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Quitting time for Albuquerque City Council meetings is officially 10:30 p.m. — or at least that’s what council rules say — meaning the legislative body has 5½ hours to take care of business every other Monday night.

But when 330 minutes are just not enough, the council can vote on the spot to bypass the policy and set a later end time.

It’s not particularly rare. And it happened again Monday when the council decided to formally extend its session to midnight.

However, the witching hour turned out to be several councilors’ limit.

As Monday turned to Tuesday and the council was still debating details of how to spend $200 million in projected infrastructure money — making amendments to decide which specific roadways and parks initiatives should get funding — Councilor Brook Bassan motioned to extend the meeting further into the wee hours. The author of the spending plan, Bassan had said she wanted to finalize it and end what she called recent “chaos” surrounding the legislation.

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Dan Lewis also favored carrying on, noting that city ordinance requires the council to vote on the biennial infrastructure plan — which ultimately goes out for voter approval in the fall via bond questions — at its first April meeting.

But going against the council’s procedural rules requires at least six of the nine councilors to agree, and Bassan only had four supporters: Renee Grout, Lewis, Klarissa Peña and Louie Sanchez.

The other four councilors — Isaac Benton, Pat Davis, Tammy Fiebelkorn and Trudy Jones — were already on record seeking to delay the $200 million decision until the next meeting.

“I’m uncomfortable doing this at this hour,” Jones had said shortly before 11 p.m. “People like to watch and see what we’re doing and listen to our debate. I like to watch and listen and see what we’re doing. I don’t want to sit here and go to sleep. It’s late.”

While their four votes were not enough to approve a two-week vote deferral, they were enough to quash Bassan’s attempt to suspend council rules to keep the meeting going past midnight.

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That automatically moved the infrastructure bill to the April 17 meeting.

SCHOOL NIGHT EXCEPTION: While the mere mention of an “infrastructure” bill is probably enough to make most people’s eyes glaze over, at least one local mid-schooler seems to be following it closely.

Tommy Soto, a 12-year-old Cottonwood Classical Prep School student, attended Monday’s meeting to provide public comment on the $200 million package. Though the legislation was last on the meeting agenda, Council President Pat Davis said he would not make Soto wait until then and invited him to the podium around 9 p.m.

“Mr. Soto still has school tomorrow and we’re keeping him late, so we’re going to make a special exception and let him speak to us now,” Davis said.

Soto used his moment to extol the virtues of the Albuquerque Museum and encourage the council to apply some of the $200 million toward the museum’s planned education center, saying he has personally benefited from years of art classes at the museum.

“The museum classes taught me about art from all over the world, including Mexico, Japan, India and Australia. I learned about different art techniques I still use now and about different art genres,” he said. “If I didn’t have this opportunity, I wouldn’t be the artist I am.”

Though Mayor Tim Keller’s infrastructure proposal to the council included $3.25 million for the museum project, the council’s spending plan removed it.

Some councilors, however, have shown interest in restoring the funding prior to the final vote.

Michael Brantley flew into Albuquerque on Tuesday morning, dropped some things off at the team hotel and had a nice, comfortable afternoon at Isotopes Park, including a pretty nice pregame spread of food, preparing for that night’s Triple-A baseball game between his Sugar Land Space Cowboys and hosting Albuquerque Isotopes.

And while none of it was probably quite as nice as he’s grown accustomed to in recent years as the All-Star, World Series champion left fielder of the Houston Astros, it was all still light years ahead of what the 35-year-old who is making an injury rehab assignment this week in Albuquerque remembers from his minor league playing days.

“Yeah, it’s way different. Way different,” Brantley said with a smile when asked how this trip to the minors, where he is rehabilitating after surgery to repair his left labrum that has kept him away from the Big League club since last June, compared to when he was coming up the system after the Milwaukee Brewers drafted him in the seventh round out of Fort Pierce (Florida) High School in 2005.

“The food, to the clubhouse, to the travel — it’s way different from what I experienced. I’m glad a lot of good things have happened (in the minor league levels) and grew from the time that I was in Triple-A.”

So is Brantley, who is expected to remain with Sugar Land through the completion of this weekend’s series at Isotopes Park, including playing in Friday night’s special Cinco de Mayo game at Isotopes Park, saying the minor league players of 2023 have it easy now?

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“I’m not going to say those exact words, but, yeah,” Brantley said with a laugh, not-so fondly recalling 21-hour bus drives in his early minor league days. “It’s a lot better now.”

Houston @astros LF Michael Brantley, in Abq this week on a minor league rehab assignment playing against the @ABQTopes, says minor leaguers have it a little bit better today than he remembers when he was coming up… pic.twitter.com/EhOPe0sRD2

— Geoff Grammer (@GeoffGrammer) May 5, 2023

The bottom line, he added, is it’s all still about baseball and about the work he needs to feel comfortable again to play at the highest level — where he’s been a 14-year Major League, five-time All-Star and has hit .306 with the Astros since joining Houston in 2019.

He hasn’t played since last June and said he’s calling this short time with the Space Cowboys his version of Spring Training — a stint of games probably less about seeing if he’s healthy at this point and more about him shaking off rust and getting his timing back to be sharp enough to play every day again in Houston.

“I’m doing well — building up (strength) and using this more as a spring training for me,” Brantlay said.

In seven games played for Sugar Land, including two of the first three played this week in Albuquerque (he was held out of Thursday’s school day matinee game that started at 11 a.m.), Brantley is hitting .316 with a pair of doubles and he’s drawn seven walks in 27 plate appearances.

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While Brantley said he’s genuinely enjoying being around the minor league teammates, he’s also leaning on one of his Astros teammates — Albuquerque native and fellow Astro Alex Bregman — to help him navigate the best restaurants and other stops this week.

Houston Astros All-Star left fielder Michael Brantley, seen rounding second base Tuesday at Isotopes Park, is in Albuquerque on an injury rehab assignment with the Triple-A Sugar Land Space Cowboys, who are playing a six-game series with the Isotopes.

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A post shared by Geoff Grammer (@geoffgrammer)

“He gave me a couple quick hitters, here and there,” Brantley said. “He’s been a great teammate, a great friend ever since I got (to Houston). I got to see his dad (Bernalillo Country District Attorney Sam Bregman on Tuesday). …

“I’m just very appreciative of his family and you know them reaching out to me while I was here.”

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Asked if he expected to see a Bregman statue somewhere around town this week, the light-hearted Brantley answered quick.

“I’m sure they’re somewhere,” he joked. “… (Alex is) a remarkable player, has done a lot for this community.”

Friday’s Cinco De Mayo/Mariachis de Nuevo Mexico game at Isotopes Park has a lot going on, including gates opening at 5:05 p.m. for a pregame Al Hurricane Jr. concert, a Mariachis adult jersey giveaway for the first 3,000 fans 21 and older and a postgame fireworks show, among other promotions, singing and dancing.

Outfield berm tickets are available for sale at the Isotopes Ticket office or at abqisotopes.com.

The game starts at 7:05 p.m. at Isotopes Park.

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PROBABLES: Sugar Land RHP Forrest Whitley (1-2, 6.00) vs. Albuquerque RHP Jeff Criswell (1-3, 13.50)

WATCH/LISTEN: MiLB.tv or 610 AM/95.9 FM

THURSDAY’S GAME: The offensive onslaught continued at Isotopes Park in a 16-13 Sugar Land victory in front of an announced school day matinee crowd of 8,921.

Thursday’s game featured 29 runs, 36 hits, 15 doubles, six home runs and 14 walks. In the first three games of the six-game series between the two teams this week there have been 72 combined runs scored (Albuquerque 38, Sugar Land 34), 83 hits and 42 walks.

BOX SCORE: Space Cowboys 16, Isotopes 13

It’s time for Albuquerque residents to consider whether their city government is structurally capable of responding to their pressing challenges in the most effective, efficient and transparent way. We believe it’s time to consider an alternative to the mayor-council form of government, one that will give our city responsive leadership that balances diverse interests, rather than the interests of a select few, and prioritizes sound management over political power. All we have to do is to take a look at our thriving neighbors to the north and south: Rio Rancho and Las Cruces.

Under the council-city manager form of government in place in those cities, Las Cruces Mayor Ken Miyagishima and Rio Rancho Mayor Greg Hull lead two of the safest, cleanest, economically prosperous, vibrant and socially responsible cities in New Mexico.

Albuquerque deserves the opportunity to amend our charter and adopt the council-city manager form of municipal government, too. If voters approved, our city would join the list of great American cities benefiting from a system that increases responsiveness, accountability, financial transparency and management of public services. In fact, it is used in the majority of American cities with populations over 12,000. The council-city manager form throws out the old politics, concentration of power and influence from special interests that we see in mayor-council government structures.

In council-city manager governments, the city council hires a professional manager or administrator responsible for government operations and implementing policies adopted by the council. Councilors, representing numerous districts, and the mayor, representing the city at large, have equal voice in policy development and administrative oversight, giving neighborhoods and diverse groups a greater opportunity to influence policy and participate in representative democracy.

The mayor is still recognized as the head of the city government and is the presiding officer of the city council, entitled to cast a tie-breaking vote on the council, much like the vice president of the United States or the lt. governor of New Mexico over their respective Senate bodies.

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If approved by the council and placed on the ballot in November, our proposed charter amendment will ask the citizens of Albuquerque to consider and approve this change to a council-city manager form of government that would go into effect in 2026. We’re asking voters to choose diverse interests, not special interests. To choose effective management, not power. To choose people, not politics. And to move Albuquerque forward.

A shanty town is loosely defined as an area of improvised buildings known as shanties or shacks of poor construction that lack adequate infrastructure including proper sanitation, safe water supply, electricity and street drainage and parking. Mayor Tim Keller wants enactment by the City Council of two major amendments to the zoning laws that will transform the city into a shanty town. The amendments will allow the construction of 750 square-foot “casitas” and “duplex” additions in the backyards of all 120,000 residential lots that have existing homes. The City Council has voted to allow 18 city-sanctioned Safe Outdoor Space tent encampments for the homeless to help with the “shanty town ambiance.”

The casita and duplex amendments are part of Keller’s Housing Forward ABQ Plan. It is a “multifaceted initiative” where Keller has set the goal of adding 5,000 new housing units across the city by 2025 above and beyond what private industry normally creates each year. Keller has proclaimed the city is in a major “housing crisis” and the city immediately needs 13,000 to 28,000 more housing units.

The zoning code amendments would make both casitas and duplex additions “permissive uses” and not “conditional uses” as they are now and have always been historically. A “conditional use” requires an application process with the city Planning Department, notice to surrounding property owners and affected neighborhood associations and provides for appeal rights. A “permissive use” would give the Planning Department exclusive authority to issue permits for construction without notices and hearings and with no appeal process. Objecting property owners and neighborhood associations to the permissive casita and duplex uses would be relegated to filing lawsuits to enforce covenants and restrictions.

Reclassification zoning of all single-family lots to allow residential duplex development and casita development will encourage large private investors and real estate developers, including out-of-state corporate entities, to buy up distressed properties to lease and covert whole blocks into rental duplexes with substandard rental casitas. This will dramatically degrade the character of neighborhoods and the city as a whole.

To put the argument in perspective, an individual investor will be able to purchase single-family homes to rent, add a 750-square-foot two-family home addition and build a separate 750-square-foot free-standing casita. The result is a one-home rental being converted into three separate rental units. Such development will increase an area’s property values and property taxes. It will also decrease the availability of affordable homes and raise rental prices even higher. It will increase gentrification in the more historical areas of the city as generational residents will be squeezed out by the developers and increases in property taxes.

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The housing shortage is related to economics, the development community’s inability to keep up with supply and demand and the public’s inability to purchase housing and qualify for long-term housing mortgage loans. There is also a shortage of rental properties resulting in dramatic increases in rents. Keller is using the short-term housing “crunch” to declare a “housing crisis” to shove his Housing Forward ABQ Plan down the throats of city residents and property owners. Keller is advocating transformative zoning changes to increase density by severely relaxing zoning restrictions to favor investors and the developers that will destroy entire neighborhoods.

As the days become warmer, local New Mexicans and out-of-towners flock toward the state’s vast landscape to enjoy outdoor living. Camping is a popular form of recreation in New Mexico, and a new study ranks the Land of Enchantment the third best state for the activity.

Adventure on the Rock, a site dedicating to sustainable adventure travel, recently analyzed ten factors that contribute to a quality camping trip. Wyoming earned the top ranking for best state for camping, followed by Montana and then New Mexico.

Cody Johnson, communications director at the New Mexico Tourism Department, attributes the state’s high ranking to its size and “public lands that are accessible through campgrounds and trails.”

“We always say that we’re adventure steeped in culture, that’s kind of our unique identifier,” he said. “The adventure part of that manifests in the form of a plethora of outdoor activities that are available, whether it’s camping, or hiking or water-based recreation.”

According to the study, the ten factors researchers used to analyze each state were the number of national parks and landmarks per 1,000 square miles, number of campsites, free campsites, hiking trails and RV parks per 100,000 people, deaths per 10 million national park visits, deaths caused by dangerous animal or plant exposure per 10 million people (1999-2020), average fuel prices, animal and plant species diversity, and average yearly rainfall.

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Regarding New Mexico, the study concluded that the state had the third highest number of free campsites, the seventh highest number of campsites and the 15th highest number of hiking trails per 100,000 residents. It also stated that New Mexico is the fourth most biodiverse state due to its different species of plants and animals.

Johnson added that the state’s climate is a big factor to the popularity of camping as well.

“I think the amount of sunshine we receive is certainly helpful when it comes to encouraging folks to camp and get outside, and I think the diversity of our climate just within the state lends itself to being a desirable hiking and camping location,” he said.

Johnson explained that New Mexico’s eclectic climate, especially the temperature differences between the northern and southern parts of the state, provides outdoor recreational opportunities for most of the year.

He added that New Mexico’s state parks “are incredibly valuable assets.”

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“We have a lot of great state parks that are scattered throughout the state that make the opportunity to camp and get outside pretty accessible and equitable for New Mexicans,” he said.

The New Mexico Tourism department has emphasized developing a solid infrastructure to develop and manage the experiences for visitors to the state, Johnson shared. The department understands the value of the state’s culture and its vast landscape, and work with local communities to help support tourism, as well as creative avenues to encourage visitors to explore New Mexico.

“We just want to make sure that their experiences are great, their expectations are met,” he said. “When it comes to campgrounds, that’s the type of infrastructure that is certainly important for us to continue to invest it.”

New Mexico offers so much for locals and visitors alike. The state’s climate, size and culture contribute to its highly-regarded camping opportunities, as well as outdoor recreation as a whole.

Whether people are in town for Balloon Fiesta, passing through in the RV on a road trip, or simply looking for a little adventure in their backyard, New Mexico is a fantastic place to explore the outdoors.

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Albuquerque Journal and its reporters are committed to telling the stories of our community. • Do you have a question you want someone to try to answer for you? Do you have a bright spot you want to share? We want to hear from you. Please email [email protected]