   The purpose of the Uniform Owner-Resident Relations Act is to “simplify, clarify, modernize and revise the law governing the rental of dwelling units and the rights and obligations of an owner and resident, and to encourage the owners and the residents to maintain and improve the quality of rental housing in New Mexico.”  (47-8-2 Purpose)   The act outlines regulations and the rights, obligations and provides for remedies of both owners and tenants.

Under the Uniform Owner-Resident Relations Act, “the principles of law and equity, including the law relating to capacity to contract, mutuality of obligations, equitable abatement, principal and agent, real property, public health, safety and fire prevention, estoppel, fraud, misrepresentation, duress, coercion, mistake, bankruptcy or other validating or invalidating cause supplement its provisions.”  (47-8-4 PRINCIPLES OF LAWAND EQUITY)  In other words the purpose of the  act is  a codification, consolidation or reference to all aspects of the law dealing with owner and tenant relations, rights and remedies.

The Owners-Resident Relations Act is state law that supersedes and negates the need for Fiebelkorn Residential Tenant Protection Ordinance.  Over the decades since its enactment, there have been literally hundreds of cases litigated and appellate decisions issued interpreting the act and enforcing the rights and remedies available under the act.

The link to review the entire act is here:

https://www.rld.state.nm.us/uploads/files/00%202019%20NM%20UORRA%20-%20CHAPTER%2047%20-%20for%20web%20publication.pdf

RESIDENTIAL TENANT PROTECTION ORDINANCE 

According to Fiebelkorn,  her Residential Tenant Protection Ordinance does not involve rent control nor does it attempt to tackle rent prices or increases.  She claims its intent is to alleviate financial pressure on low-income households by reducing or eliminating fees. The proposed ordinance is 5 pages long, and the operative provisions of the proposed ordinance is 3 pages.  The exact, mandatory provisions contained in the ordinance merit quoting and analysis.  The operative provisions of  Residential Tenant Protection Ordinance are as  follows:

[WRITTEN DISCLOUSURES MANDATED]

“A landlord must make the following written disclosures to potential applicants for a unit before the applicant applies to rent a unit, either in the advertisement for the unit or any other written communication, including electronic:

Information that could appear on a background check that would disqualify an applicant for approval, if any;

The minimum credit score required for approval, if any;

 Minimum income requirements, if any, subject to the provisions of the City of Albuquerque Human Rights Ordinance, which provides that if an applicant receives a housing voucher, only the portion of rent that the tenant is personally responsible for paying may be used to calculate a minimum income requirement

A list of all Application Fees charged by the landlord and all Tenancy Fees provided for in the lease agreement.

A Tenant shall not be subject to Application Fees or Tenancy Fees not included in the written disclosure required.”

[REASONABLE FEES]

“Application Fees and Tenancy Fees charged by landlords to tenants must be reasonable.

An Application Fee or Tenancy Fee is reasonable when it is no greater than a landlord’s actual cost paid to a third party associated with the action or process for which the fee is imposed.

A Tenancy Fee for late payments is reasonable when it does not exceed the amount described in the New Mexico Owner-Resident Relations Act.

 A Tenancy Fee for a returned check is reasonable when it does not exceed the landlord’s actual cost paid to their financial institution.  In no event shall an Application Fee exceed the landlord’s actual cost, per application.”

[APPLICATION PROCESS]

A landlord shall process applications in the order they were received and shall process no more than 10 applications for each rental unit at a time. If none of the applicants qualifies to rent the unit, the landlord may process up to 10 new applications.

Application fees shall be held by the landlord until the application is processed or until any tenant’s application for the unit is approved, whichever occurs first.

If an application is not processed and the unit is rented to another tenant, the application fee must be refunded to the applicant within 15 days.

In the event that a Landlord rejects an Application without providing a reason in writing, the Landlord shall refund the Application Fee collected.

 A landlord may not charge a fee on the basis that the tenant intends to keep a pet. A landlord may require an additional pet deposit if permitted by state law, and for leases less than one year, may charge monthly pet rent not 22 to exceed $15 a month, regardless of the number of pets.

A landlord may not charge any other fee, other than the late fees and attorney’s fees described in the New Mexico Owner-Resident Relations Act.

At the time any fee is charged, the landlord must provide to the tenant the invoice or other documentation evidencing the cost for which the fee was imposed.

[PAYMENT OF RENT]

“A landlord shall not refuse to accept payment of rent on the basis 30 that the payment is made by cash, personal check or money order, nor shall any residential lease prohibit a tenant from paying rent by cash, personal check or money or

A landlord shall not charge a fee for payment of rent on the basis that the payment is made by cash, personal check, money order, or via an online payment portal, nor shall any residential lease provide for such a fee.”

[RENTER’S INSURANCE REQUIREMENT PROBHIBITED]

A landlord shall not require a tenant to obtain any insurance as a condition of renting a residential unit.

You can review and read the unedited proposed  Residential Tenant Protection ordinance  at this KOB news report link:

https://www.kob.com/new-mexico/albuquerque-city-councilor-pushes-for-more-renter-protection/

ANALYIS OF RESIDENTIAL TENANT PROTECTION ORDINANCE 

The ordinance is a clear attempt to regulate any and all fees that are a part of the application process and contracts.  The Residential Tenant Protection Ordinance would prohibit landlords from charging tenants more than their own costs for processing applications to rent or for any other fees they required beyond rent or a deposit.  The bills seeks to eliminate fees that are for-profit charges.  Fiebelkorn proclaims rent is where profits should made by landlords and not from hidden fees charged to tenants, yet she provides no specifics. She admitted that apartment owners could simply raise rent prices if they lose other revenue from fees assessed.

The ordinance  requires landlords to disclose to potential applicants all application and other fees provided for in the lease agreement. The ordinance goes so far as to mandate that each time a property owner imposes a fee, they will  be required to supply documentation proving their costs to the tenant. Fiebelkorn said she wants to ensure that fees being charge are not  for profit making.  She wants tenants to understand fully the fees being charged and why they are being charged.

The bill requires landlords to post and make public a list of application fees, minimum income and credit score requirements and items on a background check that could disqualify a rental  applicant.  Under the new ordinance, landlords would have to disclose up front and in writing the minimum income and credit score required to qualify for a rental unit.

The ordinance would dictate elements of the application process to rent.  The ordinance goes so far as to mandate how many applications can be processed at a time and would allow only 10 applications for a single rental unit at a time and a landlord could not move on to another group of 10 unless none of the first 10 qualifies. Whose going to enforce such a trivial application process requirements  and why are they needed in the firstplace?

Landlords would be required to refund application fees if they never actually processed a potential tenant’s paperwork before renting the unit to another or if they reject an application without providing a written reason.  The ordinance calls for application fees that are no larger than the landlord’s cost to process them. The legislation’s language also asks landlords to return fees for unprocessed applications.

It also sets a cap of $15 a month for people who own any number of pets. The particular provision mandated by Fiebelkorn should come as no surprise to anyone seeing as she is an avowed animal rights activist.

The ordinance would prohibit apartment owners and managers from assessing fees for paying rent by cash, personal check, money order or via an online portal.  Apartment owners could not refuse to accept cash, checks or money order and would require landlords to disclose to potential applicants all application and other fees provided for in the lease agreement.

The propose legislation would bar landlords from charging a pet fee, except when the lease is under a year. Landlords could still charge a pet deposit, but the deposits would be refundable if the landlord incurred no costs associated with the animal.

Fiebelkorn said this about her Residential Tenant Protection Ordinance mandating the disclosure of fees:

“Most of the landlords in our city are fair, transparent, very clear with what folks are going to get. It’s the few that are making it really hard. … What we’re trying to do is make it real clear and transparent for people who are like looking for a rental unit.  … Having some specifics on what kind of fees can be charged and making sure they’re just the passage of actual costs to a property owner seems like a small, easy way we can provide some kind of cost stabilization for low-income people.  This is something we can do right now that wouldn’t have any potential negative impact on landlords, but it would certainly help, particularly low-income people who are trying to find a place or stay in a place.”

RESIDENTIAL RENTAL PERMIT ORDINANCE

The second ordinance Fiebelkorn is proposing is new permitting process for all rental units which would include various annual fees for landlords and property owners. Those fees start at $50 for a single unit and go as high as $700 a year for a 250-unit apartment complex. The permit ordinance also imposes daunting disclosure requirements that are a repetition of information contained in documents  already on file and easily accessible or in the possession of the city, county and state government.

Fiebelkorn said her goal with the permit ordinance is to give city leaders a better idea about how many rental units are available in the market.  These are statistics the city  already has.  She said this:

“We certainly aren’t doing anything here to make money for the city. This is really just to cover the cost of setting up that registry.”

PERMITS WILL BE REQUIRED

Fiebelkorn’s “Residential Rental Permit Ordinance” provides as follows:

No person shall operate any residential rental property without a Residential Rental Property Permit (RRPP) from the City of Albuquerque. An RRPP may cover multiple units, but data shall be required for each individual dwelling unit. In addition to any other necessary information, the City shall require submission of the following for each residential rental property:

DWELLING UNIT INFORMATION

The permit ordinance will mandate the following dwelling information:

 Physical address of the property;

 Date the unit was built;

The number of units with details about the number of bedrooms, the square footage, and the maximum occupancy of the units;

 A statement of compliance with the housing code;

Whether the dwelling unit is owner occupied;

The number of units that are ADA accessible.

Any other information as determined by the City.

TENANT INFORMATION

The permit ordinance requires the following “tenancy Information” if the property has a current tenant:

 Whether the unit is vacant or occupied by a tenant(s)

Term of the current lease(s);

 Rental rate(s);

 Security deposit amount(s)

A list of any additional fees charged;

A list of utilities, if any, that are included in the monthly rental  rate.

 OWNER AND MANAGEMENT INFORMATION

The ordinance will require the following Owner and Management Information:

The name, phone number, email address, and mailing address  of the property owner;

 The name, phone number, email address, and business  address of the property manager/agent/operator(s) who will be available to [address]  issues or complaints regarding the operation or occupancy of the dwelling  unit;

The RRPP number issued by the City must be included on all marketing materials and rental agreements for each respective dwelling unit;

Any change to the information required must be  updated with the City within thirty (30) days of the change to the information …  including but not limited to … entering into a new lease or lease renewal, when a unit becomes vacant, and updating tenancy information if the property is vacant at the time the RRPP is issued.

PERMITTING FEES.

Residential rental property owners would be subject to the following fees, based upon the number of rental dwelling units owned by the  property owner:

“Initial owner permit fee:

 Single dwelling unit: $70 

2-10 dwelling units: $140  

11-50 dwelling units: $350 

51-250 dwelling units:  $490 

 More than 250 dwelling units: $700”

There is no explanation as to how the fees were determined nor as to reasonableness.

ANNUAL RENEWAL FEE FOR THE YEARS FOLLOWING INITIAL OWNER PERMITTING:

 “Single dwelling unit … $50 

 2-10 dwelling units … $100

 11-50 dwelling units … $250 

51-250 dwelling units … $350 

More than 250 dwelling units… $500.”

EDITORS NOTE:   There is no explanation as to how the fees were determined nor as to reasonableness.

WAIVER OF PERMIT FEE: 

“Permit fees shall be waived for the following residential rental properties:

Owned in whole or in part by or leased and operated by a local, state, or federal governmental agency;

Owned or leased and operated by any organization that has been exempted from federal income tax as a nonprofit organization in good standing under  … the United States Internal Revenue Code [for nonprofits]  , and has been designated as income-restricted housing;  and

 Affordable housing projects that are constructed with the support  of any combination of federal, state, or local financial resources, including 3 private activity bonds, tax credits, grants, loans, or other subsidies to  incentivize the development of affordable housing, or properties where the  tenants are recipients of low-income housing assistance and that are  restricted by law, contract, deed, covenant, or any other legally enforceable  instrument to provide housing units only to income-qualified households  where 80% of the total units are income restricted.”   

ENFORCEMENT AND PENALTIES.

“The City shall investigate any complaints or notifications about unpermitted residential rental properties.  Upon verification that the unit is unpermitted the City shall issue a letter of compliance to the unit owner. If three letters of compliance are issued to the  owner and the owner does not remedy the violation, the owner shall be  assessed a fine of $100 a week until the unit is brought into compliance. If the unit is not brought into compliance after 6 months from the date of the last  letter of compliance, the unit will not be eligible for a permit for two years, and it shall be unlawful for the owner to operate the unit as a rental property.]”

You can review and read the unedited proposed Permit Ordinance at this KOB news report link:

https://www.kob.com/new-mexico/albuquerque-city-councilor-pushes-for-more-renter-protection/

ANALYIS OF RESIDENTIAL RENTAL PERMIT ORDINANCE

Under existing city ordinances and state law, residential apartment owners are required to have licenses to do business and they are a mandated by law to renew each year and pay a fee. Simply put, there is no need and no reasonable justification to require permits for business that already are required to apply and pay for licenses to do business within the city.  Property owners  are  required to obey all applicable city ordinances, including code enforcement ordinances dealing with substandard housing mandating inspections, maintenance  and repairs   They are also required to  pay gross receipts taxes and property taxes and they are  required to have a tax identification numbers.

There is no explanation as to how the fee structure was determined nor as to reasonableness. Despite Fiebelkorn’s  statements to the contrary, the fee structure is arbitrary and capricious and ostensibly created to generate revenue for the city.  The fees paid do not mandate the city to perform services to those who pay the fees.

The Dwelling Unit Information required by the permit ordinance is information that is already on file with the city’s Planning and Zoning department and or the County Assessors office. The Tenant Information required by the permit ordinance is private contractual information and should  not be a matter of public record. The Owner Management Information is already provided to the city in the city license to do business.

The enforcement provisions fail to provide the manner and method of enforcement and fails to identify what city department will enforce the ordinance  with no appropriations.

APARTMENT INDUSTRY REACTS TO ORDINANCES

Steve Grant, the president of the Apartment Association of New Mexico told the City Council that his organization  is “adamantly against” Fiebelkorn’s  Residential Tenant Protection Ordinance. Grant told the city council this:

“Are we going to be the city that wants to continue growing in a positive direction, with new job growth, new company expansions and, yes, future housing, or are we going to be a city that is so hard to deal with that businesses and future investors decide not to deal with Albuquerque and run away from us?”

Chuck Sheldon is the CEO of T&C Management. Sheldon agrees with transparency during the rental process is a good idea but he does draw a line. Sheldon had this to say:

“I’ve been in this business a long time, and so you know, we need to make it so, so it works for everybody. … There’s no reason not to be advertising years of qualifications to get into this apartment. Here’s, here are the fees associated with that. … The pushback is we’re going to have fewer owners, fewer people that want to manage and go through this array, fewer people constructing here.”

Damon Maddox is a managing member at Maddox Management LLC. They oversee 788 residential units in Albuquerque. Maddox takes a dim view of  a few issues in  the proposed legislation with regards to fees charged and requiring renters insurance. Maddox had this to say:

“We charge the fees that need to be charged, not to make a profit. You know, these are things to help our properties run, grow, get good quality tenants and make sure they have a good experience. …  Insurance has helped us as a company three times in the last five years. It’s for their protection as much as it is for the homeowners of protection. … If she wants to have the Realtors’ Association and property managers at the table to help her write some good legislation that might actually help. We would be happy to sit at the table with her.”

The links to quoted news sources are here:

https://www.kob.com/new-mexico/albuquerque-city-councilor-pushes-for-more-renter-protection/

https://www.koat.com/article/albuquerque-legislation-aims-protect-renters-management-groups-oppose/42116301

https://www.abqjournal.com/2553737/legislation-aims-to-add-protections-for-renters.html

COMMENTARY AND ANALSIS

The title of  the ordinance “Residential Tenant Protection Ordinance” is  pure politcal  posturing and spin by City Councilor Tammy Fiebelkorn.  Her  ordinance should be called the “Rental Industry Crush Ordinance.”   Fiebelkorn proclaims her new ordinances is  a “logical progression” of the discussion on rent control. It is not.  It’s a reflection of  Fiebelkorn’s resentment or downright hostility towards property owners and the apartment industry that resists rent control.

Fiebelkorn herself said this:

“Most of the landlords in our city are fair, transparent, very clear with what folks are going to get. It’s the few that are making it really hard.”

What Fiebelkorn is essentially saying with her sponsorship is she wants to make the entire apartment rental  industry miserable with city fees and bureaucratic mandates because “It’s the few that are making it really hard.” 

She proclaims her Residential Tenant Protection Ordinance is a relatively painless way to help Albuquerque residents living on the margins to deal with soaring rental housing costs.  The truth is, there is absolutely nothing “painless” about the ordinance when it comes to real property owners and how it imposes on their property rights and their right to contract.

The only logical progression is the fact that Fiebelkorn is a self-proclaimed activist and who is considered the extremist on the city council who became upset with the City Council rejecting her politcal agenda to ask the New Mexico Legislature to repeal the state law that prevents cities throughout the state from implementing rent control.

The way the ordinances are written, they are a blatant attempt to usurp and contravene provisions of the New Mexico legislative enacted state  Owner – Resident Relations Act. The Act mandates  written ‘‘rental agreements’’ or leases  and provides that  all agreements between an owner and resident and all  rules and regulations required  under the act must be embodied in  the terms and conditions of the written agreement concerning the use and occupancy of a dwelling unit or premises.   (47-8-3, P,  Definitions.)

The state law mandates  written lease agreements that are enforceable contracts in a court of law. The act allows the parties to negotiate contract terms of any rental  lease, including payment of fees. Tenants have the right to object to the fees as being unreasonable and landlords and owners who retaliate by failing to rent because of refusal to pay fees expose themselves unfair trade practice accusations that can result in damages and payment of attorneys fees and costs.

Under the state law, no rental agreement may provide that the resident or owner agrees to waive or to forego rights or remedies under the state law.  (47-8-16 Waiver of rights prohibited.)  If an owner deliberately uses a rental agreement containing provisions known  to be prohibited by law, the resident may recover damages sustained  resulting from application of the illegal provision and reasonable attorney’s fees.  (47-8-17 Unlawful agreement provision.)

The remedies provided in the Uniform Owner-Resident Relations Act  are administered by the courts  to allow and  aggrieved party to  recover damages as provided in the Act.  It is the district, magistrate courts or metro courts  that have  jurisdiction to enforce the lease over any person or with respect to any conduct or claim prohibited under the Act.  (47-8-10 Judicial jurisdiction.) If the court, as a matter of law, finds that any provision of a rental agreement was inequitable when made, the court may limit the application of such inequitable provisions to avoid an inequitable result.  (47-8-12 Inequitable agreement provision)

The written lease agreement must delineate all the terms and conditions and parties performance requirement under the contract. Consequently, under the act, property owners are already required to make full disclosure of fees charged to be enforceable.

Simply put, Fiebelkorn wants rent control in the city and she refuses to take no for an answer.  If the New Mexico legislature will not allow rent control, Fiebelkorn wants to try and accomplish it indirectly through city ordinance  by eliminating any and all fees paid by a tenant, regardless of legitimacy or need.

Fiebelkorn wants to force the rental industry to pay permit fees to the city  that are arbitrary and an unreasonable and  to  inundate the industry with requirements  to compile information and statistic the city already has or should have. The data Fiebelkorn says she wants can be found by the city’s Planning Department in such documents as approved building permits, approved architectural plans, yearly licenses to do business, tax assessments, city zoning maps  and corporate and partnership documents filed with the Secretary of State. A simply survey by the city’s Planning Code enforcement division of the city’s apartment inventory can compile the data.

The “Residential Tenant Protection Ordinance” is defective on its face in that there is no enforcement provisions, no penalty provisions and no funding for enforcement. The “Residential Rental Permit Ordinance” is nothing more than retaliating against an entire industry that is opposed to rent control.  Both new ordinances  amount to nothing more than overreaching by the city while ignoring existing state laws that provide for specific remedies and penalties.

The proposed ordinances have been referred to the City Council’s  Finance and Government Operations Committee. Their next meeting is December 12. Ultimately, the City Council should vote 1-8  to kill both measures.

 

On November 10,  Mayor Tim Keller announced his “Housing Forward ABQ” plan to add 5,000 housing units to the existing housing  supply by 2025.  Keller called his plan  “transformative” and it includes  updates to Albuquerque’s Integrated Development Ordinance (IDO)  to carry it out.

MOTEL CONVERSIONS

A zoning change already enacted by the city council earlier this year eased the process for city-funded motel conversions by allowing microwaves or hot plates to serve as a substitute for the standard requirement that every kitchen have a cooking stove or oven.

Mayor Keller’s “Housing Forward ABQ” places great emphasis on “motel conversions”.   “Motel conversions” includes affordable housing where the City’s Family & Community Services Department will  acquire and renovate existing motels to develop low-income affordable housing options. Keller’s plan calls for hotel/motel conversions to house 1,000 people by 2025.

The existing layout of the motels makes it cost-prohibitive to renovate them into living units with full sized kitchens. An Integrated Development Ordinance amendment provides an exemption for affordable housing projects funded by the city, allowing kitchens to be small, without full-sized ovens and refrigerators. It will require city social services to regularly assist residents.  The homeless or the near homeless would be offered the housing.

One area of the city that has been targeted in particular by the Keller Administration for motel conversions is “Hotel Circle” in the North East Heights. Located in the area are a number of motels in the largest shopping area in SE and NE Albuquerque near I-40. The businesses in the area include Target, Office Depot, Best Buy, Home Store, PetCo and the Mattress Store  and restaurants such as  Sadies, the Owl Café, and Applebee’s and other businesses.

The city is looking into buying potential properties and claims it has  not yet completed any purchases.

Sources have confirmed the Keller Administration  wants to buy the fomer  Sure Stay Hotel located at 10330 Hotel Circle NE   and also has  its eye on purchasing the abandoned and boarded up Ramada Inn for a motel conversion.  The City Department of Family & Community Services is in the process purchasing the Sure Stay Hotel by using Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funding of $3,059,662.12 in Community Development Block Grant,  $2,443,724.00 from Public Facilities monies  and $615,938.12 from Foreclosure Prevention for a total property purchase of  $6,119,324.24. She also outlines how the Department of Family and Community Services has  submitted a request to the HUD Albuquerque  Field Office for the release of  CARES and HOME American Rescue Plan funding to be used to purchase Sure Stay Hotel  and the renovation project for the permanent housing with supportive services.

Strong neighborhood and business opposition has emerged and galvanized around  the city’s attempted purchase of the Sure Stay Motel, with some petitioning the city to change the zoning code to disallow motel conversions. A petition with well over 250 signatures of business owners and residents in the area was secured within a few days has been submitted to the city.

CITY’S FINANCIAL COMMITMENT TO HELP LOW INCOME HOUSING

On June 23, 2022 Mayor Tim Keller announced that the City of Albuquerque was adding $48 million to the FY23 budget to address housing and homelessness issues in Albuquerque. The City  also announced it was working on policy changes to create more housing and make housing more accessible. The key appropriations passed by City Council included in the $48 million are:

• $20.7 million for affordable and supportive housing
  · $1.5 million for improvements to the Westside Emergency Housing Center
  · $4 million to expand the Wellness Hotel Program
  · $7 million for a youth shelter
  · $6.8 million for medical respite and sobering centers
  · $7 million for Gateway Phases I and II, and improvements to the Gibson Gateway Shelter facility
  · $555,000 for services including mental health and food insecurity prevention

The link to the quoted source is here:

https://www.cabq.gov/family/news/mayor-keller-signs-off-on-major-housing-and-homelessness-investments

In fiscal year 2021 (July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021) the Family and Community Services Department and the Keller Administration spent upwards of $40 Million to benefit the homeless,  near homeless including  affordable housing initiatives. The 2021 enacted city budget (July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022 ) for Family and Community Services Department provides for affordable housing and community contracts totaling $22,531,752, emergency shelter contracts totaling $5,688,094, homeless support services contracts totaling $3,384,212, mental health contracts totaling $4,329,452, and substance abuse contracts for counseling contracts totaling $2,586,302.

The link to the 2021-2022 city approved budget is here:

https://www.cabq.gov/dfa/documents/fy22-approved-budget-numbered-w-hyperlinks-final.pdf

Mayor Keller  has increased funding to the Family Community Services Department for assistance to the homeless with $35,145,851 million spent in fiscal year 2021 and $59,498,915 million being spent in fiscal 2022  with the city adopting a “housing first” policy.

Mayor Keller’s 2022-2023 approved budget significantly increases the Family and Community Services budget by $24,353,064 to assist the homeless or near homeless by going from $35,145,851 to $59,498,915.

The 2022-2023 enacted budget for the Department of Community Services is $72.4 million and the department is funded for 335 full time employees, an increase of 22 full time employees.  A breakdown of the amounts to help the homeless and those in need of housing assistance is as follows:

$42,598,361 total for affordable housing and community contracts with a major emphasis on permanent housing for chronically homeless. It is $24,353,064 more than last year.

$6,025,544 total for emergency shelter contracts (Budget page 102.), down $396,354 from last year.

$3,773,860 total for mental health contracts (Budget page105.), down $604,244 from last year.

$4,282,794 total for homeless support services, up $658,581 from last year.

$2,818,356 total substance abuse contracts for counseling (Budget page 106.), up by $288,680 from last year.

The link to the 2022-2023 budget it here:

https://www.cabq.gov/dfa/documents/fy23-proposed-final-web-version.pdf

The 2022-2023 adopted city contains $4 million in recurring funding and $2 million in one-time funding for supportive housing programs in the City’s Housing First model and $24 million in Emergency Rental Assistance from the federal government.

TWO PUBLIC MEETINGS TO BE HELD ON MOTEL CONVERSIONS

The city’s Family and Community Services Department announced it is hosting a public meeting to discuss motel conversions.   The meeting will be held on Tuesday, December 6  from 5:30-7 p.m. at the Albuquerque Convention Center.  The city  requested  attendees RSVP.

Katie Simon, a city spokeswoman, said the  reason the city is holding the informational meeting is to address the publics concerns about motel conversions and said this:

“We hope to really educate about what we’re trying to do with these projects.  I think there’s a lot of misinformation and just not a lot of understanding about what the vision is for these conversions.”

For more information on the meeting and to RSVP, go online to https://bit.ly/3VHHVqB.

https://www.abqjournal.com/2554493/city-officials-to-discuss-converting-hotels-to-housing.html

Within hours of giving notice of the December 6 meeting and requesting RSVPs from the public, the city announced that reservations were no longer being accepted for the first event and that it was was “sold out”.  The event is in fact free of charge but the reservation app was not modified to state “reservations closed”.  In response to the public outcry,  the city added an additional public meeting to discuss its plans to convert hotels into permanent housing. The second meeting will be virtual and is scheduled for Tuesday, December 13.

https://www.abqjournal.com/2555252/city-of-albuquerque-adds-additional-public-meeting-on-dec-13-to-detail-housing-plan.html

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

There is absolutely no doubt that the Keller Administration and the Family and Community Services Department is hosting the public meetings to discuss motel conversions simply because the issue has resulted in a severe backlash. Giving a 4 day notice on a Friday of a public meeting and then asking for RSVP from the public was  nothing more than a ploy to suppress attendance by hoping no one would  see the notice. It’s a ploy that did not work and the city was inundated with reservation requests forcing the city to schedule a second  meeting.

It was downright offensive for City Spokesperson Katie Simon to say  that the purpose of  meeting is to  try and educate what the city is trying to do with motel conversions and saying there’s a “lot of misinformation about them”. The public and the business community  are not ignorant.  They know what is going on and have legitimate concerns that motel conversions will destroy neighborhoods and established business areas.

The comments given by Simon give  the definite impression that the meetings are  not for the city to listen to public concerns  but to “educate the public”,  in other word’s lecture the public,  and the public will not be allowed to ask questions and without any consideration of the neighboring businesses or residents.

The public has already gone down a similar road of being totally ignored by Mayor Tim Keller, his Family and Community Services  Division and the Planning Department and the City Council when it comes to “Safe Outdoor Spaces” which are city sanctioned homeless tent encampments for upwards of 50 tents. Despite public opposition and outcry, the city amended the Integrated Development Ordinance (IDO) to allow for  2 Safe Outdoor Space homeless tent encampments  in each of the 9 City Council Districts with at least 3 already approved. One Safe Outdoor Space approved for 1250 Menaul  for woman who have been victims of sex trafficking’s is being appealed by  the Santa Barbera Neighborhood Association, Menaul School and the Crown Plaza Hotel with 3 others.  There is also city council legislation pending to repeal Safe Outdoor Spaces.

It’s the Family and Community Service Division that is spear heading both “motel conversions” and Safe Outdoor Spaces to the point of cramming both down the publics throats despite strong public opposition.  The department works closely with and gives preferential treatment to Safe Outdoor Space applicants by offering funding to operate and identifies city and federal funding to purchase abandoned or vacant motels for motel conversions usually all done behind closed doors.

Given the millions already being spent by the Keller Administration on affordable and supportive housing,  the biggest unanswered question is does the city have any business going into the “hotel conversion”  business and begin operating such facilities?  Further, how many motels have been identified for purchase to achieve the 1,000 unit goal and for what amounts and what are the locations? It will be interesting to see of Mayor Tim Keller or any City Councilor  will show up at either meeting.

The public is encouraged to attend either the December 6 or the December 13 meeting and voice their concerns.

 

On November 16, it was reported that Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham’s office was  accepting applications to fill the vacancy of Bernalillo County District Attorney Raúl Torrez who was elected Attorney General on November 8 and who will be  is sworn in January 1. Lujan Grisham plans to appoint a replacement to serve the remaining 2 years of Torrez’s 4 year term which expires on January 1, 2024.  Applications for the post were due by December 2.

Late Friday December  2, the Governor’s office released to the Albuquerque Journal a list of 10 attorneys who have applied for the appointment.  The link to the Albuquerque Journal article is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2554895/nine-attorneys-respond-to-governors-call-for-da-applications.html

The 10 attorneys who have applied with their background information are:

1. Sam Bregman, a former Democratic Party State Chairman.  He  is a respected trial attorney who manages his own private law firm. Bregman currently serves on the New Mexico Gaming Commission. His has trial experience in both civil and criminal defense and he has handled high profile criminal defense cases. including defending former APD Officer Dominic Perez who was one of 2 APD SWAT Officers who  shot and killed homeless camper James Boyd in the Sandia Foothills,  He served as an Assistant Bernalillo County District Attorney from 1994 through 1997. Bregman was an elected Albuquerque City Council from 1995 until 1999 and has a served as Deputy State Auditor for the State of New Mexico.  Bregman unsuccessfully ran for Commissioner of Public Lands and Mayor of Albuquerque. Sources have confirmed that Bregman is making a serious run for the Governor’s appointment and has been making calls to secure support within the defense bar and the Democratic party.

 

2. Damon Martinez, a former United States Attorney for New Mexico. From 2000 to 2013, Martinez was an Assistant United State Attorney. In 2014, he  was appointed United States Attorney by President Barack Obama  and unanimously confirmed in the United States Senate in 2014.  Martinez led the US Attorney’s Office during the Department of Justice’s investigation and settlement agreement with the city of Albuquerque over the Albuquerque Police Department when the  Department of Justice found excessive use of deadly force and a culture of aggression within APD.  On March 11, 2017 Martinez resigned as US Attorney and went into private practice.  In 2018, Martinez was an unsuccessful candidate for the First Congressional District to replace Michelle Lujan Grisham. Martinez is currently an Albuquerque Deputy City Attorney who works as APD’s Chief Policy Advisor and on legislative matters for Mayor Tim Keller and the city and lobbies in Santa Fe during legislative sessions.

 

3. Private Attorney Ed Perea, a retired APD  Police Commander.  Perea became an attorney after 24 years of service as  police officer. Perea ran for District Attorney against Raúl Torrez in 2016.  Perea has served as a Special Assistant Prosecutor in the 13th District. He’s also served as Executive Director of the Center for Law, Policy and Public Safety and has taught at CNM.

 

4. Joseph Gandert, a private Albuquerque attorney.  Gandert is a native New Mexican and has been a licensed New Mexico attorney since 1977. He is a seasoned  trial attorney. He was with the New Mexico Public Defenders Office for 13 years and headed the Juvenile Division.  He was  with the Federal Public defenders office for 20 plus years. Mr. Gandert is now in the private practice of law and works with his son’s law practice.

 

5. Joseph Gribble, an Albuquerque attorney. Gribble is a 1977 graduate of University of New Mexico law school.   Mr. Gribble has extensive experience in criminal and civil litigation and he  lists his areas of practice to include  Federal and State Criminal Defense work,  Commercial Litigation,  Civil Litigation, Medical Malpractice,  Wrongful Death and  Employment Law.  Mr. Gribble started his career in the District Attorneys Office where his work resulted in the successful prosecution and death sentence of a serial killer. Upon leaving the District Attorney’s Office as a Deputy District Attorney he settled into his current private practice. Mr. Gribble has handled hundreds of criminal cases throughout the State of New Mexico and in all jurisdictions, including by not limited to metropolitan, magistrate, district, tribal and federal courts.

 

6. Evan Cochnar, is a 2006 graduate of the University of New Mexico where he earned a B.A. in International Relations, Political Science and History.  He is a 2009 graduate of Syracuse University College of Law. He  has served as an Assistant District Attorney in the 11th Judicial District from 2011 to 2020.  He currently works for the New Mexico Risk Management Division.

7. Assistant Attorney General Ashley Schweizer. Schweizer was appointed an Assistant Attorney General by Attorney General Hector Balderas. She is currently handling the prosecution of serial shoplifter Isaiah Martinez who  is responsible for stealing nearly $60,000 worth of designer sunglasses and has been charged with 21 counts related to his brazen crime spree, as well as conspiracy and aggravated assault. She is also one of the prosecutors handling the prosecution of former Maintenance Technician/Detention Officer Nathan D. Sena.   Sena was employed by the GEO Group, Inc. and was a detention officer for a New Mexico Women’s Recovery Academy treatment facility. It is alleged he  preyed upon women under his control at the facility and  engaged in multiple sexual acts, which resulted in eight charges of criminal sexual penetration as a person in a position of authority.

On November 18, 202,  a group of 49 trial attorneys in the 2nd Judicial District Attorney’s Office signed a letter asking Lujan Grisham to appoint one of the 3  deputy DA’s as Torrez’s successor.  As expected, all 3 of the Deputy’s have applied and they are:

8. Bernalillo County Deputy District Attorney Josh Boone who was appointed by Raul Torrez to  oversees the Metropolitan Division. Boone earned his B.A. in political science from the University of New Mexico in 2000, and his  law degree  from the University of New Mexico School of Law in 2004.  In  2014, Boone was a  candidate for the 2nd Judicial District Court in New Mexico. He ran for election to the Bernalillo Metropolitan Court, but lost the 2014 primary. Boone  has developed and  posted on the internet a website entitled “Joshua Boone for District Attorney” thereby making him an announced candidate to run in 2025.  The website is a slick campaign web site for a candidate for office. The link to the Josh Boone for District Attorney web page is boonefornewmexico.com.

 

9. Bernalillo County Deputy District Attorney John Duran, who oversees the District Attorneys’ Major Crimes Division. From 2003 to 2013 John Duran was  a Bernalillo County Assistant District Attorney.  From 2013 to 2016 he was a Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court Judge.  He was appointed to Division 8 of the  Metro court on March 28, 2013, by Governor Susana Martinez (R).  He was defeated in his bid for re-election in November 2014 but was reappointed to Division 3 on the court soon after.  He ran for election in 2016 but was defeated in the primary on June 7, 2016.  Duran filed as a Democratic candidate in 2016, but he ran as a Republican in 2014.

 

    10.  Bernalillo County Deputy District Attorney Diana Garcia who oversees the DA’s Juvenile Division. She has been with office for 16 years. (No further information could be found.)

The link to the Albuquerque Journal article is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/2554895/nine-attorneys-respond-to-governors-call-for-da-applications.html

BERNALILLO COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY’S OFFICE

As of November 21,2022, according to the New Mexico State Government Sunshine Portal, the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office has a $30,350,800 million operating budget with an adjusted operating budget of $36,680,800 which includes all sources of financing including federal grants.  The office is budgeted for 337 full time positions.  The office employs 102 attorneys (81 filled, 21 vacant) who are “at will” and 255 other “classified” employees consisting of paralegals, administrative assistants, victim advocates, investigators, IT managers and personnel and finance division personnel who can only be terminated for cause under the state personnel rules and regulations.  276 of the positions are “active” meaning filled. The office has an alarming 61 vacancies. The number of vacancies in the office is larger than most other District Attorney’s offices in the state.

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

It’s more likely than not that the Governor will now schedule interviews of the applicants and within a matter of 7 to 10 days make an announcement.  Now that the names of all applicants have been released, the general public is urged to weigh in on who the Governor should appoint.

Great qualifications for the job does not necessarily make a person a good fit for an elected position.  Each one of the applicants possesses positive and negative skill sets and different types of qualifications for the job. In other words, there is no one perfect candidate suited for the job who has applied, but that is usually the case with any elected or appointed politcal position.

The next Bernalillo County District Attorney needs to have strong prosecutorial and case management experience, personnel management experience,  be a proven trial attorney, have  the ability to work well with all stakeholders within the criminal justice system, including the courts, the defense bar, law enforcement and the legislature and be an effective leader who can attract attorneys to work for the office.

This is one appointment where politics should absolutely not play any role, but probably will given the high profile nature of the office.  The Governor should appoint who she feels is the most qualified candidate.  If the Governor has any reservations about those who have applied or she is not fully satisfied with the applicants, she should seek more applicants.

 

On November 22,  the online news agency the New Mexico Sun published the below Pete Dinelli guest column:

HEADLINE:  Look ahead: ABQ’s 2023 municipal elections take shape

Democrat Pat Davis And Republican Trudy Jones have announced that they will not seek another term on the Albuquerque City Council in the 2023 municipal election. A total of 4 City Council seats will be on next year’s municipal ballot and include District 2 now represented by progressive Democrat Isaac Benton and District 4 now represented by conservative Republican Brook Bassan.  

Republican Jones, 73, represents District 8, Albuquerque’s far Northeast Heights and Foothills.  She will complete 16 years of service in 2023. She is a retired realtor and was the co-sponsor of the city’s Integrated Development Ordinance (IDO), which in 2017 replaced all the city’s zoning codes.  This year she voted to support “Safe Outdoor Spaces” for homeless tent encampments and “motel conversions” to allow the city to purchase motels to be converted into long-term low-income housing. 

Democrat Davis, 44, was first elected in 2015 representing District 6, which encompasses the International District, Mesa Del Sol, Nob Hill, Southeast Heights, and the University of New Mexico. Davis is considered the leading progressives on the city council and worked on the city’s early solar energy initiatives and co-sponsored legislation that strengthened the city’s immigrant-friendly status, and another bill that decriminalized possession of small amounts of marijuana before the state legalized recreational cannabis. 

Both Davis and Jones failed at APD police oversight and did nothing when it came to APD reforms mandated by the Federal Court Approved Settlement Agreement. Neither challenged the previous and the current Mayor and APD command staff in any meaningful way demanding compliance with the Department of Justice consent decree police reforms.

Both Republican Trudy Jones and Democrat Pat Davis voted for the final adoption of the Integrated Development Ordinance (IDO),  which is  now having  long term impact on historical  neighborhoods as it  favors developers. The IDO is nothing more than making “gentrification” an official city policy and the “gutting” of long-standing sector development plans. For decades, the development community sought to repeal those sector development plans designed to protect neighborhoods and their historical character.

The two other City Council District seats that will be on next year’s 2023 municipal ballot are District 2 represented by 4 term Democrat City Councilor Isaac Benton and District 4 represented by first term Republican Brook Bassan.  Benton and Bassan have not said if they will be running again, but if they do it is expected they will have strong opposition.

Democrat Ike Benton, 71, is a retired architect.  District 2 includes a large area of downtown Central and the North Valley which leans left and is heavily Hispanic.  Benton, like Jones and Davis, voted for enactment of the IDO in 2017 despite District 2 having the biggest concentration of historical neighborhoods that is now being adversely affected the most by the IDO as it encourages gentrification.  Benton also did nothing when it came to APD reforms mandated by the court settlement agreement after the Department of Justice found a “culture of aggression” and “excessive use of deadly force” by APD.  Benton never challenged the previous and the current Mayor and the APD command staff demanding compliance with the DOJ  consent decree reforms.

Republican Brook Bassan is the District 4 City Councilor serving her first 4 year term on the city council.  The major borders of District 4 are generally Montano/Montgomery on the South, Tramway on the North, Academy/Ventura/Holbrook on the East and Edith on the West.  It was in June of this year that Brook Bassan became embroiled in controversy when she became the sponsor for  the “Safe Outdoor Spaces” amendment to the IDO.  The change now permits 2 homeless encampments in all 9 city council districts with 40 designated spaces for tents, allowing upwards of 50 people, requires hand washing stations, toilets and showers, requires a management plan, 6 foot fencing and social services offered.  Bassan apologized to her constituents for her sponsorship of “Safe Outdoor Spaces” and introduced legislation to repeal the land use, but the damage has been done with upwards of 6 applications for Safe Outdoor Spaces made with 3 approved and with one appealed. 

The 2023 municipal election will give voters a real opportunity to select upwards of 4 new city councilors that could dramatically change the direction of the city policy as well as the balance of power.  Citizens who are truly concerned about the direction of the city are encouraged run for City Council and provide real choices to those who are stepping down and from those that are already on the city council.

Pete Dinelli is a native of Albuquerque. He is a licensed New Mexico attorney with 27 years of municipal and state government service including as an assistant attorney general, assistant district attorney prosecuting violent crimes, city of Albuquerque deputy city attorney and chief public safety officer, Albuquerque city councilor, and several years in private practice. Dinelli publishes a blog covering politics in New Mexico: www.PeteDinelli.com.

https://newmexicosun.com/stories/635342866-look-ahead-abq-s-2023-municipal-elections-take-shape

 

 

On November 3, the Albuquerque Journal released its poll on the job performance of Mayor Tim Keller. The poll was conducted by its long-time polling firm Research & Polling which is considered the gold standard when it comes to political polls because of its accuracy.  The poll was part of the highly comprehensive polling the Journal does and reports on every election year.  The 2022 general election year poll covered all the major State and Federal elections and included polling on the top issues including abortion, crime, the economy, and education.

POLL RESULTS

The Journal poll asked the singular question “Do you approve or disapprove of the way Tim Keller is handling his job as Mayor?”

The results of the poll were dramtic:

DISAPPROVE:  40%

APPROVE:  33%

MIXED FEELINGS:   21%

WOULD NOT SAY: 5%

DEMOCRATS

49% of Democrats polled APPROVE of Keller’s job performance

20% of Democrats polled DISAPPROVE of Keller’s job performance

25% of Democrats polled expressed MIXED FEELINGS

REPUBLICANS

 9% of Republicans polled APPROVE of Keller’s job performance

70% of Republicans polled DISAPPROVE of Keller’s job performance

14% of Republicans polled expressed MIXED FEELINGS

INDEPENDANTS

29% of Independents polled APPROVE of Keller’s job performance

48% of Independents polled DISAPPROVE of Keller’s job performance

20% of Independents polled expressed MIXED FEELINGS

The data breakdown of the poll was reported as follows:

GENDER

MALE

32% of males approved of Keller’s job performance

44% of males disapproved of Keller’s job performance

19% of males had “mixed feeling” of Keller’s job performanc

FEMALE

34% of females approved of Keller’s job performance

37% of females disapproved of Keller’s job performance

22% of females had “mixed feeling” of Keller’s job performanc

ETHNICITY

HISPANIC

39% of Hispanics polled APPROVE of Keller’s job performance

39% of Hispanics polled DISAPPROVE of Keller’s job performance

21% of Hispanics polled expressed MIXED FEELINGS

ANGLO

32% of Anglos polled APPROVE of Keller’s job performance

40% of Anglos polled DISAPPROVE of Keller’s job performance

21% of Anglos polled expressed MIXED FEELINGS

CHRONOLOGY OF KELLER’S DECLINING POPULARITY

It was just one year ago during his campaign for a second term that Keller registered a 50% approval rating in the Journal Poll.  Previous Journal Polls found a majority in Albuquerque approved of Mayor Tim Keller during his first term, including 60% in 2020 and 61% in 2018.

In 2017 then New Mexico State Auditor Tim Keller was elected Mayor coming in first by beating all 7 of his opponents to get into a runoff. He went on to win in 2017 by a decisive landslide against City Councilor Dan Lewis who secured 37.8% with Keller winning with 62.2% of the vote.

Mayor Keller won his 2021 election to a second 4 year term with  56% of the final vote and beating Sheriff Manny Gonzales who secured 26% of the vote and Der Führer Trump Radio Shock Jock Eddy Aragon  secured 18% of the vote.

MAYOR TIM KELLERS REACTION TO CRATERED POLL NUMBERS

Confidential sources within and without City hall confirmed that the poll results came as an absolute stunner to Mayor Tim Keller and to  many within his Administration. So much so that Keller reached out to many of his political associates and advisors on how to respond to the Albuquerque Journal poll numbers.  Mayor Keller’s public response was the results came as  “no surprise”  to him  given the outcome of the city’s Citizen Satisfaction Survey released in August of this  year.

The Citizen Perception  Survey found that 52% of Albuquerque residents are concerned about the city’s direction. Keller told the Journal he, too, is frustrated with some of the city’s challenges and what he called the current “hard times.” Keller also proclaimed the city survey validated some of his major initiatives, including the forthcoming Gateway Center Homeless shelter and services center.

The postscript to this blog article contains detailed poll results of the Citizen Perception Survey in the 5 key areas of   Direction City is Going, Personal Safety, City Services and Homelessness that likely had an impact on Keller’s popularity and his unfavorable rating.

Mayor Keller had this to say about the Journal poll:

“At the end of the day, mayors take the heat for all of America’s problems, so that’s just part of the job. …  It shows our city needs continued help from every level of government.”

Keller, the eternal optimist, placed his own political spin on the results and  noted that those who approve and those who reported mixed feelings together make up  54%  of those polled.  He noted that the 54% is nearly equal to  his performance in last year’s election and that he sees opportunity to turn those on-the-fence respondents into believers. Keller told the Journal this:

“I think there is certainly plenty of runway left.”

FACTOR’S CITED FOR REASON OF DECLINE

Brian Sanderoff, the President of Research & Polling who did the poll, was interviewed by the Journal and was asked to give his opinion as to the reasons why Keller has had such a sharp decline in his popularity. Sanderoff said voter concern about crime and homelessness are likely the biggest factors in the latest poll results and he said this:

“There are many government agencies and branches of government that play a role in addressing crime; however, the mayor and the city police department are front and center with the public.”

https://www.abqjournal.com/2545820/mayor-kellers-job-approval-rating-sinks.html

FAILURE TO ADDRESS SPIKING VIOLENT CRIME

Over 5 years ago, in August, 2017, then New Mexico State Auditor Tim Keller, candidate for Albuquerque Mayor, had this to say about the city’s high crime rates:

“It’s unfortunate, but crime is absolutely out of control. It’s the mayor’s job to actually address crime in Albuquerque, and that’s what I want to do as the next mayor.”

 In 2017 Tim Keller ran for Mayor  on the platform of reducing the city’s high crime rates, implementing the Department of Justice (DOJ) consent decree and all the 270 mandated reforms, increasing the size of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD), returning to “community based policing”, no tax increase without a public vote even for public safety, address the homeless crisis by building a centralized shelter, stopping waste fraud and abuse, and a commitment to transparency and economic development.

During his full 5 years in office, Mayor Keller has initiated numerous crime-fighting initiatives. All were initiated before the pandemic hit the city hard in February of  2020.  It was on  March 11, 2020  when the Corona Virus was declared a world wide pandemic and the country began to shut down and people began to quarantine and businesses began to close.

It was in 2018 to 2019, during a 9 month period, in response to the continuing increase in violent crime rates, Mayor Keller scrambled to implement 4 major crime fighting programs to reduce violent crime. Those programs are:

1. The Shield Unit

In February 2018 the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) created the “Shield Unit”. The Shield Unit assists APD Police Officers to prepare cases for trial and prosecution by the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s office. The unit originally consisted of 3 para legals. It was announced that it is was expanded to 12 under the 2019-2020 city budget that took effect July 1, 2019.

https://www.abqjournal.com/1325167/apd-expands-unit-that-preps-cases-for-prosecution.html

2. Declaring Violent Crime “Public Health” issue

On April 8, 2019, Mayor Keller and APD announced efforts that will deal with “violent crime” in the context of it being a “public health issue” and dealing with crimes involving guns in an effort to bring down violent crime in Albuquerque. Mayor Keller and APD argue that gun violence is a “public health issue” because gun violence incidents have lasting adverse effects on children and others in the community that leads to further problems.

3.The “Violence Intervention Plan” (VIP program)

On November 22, 2019 Mayor Tim Keller announced what he called a “new initiative” to target violent offenders called “Violence Intervention Plan” (VIP). The VIP initiative was in response to the city’s recent murders resulting in the city tying the all-time record of homicides at 72 in one year. Mayor Keller proclaimed the VIP is a “partnership system” that includes law enforcement, prosecutors and social service and community provides to reduce violent crime. According to Keller vulnerable communities and law enforcement will be working together and building trust has proven results for public safety. Mayor Keller stated:

“… This is about trying to get these people not to shoot each other. …This is about understanding who they are and why they are engaged in violent crime. … And so, this actually in some ways, in that respect, this is the opposite of data. This is action. This is actually doing something with people. …”

4. The Metro 15 Operation program.

On Tuesday, November 26, 2019 Mayor Tim Keller held a press conference to announce a 4th program within 9 months to deal with the city’s violent crime and murder rates. At the time of the press conference, the city’s homicide count was at 72, matching the city’s record in 2017.

Before 2017, the last time the City had the highest number of homicides in one year was in 1996 with 70 murders that year. Keller dubbed the new program “Metro 15 Operation” and is part of the Violence Intervention Program (VIP) program. According to Keller and then APD Chief Michael Geier the new program would target the top 15 most violent offenders in Albuquerque. It’s the city’s version of the FBI’s 10 most wanted list.

Links to news coverage are here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/1394576/city-launches-violence-intervention-program.html

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/mayor-keller-touts-new-plan-to-tackle-violent-crime/5561150/?cat=500

Despite all of Keller’s programs to bring down violent crime, he has been a failure. During each year of Mayor Tim Keller’s years in office, the city’s murder rates rose, dropped only one year, and then rose to a historical high. Following is the breakdown of homicide by year:

2017: 72 homicides
2018: 69 homicides.
2019: 82 homicides
2020: 76 homicides
2021: 117 homicides  (3 declared self defense reducing homicide number to 114)
2022: 115 homicides as of  December 3, 2022. 

The link to quoted source material is here:

https://www.abqjournal.com/1534762/homicide-numbers-high-despite-pandemic.html?amp=1

https://www.cabq.gov/police/documents/apd-homicide-list-for-web-site-as-of-11nov2022.pdf

Police shootings are not included in the number of homicides the city has.  On November 30, it was reported that the city has had record  17 police shootings this year.

https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/albuquerque-marks-record-number-police-shootings-2022-93084096

OVERALL CRIME IN CITY

Overall crime in Albuquerque also rose in 2021 for the first time since 2018.  It marked the first increase in property crime since the city notched back-to-back 10% drops, pushing decreases in overall crime even as violence steadily rose over the past several years.

Travelers Worldwide is a voluntary organization that was set up in 1994 to report on places to work, live and visit. When it comes to Albuquerque, Travelers Worldwide put it this way:

In Albuquerque, crime rates are high across the board. According to the Albuquerque Police’s annual report on crime, there were 46,391 property crimes and 15,765 violent crimes recorded in 2021.  These numbers place Albuquerque among America’s most dangerous cities. Tourists visiting Albuquerque are at increased risk of experiencing aggravated robbery, auto theft, and petty theft.  The chances of becoming a victim of property crime in Albuquerque are 1 in 20, an alarmingly high statistic for tourists looking for a peaceful vacation. Simple assault, aggravated assault, auto theft, and larceny are just some of the most common criminal offenses in Albuquerque. Burglary and sex offense rates In Albuquerque are also higher than the national average.

https://www.volunteerworld.com/en/review/travellers-worldwide

KELLER’S FAILURE TO GROW APD TO LEVEL PROMISED

In 2017, Tim Keller campaigned to be elected mayor on the platform of increasing the size of the Albuquerque Police Department (APD), returning to community-based policing and promising to bring down skyrocketing crime rates. To that end, the Keller Administration began implementing an $88 million-dollar APD police expansion program increasing the number of sworn police officers from 898 positions filled to 1,200, or by 302 sworn police officers, over a four-year period. The massive investment was ordered by Mayor Tim Keller to full fill his 2017 campaign promise to increase the size of APD and return to community-based policing as a means to reduce the city’s high crime rates. Keller promised to increase the number of sworn police in the department to 1,200 by the end of his first term.

Fast-forward 5 years later. The Albuquerque Police Department (APD) is the largest city budget out of 27 departments. The fiscal year 2023 approved General Fund budget is $255.4 million, which represents an increase of 14.7% or $32.8 million above the fiscal year 2022 level. The approved General Fund civilian count is 665 and the sworn police count is 1,100 for a total of 1,765 full-time positions. Despite all the money thrown at APD by Keller over the past 5 years, APD is still seriously understaffed and the return to community policing is still elusive.

APD’s general fund budget of $255.4 provides funding for 1,100 full time sworn police officers, with the department fully funded for 1,100 sworn police for the past 3 years and not the 1,200 sworn police Keller promised 5 years ago. However, as of October 7, there is an anemic  857 sworn officers in APD.   During the October 7, 2022 news conference, APD Chief Median reported that APD has 857 sworn officers and this is down from the 917 sworn police number reported on December 6, 2021 to the Federal Court overseeing the consent decree.

As of October 2022, APD has 514 civilian professional staff, 40 public safety aides, 73   911 operators, 23 dispatchers, 41 retired officers that have returned to the department with more than 50 retired officers on contract work for the department.  The latest APD cadet class has 26 people in training to become police officers. The upcoming next cadet class is likely to see between 50 to 60 people.

KELLER’S  ALL THE ABOVE APPROACH TO SOLVE THE HOMELESS CRISIS

The homeless have reached crisis proportions with them becoming far more visible and aggressive by illegally camping in parks, on streets, in alleyways and in city open space,  whenever they want and declining city services. Keller has proclaimed an “all the above approach” to deal with the homeless costing millions.

For five years, Mayor Tim Keller has made the city’s homeless crisis a major priority and now proclaims an “all-the-above approach.” It’s an approach that is costing millions and it is failing. Keller has done the following:

• Over two years, budgeted $33,854,536 for homeless emergency shelters, support, mental health and substance abuse programs and $60,790,321 for affordable housing programs for the low-income, near homeless.
• Established two 24/7 homeless shelters, including purchasing the Gibson Medical Center for $15 million to convert it into a homeless shelter.
• Established a “no arrest” policy for violations of the city’s camping, trespassing and vagrancy laws with an emphasis on citations.
• For five years, allowed Coronado Park to become a “de facto” city-sanctioned homeless encampment, which he was forced to close down because of drugs and violent crimes.
• Advocated and funded city-sanctioned safe outdoor space (SOS) homeless tent encampments. The Environmental Planning Commission is recommending the City Council repeal this land use.

As the homeless remained a persistent and pervasive challenge for Keller while city residents have expressed frustration  and even anger with the city’s response to the issue.

In June, the city released its government-funded satisfaction poll.  70% of those surveyed felt  the City is doing a poor job of addressing homelessness, 9% of residents gave City Government positive marks for addressing the homelessness issue and 20% gave the city mixed or neutral rating. The percentage of residents who give the City positive scores for addressing homelessness had risen from 13% in 2019 to 29% in 2020 but it has now fallen by 20% and is  9% currently. The link to the full survey is here:

https://www.cabq.gov/mayor/documents/final_coa-citizen-sat-2022.pdf

KELLER DOUBLE DOWNS ON DEALING WITH HOMELESS

Since the citizen satisfaction survey Keller doubled down on his efforts to address the homeless crisis.  He increased city funding to the Family and Community Services Department by over $24,353,064 going from $35,145,851 in the 2021 fiscal year to $59,498,915 in the 2022 fiscal year to provide services and housing to the homeless and he made controversial decisions intended to address the city’s homeless crisis. Those decisions included closing Coronado Park, the  de facto city sanction homeless encampment Keller had encouraged and he had to close because crime, illicite drugs and contamination, advocating for city sanctioned tent encampments known as Safe Outdoor Spaces and  advocating for “Motel Conversions” where the city will purchase existing motels and convert them into low-income housing.

Safe Outdoor Spaces are organized camp sites where upwards of 50 people who are homeless can legally sleep in tents or cars while accessing showers and other amenities with as many as 18 such campsites will be allowed. The City has already approved one Safe Outdoor Space for victims of “sex-trafficking victims” and other vulnerable populations  to be located on vacant land at 1250 Menaul Blvd, NE . The approval is being appealed by at least 7 appellants.

The city is already on track to purchase the Sure Stay Hotel on hotel circle in the North East  Heights for a motel conversion for low income housing by using Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funding of $3,059,662.12 in Community Development Block Grants,  $2,443,724.00 from Public Facilities monies  and $615,938.12 from Foreclosure Prevention for a total property purchase of  $6,119,324.24.

COUNCIL TURNOVER RESULTS IN A MORE CONSERVATIVE BODY AND CLASHES WITH KELLER

The 2021 municipal elections resulted in a turnover of  4 city  council seats out of 9  with two councilors deciding not to run again and  two  other Democrat  incumbents losing to challengers.  The City Council went from a 6 to 3 Democrat  solid  “progressive” majority to a 5 to 4 Democrat majority that is decidedly more conservative leaning.  This change is in large  part to the election of  Westside  conservative Democrat Louie Sanchez who defeated progressive Democrat Lan Sena and the election of right  wing  Republican Dan Lewis who defeated Democrat Cynthia Borrego.

Sena was  appointed by Mayor Tim Keller after the death of City Councilor Ken Sanchez.  Sena  is a progressive Democrat activist who  was a bad fit from the get go for the moderate to conservative working class District.  Keller was more interested in appointing a political ideolog who had to be female  than appointing a  moderate to the council.  Her loss was a clear loss for Keller as he lost a reliable ally and  vote on the council.

Republican  Dan Lewis defeating Cynthia Borrego came as no surprise. Lewis was a two term city councilor before and had significant support of the Republican party and his campaign manager was none other Jay McClusky, the right wing, slash and burn politcal operative who managed the campaigns of Mayor Richard Berry, Governor Susana Martinez and Mark Ronchetti’s US Senate race and Governors race.   Lest anyone forget, 5 years ago, City Councilor Lewis ran and lost to Mayor Tim Keller in a landslide.  Lewis is already saying he intends to run for Mayor again in 2025, especially if Keller seeks a third term.  Borrego is considered a moderate and has now been elected to the New Mexico House of Representatives.

After the December 7 City Council runoff election, the 5 Democrats on the  city council as of January 1, 2022 are:

District 1 Conservative  Louie Sanchez (Elected on November 2 defeating Lan Sena.)
District 2 Progressive Isaac Benton
District 3 Moderate Klarissa Peña (Ran unopposed on November 2 .)
District 6 Progressive  Pat Davis
District 7 Progressive Tammy Fiebelkorn

After the November 7 runoff election, the 4 Republicans on the new city council are:

District 5 Conservative Dan Lewis (Newly elected defeating Cynthia Borrego)
District 4 Conservative  Brook Bassan
District 8 Conservative Trudy Jones
District 9 Conservative Renee Grout

Because of the 2021 municipal election and its move to the conservative right, it has  taken to  reevaluating  progressive  policies adopted by the previous city councils. That includes the city’s plastic bag ban repeal by the current council, attempting to reduce the Mayor’s emergency authority during a health crisis, and considering whether to replace the zero-fare bus pilot program.

2023 MUNICIPAL ELECTION

A total of 4 City Council seats will be on next year’s municipal ballot.  Progressive Democrat Pat Davis, District 6, and Conservative Republican Trudy Jones, District 8, have made it official and announced that they will not seek another term on the Albuquerque City Council.   District 2 now represented by Progressive  Democrat  Isaac Benton and District 4 now represented by Conservative Republican Brook Bassan are also on the ballot. Both Benton and Bassan are expected to have strong opposition is they do run.  With upwards of 4 city councilor incumbents being replace, the balance of power on the city council may continue to shift for Keller and his influence diminished even further.

COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS

Tim Keller has always been the eternal optimist with a smile on his face and a grin in his voice.  A very good example of his optimism is when Keller noted that the 33%  who approve of his job performance  and the  21%  who reported mixed feelings together make up  54%  of those polled and saying  the 54% is  nearly equal to  his 56% performance in last year’s election.  Keller told the Journal this:

“I think there is certainly plenty of runway left.”

That’s a very good politcal spin, but it’s not how reality works, and if Keller believes what he is saying, he is not facing reality and lying to himself.  Keller may be the eternal optimist, but realty tends to humble and to prevail over arrogance in politics. Keller will likely successfully takeoff again but it’s not at all likely he will soar to the heights he once flew in past elections.  A 40% disapproval rating and a  33% approval rating by all  measure is a deep hole to climb out of, but on many levels, it’s a hole he has dug for himself making promises he could not keep.

Then their is a real possibility that Keller’s number could plunge even further.  Sooner the public demand results and ignore the optimism and public relations. Political observers are saying the odds are very high he will not be able to turn around his popularity so long as crime and the homeless continue to be his second term curses and as it stands both are only getting worse as each year passes during Keller’s tenure as Mayor.

Sources have confirmed that Keller is already signaling he will run for a third term as Mayor recognizing he has no other options when it comes to running for  statewide offices.  A run for Governor in 4 years, which was  said to have been Keller’s initial plan, is not likely in that he would be facing far more popular candidates such as United States Senator Martin Heinrich, Secretary of Interior Debra Haaland,  Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver or AG Hector Balderas, all 4 who have expressed an interest in running for Governor in 2026 to succeed Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham. Then there is the matter of Governor Lujan Grisham not at all too happy with Keller having to go to his aide when it comes to the city’s spiking crime and homeless.

Running for United State Senator is also not realistic for Keller with Senators Martin Heinrich and Ben Ray Lujan being as young and as popular as they are. Heinrich must run for re election to the Senate in 2024, and if he is elected, and then runs for Governor in 2024 as has been suggested, he would appoint his successor to the Senate and there is no guarantee that Heinrich would appoint  Tm Keller to replace him. Then you have the very ambitious Attorney General Raul Torrez who is close to Heinrich,  given that Heinrich appeared in Torrez  AG commercials,  who  has made it known he has national ambitions.  Torrez  is not above trashing his opponents as he did with Democrat  Brian Colon in the primary and Republican Jeremy Gay in the general to become Attorney General and running against Keller for Senate in a statewide campaign  and smearing him with his failure as Mayor would be all too easy.

One option Mayor Tim Keller does have is to try to secure a cabinet appointment in a President Joe Biden second term, but that is only if there is a second Biden term, and that’s a very big if. And even bigger if is Tim  Keller being able to secure a third term as Mayor.

_____________________________________

POSTSCRIPT

CITIZEN PERCEPTION SURVEY

Each year, the City of Albuquerque commissions a survey to assess residents’ satisfaction with various City services and issues relating to crime, homelessness, and public safety.  The study is required by City ordinance.  On September 6, the City has released the City of Albuquerque Citizen Perception Survey dated August 2022. The link to the full survey is here:

https://www.cabq.gov/mayor/documents/final_coa-citizen-sat-2022.pdf

There are five major categories covered by the survey that likely had a impact on the perception of Mayor Keller’s job performance:

 Direction City is Going

Personal Safety

City Services

Homelessness

An edited summary of results in these 4 categories  of the survey are as follows:

CITIZEN SURVEY RESULTS ON “DIRECTION CITY IS GOING”

The survey results revealed that over half those surveyed, 52%, say they are concerned about the city’s overall direction. This compares to 43% who say they are hopeful. In the December 2020 survey, 50% said they were hopeful.  The percentage of residents who say they are hopeful about the direction of the City has fallen from 50% in December of 2020 to 43% in 2022.  Although 43% of residents say they are either somewhat hopeful with 34% or very hopeful with 9% about the direction of the City, just over  52% say they are either somewhat concerned at 30% or very concerned at 22%. Anglo residents with 58% are more apt than Hispanics with 44% to rate the quality of life in Albuquerque as being either good or excellent. The percentage of residents who rate the quality of life in Albuquerque as being either good or excellent has fallen from 54% in 2018 to 48% in 2022.

It is not surprising that many residents are concerned about the direction of the City given the challenges currently being faced across the nation. The survey noted that residents across the nation have concerns about where the country is heading as a whole.   An example is the website RealClear Politics calculates the average of different polls conducted among voters and adults across the nation and currently shows that an average of 74% believe the country is currently off on the wrong track, while an average of just 18% feel the country is heading in the right direction.

The survey results on citizens perception on the direction the city is going should is a major red flag of failure for Mayor Keller and the City Council.  A  very disturbing trend revealed by the survey is that residents show less satisfaction with current quality of life in the city and there is growing concern about Albuquerque’s future.  Although 50% of those surveyed believe Albuquerque is doing “about the same” as other cities dealing with problems and carrying out its responsibilities, the survey generally shows worsening perceptions of life in the city.

CITIZEN SURVEY RESULTS ON “PERSONAL SAFETY”

“Crime and feelings of personal safety are important components to perceived quality of life.  Overall, 81% of Albuquerque residents say they feel in their neighborhood during the day.  (Very Safe at  51%  + somewhat at 30% = 81%)

 However, the 81%  drops to 57%  felling safe at night. (Very safe at  24%  +  somewhat safe at 33%  =  57%.) In other words, there is a day and night different of  24%.  

 The gap has narrowed from  2020, when 68% reported feeling safe in their neighborhoods at night and only 24% said they felt unsafe.”

One of the most disturbing statistics from the Citizen’s Survey is that only 57% of those surveyed felt safe at night in their own homes.  It likely that 57% is on the very low side. At the core of citizens do not feel safe in their homes at night is the City’s high violent crime and homicide rates.

An Albuquerque Journal poll found that 82% of the public feel that crime is very serious, 14% said crime is somewhat serious for a staggering total of 96%.  Albuquerque has seen a major spike in violent crime and the rates are some of the highest in the country.

In the last 3 years, Albuquerque has had a breaking number of homicides each year.  In 2021 the city had 117 homicides.  As of August 30, APD reports that there have been 88 homicides, with the city well on it way to breaking the 2021 all time record.

apd-homicide-list-for-web-site-as-of-02sep2022.pdf (cabq.gov)

https://www.abqjournal.com/2528871/ex-those-most-likely-to-vote-also-worry-about-the-economy-and-public.html

CITIZEN SURVEY RESULTS ON “CITY SERVICES”

“The percentage of residents who feel Albuquerque City Government is responsive to community needs has dropped from 48% observed in 2020, which was an all-time high dating back to 2011, to 32% a 17% drop.  Specifically, 32% agree Albuquerque City Government is responsive to community needs, 38% have a neutral opinion, 28% disagree that City Government is responsive.

These results are similar to those observed in previous studies dating back to 2011 with the exception of the 2020 study which saw a big spike in positive reviews. The 2020 results may have been an anomaly given that so much attention was being given to the COVID-19 pandemic and associated shutdowns coupled with the fact that the majority of residents give City Government high marks for the City’s response to COVID.

Residents were asked to rate how well Albuquerque City Government is handling specific issues using a five-point scale where five is excellent and one is very poor.

47% give City Government positive marks with a score of 4 or 5 when it comes to maintaining city parks and open space areas.

34% give positive ratings supporting renewable and clean energy programs.

34% give positive ratings for maintaining roads and streets

32% give positive ratings for supporting the local economy”

It’s very clear from the survey that dissatisfaction with city response to community needs has increased dramatically.  The percentage of residents who feel Albuquerque City Government is responsive to community needs has dropped from 48% observed in 2020, which was an all-time high dating back to 31% found in 2011, a 17% decline.

This is very difficult to accept, let alone understand, given that Mayor Tim Keller has submitted, and the City Council has approved in 2 consecutive years the 2  largest city budgets in its history, one for $1.1 Billion in 2021 and the other for $1.4 billion in 2022.

On May 17, 2021, the Albuquerque City Council voted unanimously to approve the 2021-2022 city budget of $1.2 billion, $711.5 million of which is the General Fund. The General Fund covers basic city services such as police protection, fire and rescue protection, the bus system, street maintenance, weekly solid waste pickup, all city park maintenance, city equipment, animal control, environmental health services, the legal department, risk management, and payroll and human resources

On May 16, 2022, the Albuquerque City Council approved the 2022-2023 city budget. The overall budget approved by the city council was for $1.4 Billion with $841.8 representing the general fund spending with an increase of $127 million, or 17.8%, over the 2021-2022 c budget of $1.2 Billion.

The link to city approved budgets is here:

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

SURVEY RESULTS ON THE “HOMELESS”

“The issue of homelessness continues to be a major challenge in Albuquerque as it is in many other cities.  70% feel the City is doing a poor job of addressing homelessness and a mere  9% of residents give City Government positive marks for addressing the homelessness issue.  20% give a mixed or neutral rating.

The percentage of residents who give the City positive scores for addressing homelessness had risen from 13% in 2019 to 29% in 2020 but it has now fallen by 20% and is  9% currently.  Although there has been a lot of attention focused on homelessness in the news, few  of Albuquerque residents say they are aware the city is the Gateway Center.  The shelter will be a 24/7 shelter providing to women experiencing homelessness during the first phase of its operation.”

The Citizens Survey of 70% feeling the city is failing in its response to the homeless is likely inaccurate and the public attitude has only gotten worse. A recent Journal poll found that 77% of the general public believes the homeless crisis is very serious and 16% feel it is somewhat serious with a staggering combined total of 93%.

What is clear from the Citizen Perception Survey is that Albuquerque residents are dissatisfied with the Keller Administration’s response to the homelessness crisis despite the city’s huge financial commitment to dealing with the homeless.   The survey confirms that residents feel Mayor Tim Keller and his administration are failing to deal with the homeless crisis.

70% of citizens survey respondents rate the city poorly for its performance in dealing with the homeless crisis.  This includes 41% who gave city hall the lowest possible rating.  Meanwhile, only 9% gave the city’s homelessness response a favorable review. In other words, 7 times more people rate the city poorly on the issue than offer a positive assessment.  This is a dramatic change from 2020 when only 36% gave the city poor marks for how it was tackling homelessness, including just 22% who offered the worst rating, while 29% provided a positive assessment.  There has been a dramatic 20% drop in how people feel the city is dealing with homeless from 29% in 2020 to 9% in 2022.

The 9% approval rating in the citizens survey  on the homeless issue should be very alarming to Mayor Tim Keller and his administration.  Since day one from becoming Mayor on December 1, 2018, Mayor Keller has made dealing with the homeless a major cornerstone of his administration so much so that he advocated the construction of a 24-7 homeless shelter.  This ultimately resulted in the purchase of the massive 560,000 square foot Gibson Medical Center, formerly the Lovelace Hospital, for $15 million. The facility is being renovated and it is anticipated to open in the winter of 2022 as a 24/7 shelter.

The Keller Administration has adopted a housing first policy when it comes to dealing with the homeless crisis which also includes funding provided to at least 10 service providers. This past fiscal year 2021 ending June 10, 2021, the Family and Community Services Department and the Keller Administration have spent upwards of $40 Million to benefit the homeless or near homeless.

The 2021 adopted city budget for Family and Community Services Department provides for mental health contracts totaling $4,329,452, and substance abuse contracts for counseling contracts totaling $2,586,302 and emergency shelter contracts totaling $5,688,094, affordable housing and community contracts totaling $22,531,752, homeless support services contracts.  Mayor Keller’s 2022-2023 approved budget significantly increases the Family and Community Services budget by $24,353,064 to assist the homeless or near homeless by going from $35,145,851 to $59,498,915.

The links  to the adopted 2021-2022 and 2022-23 approved budgets are here:

https://www.cabq.gov/dfa/documents/fy22-approved-budget-numbered-w-hyperlinks-final.pdf

https://www.cabq.gov/dfa/documents/fy23-proposed-final-web-version.pdf

“ALBUQUERQUE POLICE DEPARTMENT”

 “Residents were asked to rate how strongly they either agree or disagree with several statements relating to the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) using a 5-point scale where 5 is strongly agree and 1 is strongly disagree.  [The results of the survey were]:

 53% of residents agree APD is respectful in its treatment of citizens as indicated by a score of 4 or 5.  This is up from 48% two years ago. That is down from 49% in 2019 and the lowest number for any survey going back to at least 2011.  20% strongly agreed compared to 15% who disagree, with a score of 1 or 2.

 29% have neutral or mixed feelings about APD with a score of 3.  47% of residents agree APD reflects the values of the City’s residents, with 18% disagreeing and 30% have a neutral opinion of APD and 27% disagree.”

 According to the citizen’ survey, 38% of residents agree APD is doing a good job of addressing public safety issues and making quick responses to emergencies, while 30% have a neutral opinion and 27% disagree. 

A plurality, or 41%, of those surveyed said the ongoing U.S. Department of Justice-mandated reform effort within APD has had no impact, while 24% say it has been positive and 14% say it has been negative.  There is no getting around it, even with the recent news that APD has improved in compliance levels with all of the reforms, APD still has a major image problem.

Over the last 7 years, the DOJ reforms have place great emphasis on implementing constitutional policing practices, increased training and crisis intervention and implemented community policing councils and a Citizens Police Oversight agency. Despite all the efforts made, an astonishing 41% of those feel the reforms have had no impact on APD.

The 38% of residents agreeing that  APD is doing a good job with response times to emergencies  is very low and should come as  no surprise. There have been news investigative reports on APD’s response times for Priority 1 calls. Priority 1 calls include shootings, stabbings, armed robberies, sexual and aggravated assaults, domestic violence with weapons involved and home invasions.  According to the data, the time it takes officers to get to a crime scene stayed relatively consistent between January 2018 to May 2021 and was roughly between 9 and 12 minutes. In 2020, it was reported that there was a 93% increase in APD response time over a 9-year period. In 2018, clearing a scene ranged from an hour to an hour and 12 minutes. Fast forward to 2021 and APD was averaging more than 2 hours to write reports, gather evidence and interview witnesses, a full hour longer than three years ago.

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/abq-4ward-examining-apds-response-times/6204745/

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