ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) –More housing options could be coming soon for thousands of people in Albuquerque. Mayor Tim Keller and city council are now taking an official step toward Keller’s “Housing Forward Plan.”
Places like empty strip malls and office buildings could soon become homes. The plans laid out in an ordinance have two sides. One part of the ordinance addresses zoning for residential areas. The current ordinance says 68% of all property in the city is zoned for single-family housing, which does not allow for secondary dwelling units or ‘casitas’ on the property. This ordinance would change that.
The second part would allow for developers to create housing units in areas currently zoned for commercial use. “Those would be potential properties for redevelopment into housing, as would office buildings. We’ve got quite a few office buildings sitting around,” Councilor Isaac Benton said. Those potential transformations would account for 1,000 units.
