ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – In recent years, the Sawmill District has taken off, becoming a hotspot in the city. Some people who live in the Sawmill District, near old town, say they aren’t too fond of what the food hall has become.
Neighbors say they remember how the neighborhood used to be before the busy food hall opened its doors three years ago. “We saw that built, we watched that being built. It’s different, it’s no longer living in a residential area, it’s living in a commercial area,” said Sawmill Lofts resident, Mary Rose Nichols.
Neighbors who’ve lived at the Sawmill Lofts next to the Sawmill Market say they’ve lived in the neighborhood for nearly a decade. Some say one of their many complaints is the increase in traffic the booming development has brought to the neighborhood, which sometimes makes parking scarce. “It’s been a nightmare with parking and especially on the weekend, it’s completely parked out, it’s very busy,” added Nichols.
Some have complained about the noise coming from live events at the Sawmill Market. A recent complaint recently submitted to the city describes how the music invades neighboring homes, even through closed doors and windows. “It’s a lot on the weekends, but they’ve also had somebody calling bingo on Tuesday afternoons and that is really loud, we could hear that all of the time,” added Nichols.
While some neighbors long for the old days, plenty of others love how the development has livened up the area. “I like the sounds, I like kids playing, I like music, I like sports, everything. I like to hear people having fun and that puts me in a good mood,” said Denise Rivera.
A City of Albuquerque Environmental Health Department spokesperson who handles noise complaints says the city has been made aware of the noise coming from the Sawmill Market and will work with the organizers to keep the noise down. KRQE reached out to the company that runs the market, but did not hear back.
