The Barelas Great Blocks Project will give 4th Street a $5 million makeover from Avenida Cesar Chavez to downtown, according to a KRQE report.
Keith Romero, president of the Barelas Community Coalition, revealed plans for the ambitious project to upgrade Albuquerque’s Barelas neighborhood.
“Barelas is the oldest neighborhood in the city … 1662 is what I understand is when it was founded,” Romero told KRQE. “The idea is that it be geared to, beyond beautification to traffic calming and incentivizing pedestrian traffic to the benefit of the local business folks down there.”
Members of the community suggested ways to beautify the neighborhood, including the addition of decorative lighting, vibrant tile, brightly colored benches and more large-scale artwork illustrating the neighborhood’s history. “The idea is to enhance and preserve that, if anything, not to replace it,” Romero told KRQE.
Another major goal of the renovation is to make 4th Street easier and safer for pedestrians to maneuver. “If you know 4th Street at all or are familiar with it, it can be treacherous sometimes just crossing as a pedestrian,” Romero said.
Speed bumps like those in Nob Hill will be used to control the traffic. The renovation also includes better lighting, ADA compliant sidewalks and elevated crosswalks, Romero told KRQE.
The broad plan calls for developing a neighborhood where people can walk from the Rail Yard Market, the zoo, and the rail trail. The upgrades are hoped to be attractive to growing local businesses. “Hopefully we all benefit from it,” Romero said.
Romero envisions people walking from the Rail Yard Market, the zoo, and the planned rail trail to the Barelas neighborhood which he believes will help spur on local businesses.
The city and state project will be done in phases over the next few years with work expected to begin this summer.
