Early voting is underway in the local Albuquerque elections, and in addition to local city officials, voters will find a bond on the ballot for a new stadium for New Mexico United, the city’s three-year-old soccer team.
Early voting runs through Oct. 30, and election day is on Nov. 2, 2021.
The bond in consideration will cost taxpayers $50 million, and, according to New Mexico Business Coalition, would be the largest public subsidy for a United Soccer League stadium in the country. The same article states that the bond is just to jumpstart the construction of the stadium — the New Mexico Legislature has also promised another $9 million, while the governor’s office has promised an additional $4 million.
“It’s basically rolling the dice on a stadium that’s much bigger and more expensive than the USL really can justify,” said Neil DeMouse, co-author of the book “Field of Schemes,” and manager of the Field of Schemes website.
New Mexico United owner Peter Trevisani stressed that the multi-use, publicly owned stadium would also be ready to create as many as 780 jobs from the start and not raise taxes, according to the Associated Press.
But as the city pushes for millions of taxpayer dollars for a soccer stadium, the top issues facing Albuquerque are continuing to be put on the backburner. According to a 2020 report by CBS News, Albuquerque is ranked as the ninth-most dangerous city in the United States. With a violent crime rate of 1,352 per 100,000 residents, and 84 homicides in 2019, crime continues to be on the rise in the city.
In an op-ed for the New Mexico Sun, Rachel Donavan wrote, “Plain and simple Albuquerque has a huge problem with crime and many people live in fear wondering when they will be the next victim. Mayor Keller campaigned on cleaning up the crime problem four years ago and yet the crime rate has increased 24% under his rule. In 2019, Albuquerque was the 9th most dangerous city in the nation. According to 'Neighborhood Scout,' who attributes their information directly to FBI crime data, Albuquerque stands at a 71% crime rate for every 1000 citizens through 2020.”
Chronic homelessness continues to be a growing issue in Albuquerque, as well. Mayor Keller was specifically asked about his plan to address the issue during a candidate interview with New Mexico Business Coalition. Keller mentioned that under his leadership, Albuquerque was able to house hundreds of the city's homeless population in empty hotels during the pandemic, and keep a shelter on the west side of the city open 24/7, which he noted has never been done before. Mentioning the approximately 5,000 homeless people currently in Albuquerque, Keller also brought up the city's purchase of the Gibson Medical Center to give the homeless population an alternative to being on the street.
But Donovan doesn't see an improvement.
“The homeless situation in Albuquerque has increased dramatically under the Keller administration, because it has become much easier to be homeless in Albuquerque,” wrote Donavan, criticizing the “bird-feeder” policies put in place as a response to the increasing homeless population in the city. She continued by saying, “When you have policies that encourage the homeless to stay on the streets, you’ll get what that produces. Under the Keller administration, Albuquerque’s homeless numbers have exploded and based on what we’ve seen in states that have legalized recreational marijuana, it’s going to increase even more substantially when that goes into effect in New Mexico next year.”
An article in the Albuquerque Journal cited a study by the Brookings Institution that found, “no discernible positive relationship between sports facility construction and local economic development, income growth, or job creation.” The same article also mentions a study from the Council for Urban Economic Development which states that “recent research suggests that cities have not benefited economically from the boom in professional stadium and arena construction.”
“Albuquerque has much more urgent and pressing needs currently with the cities out of control crime rate and homelessness problems,” the New Mexico Business Coalition posted on its website. “It would be a better use of our time and financial resources to invest first in safety and caring for those who need help, before we invest in soccer. If we simply must have a new stadium for our soccer team, we should negotiate a better deal for taxpayers! In other jurisdictions, the stadium is often owned by the team, which provides better protection for taxpayers.”