What to expect from ABQ City Council after summer break

After a month-long break, the Albuquerque City Council will convene with plenty to tackle during its next series of meetings, and councilors will also have a loaded agenda for Aug. 5. 

Here are the main agenda items expected to lead the night:

Mayor’s veto on council’s voting changes 

Earlier this month, Mayor Tim Keller vetoed a proposal approved by the council to change the threshold for municipal elections. Councilors approved the measure on a 6-3 vote with the intention to put it on the November ballot. The intention was to replace the current majority voting system — which requires a candidate to receive 50% of the total vote in order to win — with a plurality voting system and eliminate run-off elections. 

The council can override a veto with a majority — five — plus one vote, meaning if councilors vote the same way they did initially, they will have enough votes to override it. 

E-bikes on Open Space trails 

Councilors will consider a proposed ordinance that would allow electric bikes on both paved and unpaved Open Space trails. The ordinance has received some pushback from more than 400 petition signers, asking councilors to table it until there is more public input. 

Electric scooter Rentals

Councilors will consider lowering fees for scooter and bike rental companies to operate in the city.

Route 66 Visitor Center commission

After postponing it last meeting, councilors will consider legislation to establish a Route 66 Visitor Center commission. 

The Route 66 Visitor Center is a $13.6 billion taxpayer-funded project that was completed in September 2022 but is still not open to visitors. 

Poop patrol

An update on the city’s “poop patrol” is also on the list. 

Earlier this year, the council approved legislation to establish funding to pay for proper removal of human waste. Councilor Tammy Fiebelkorn — sponsor of the legislation — said there will be an update on how the poop patrol is going.

“Right after it was implemented, I got a bunch of really happy constituents sending photos and saying, ‘Yeah, it worked,’ and then that stopped,” Fiebelkorn said. “So we are now trying to figure out what’s going on.”