Albuquerque received a $13.7 million dollar gift from Bernalillo County in the form of the Route 66 Visitor Center. Bernalillo County Commissioners voted unanimously to transfer ownership and responsibility of the visitor center to the city at their meeting held Feb. 20.
Commissioners also gave funding to Serenity Mesa to help teens who need detox services and the Gibson Healthcare Hub got some bucks to help a few more homeless residents.
Read more about these two initiatives here.
Cruise To Nine Mile Hill
Route 66 Visitor Center, near the top of Nine Mile Hill at 12300 Central Ave SW, is about 21,000-square-feet and has space for a gift shop, event space, taproom, museum and amphitheater. It has been in the works since the mid-1990’s and is dedicated to the preservation of the rich history of the Mother Road.
On Tuesday, commissioners voted to transfer the property through a quitclaim deed—a form that is used to convey real property from a seller to a buyer—and the city will be responsible for it here on out.
Both the city and the county contributed to the construction of the building and a non-profit organization, West Central Community Development group was given a contract for $500,000 to operate the venue.
According to its website, the center is open Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 10am to 4pm.
Money Shuffle
Commissioners approved giving the Gateway Center health hub $3 million dollars to demolish and then re-construct an existing 17,000-square-foot suite adjacent to the existing Gateway Housing Navigation Center. This allocation will expand the health hub’s overall capacity by 50 beds.
In an unanimous vote, commissioners awarded Serenity Mesa Youth Recovery $3.5 million, over three years, to set up an adolescent detox facility at its center on the Southwest Mesa. This is the only center in the metropolitan area that offers services for adolescents and young adults struggling with addiction.
Commissioners approved a financial resolution to allocate more than $21.9 million dollars for the Metropolitan Detention Center Healthcare Authority, an independent entity that ensures the delivery of medical, dental and mental health/psychiatric services to inmates. This is part of a joint power’s agreement between the county and UNMH to provide medical and behavioral services to the inmates at the detention center. Another $800,000 was approved and is set aside for the administration of the services.
A presentation by Kate Becker, Chief Executive Officer of UNM Hospital was postponed. Becker was set to give a patient and financial data report for the quarter ending Dec. 31, 2023. The presentation will be scheduled for a future meeting.
Commissioners heard a report on updated projections on the potential impacts of the 13,700-acre Santolina Development out on the Southwest Mesa.. The concept plan for the master plan was adopted by the commission in 2015 after a lengthy public process.
How To Participate
Bernalillo County meetings are conducted at 5pm on the first and third Tuesday of the month in the Ken Sanchez Commission Chambers at 415 Silver Ave SW or via a hybrid manner through GOV-TV or online at the county’s website or on Bernalillo County’s YouTube channel. The next meeting is at 5pm March 5.