Mayor Keller Signs Menaul MRA Plan

ALBUQUERQUE – Today, the Metropolitan Redevelopment Agency (MRA), City Council Services, Consensus Planning and the Menaul Business Coalition celebrated the signing of legislation establishing the Menaul Metropolitan Redevelopment Area Plan, which is aimed to support the redevelopment and ongoing economic development of the Menaul Boulevard area. The vision for the Menaul MR Area is for the corridor to once again to become a thriving business, hotel, and retail district. 

With this plan in place, the City’s Metropolitan Redevelopment Agency has the green light to deploy its development incentives and build private-public partnerships with developers in the area to help bring new investment and projects to life. 

In addition, this past session, the state legislature passed a bill to amplify redevelopment across the state by expanding funding for projects in metropolitan redevelopment areas. These statutory changes bring New Mexico on par with other states that use Tax Increment Financing to foster redevelopment. The increase in revenue can be spent on public infrastructure, catalytic redevelopment projects, affordable housing, and other programs in a redevelopment area. 

“The Metropolitan Redevelopment Agency at the City of Albuquerque is a unique agency that looks to revitalize blighted areas by providing incentives like property tax abatement, fee waivers, and direct contributions to projects across the City,” said MRA Director Terry Brunner. “We are excited because this is an area that has long gone unnoticed in redevelopment efforts, and there’s a lot of opportunity to get it moving again.”

“This is the most powerful tool the City of Albuquerque has to bring about development and needed improvements in Albuquerque, and now it’s applicable right here in this portion of Menaul,” said Mayor Tim Keller. “We appreciate the work of the community members, the Menaul Business Coalition, and the past and current City Councilors that have done a great job to get this over the finish line.”

“Twenty years ago, this was the place to go on Friday afternoons, and we are going to make it that way again,” said District 7 City Councilor Tammy Fiebelkorn. “There is real investment in this project by the businesses in this area. As long as they are invested, the City’s going to be invested and we are going to work to make sure that this becomes something good for everyone in our community.”

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The MRA’s mission is to make Albuquerque competitive in the global market by revitalizing downtown and the Central Avenue corridor, which will lead to collaborative public-private partnerships resulting in catalytic change, investing in sustainable infrastructure, and providing opportunities for local residents and businesses to thrive. The MRA envisions Albuquerque as New Mexico’s urban center and the Southwest’s premier mid-size city, attracting economic investment and building a healthy and vibrant community that reflects diversity, innovation, rich culture, and unique history. It is a vision of a city that ensures economic prosperity for all residents and where visitors dream to return.