The developers who completed the 2018 restoration of El Vado Motel are looking to redo the north side of Central Avenue in Albuquerque.
Named “La Curva” after where Central curves over the river, the proposed project would be a community gathering place that includes a food hall, a taproom to show off lowriders and 315 multifamily apartment units, according to KOB 4 News.
The La Curva development plan would put three new buildings on the site of the Siesta Trailer Lodge, but not everyone thinks that’s a good idea. Jose Salazar has been a resident of the Siesta Trailer Lodge for 17 years, and one of the new buildings would go right over his trailer. He’s not interested in moving.
“You won’t find another cheap place over here in Albuquerque to park a trailer,” Salazar told KOB 4 News. “Like I said, I don’t think they’d be able to touch this place.”
Salazar said property owners in the area have lived there for generations, and he doesn't think they will sell to make way for redevelopment. KOB 4 News interviewed two residents who were unsure what they will do. No offers have been made.
The City Planning Department said developers have not supplied any paperwork to the pre-application review team. The developers said they are hoping to acquire financial assistance from the city’s resources, including $8 million from the city’s Department of Family and Community Services and $3 million from the city’s Metropolitan Redevelopment Agency.
If the city approves the funding, construction could begin this summer and be finished in the fall of 2025. The more than 300 multifamily apartment units would help the city meet its goal of adding 5,000 places to live by then.
Keith Bandoni, a shareholder of the company that owns the land where Siesta Trailer Lodge is a tenant, said in a statement to KOB 4 News, “We are early on in the project and looking forward to the possibilities of what this can do for the community as a whole.”