Albuquerque –
The City of Albuquerque has finally had enough with the Tewa Motor Lodge on Central.
On October 21st three days after a controversial shooting at the TEWA lodge we decided to return to the scene. What we saw were several city department members working on shutting down the dilapidated property. We observed ACS, Code Enforcement, and APD on scene as well as a contractor cutting pieces of plywood to seal off doors and windows. CABQ Planning Department Director Alan Varela said the site was continuously dirty with exposed live electrical wires all over the exterior and interior and piles of feces.
Some of the residents could be seen still trying to figure out what they were going to do with their future low rent long stay housing options. Code Enforcement could be seen putting up paperwork on doors and walls announcing the building was now substandard and unsafe to occupy.
While on scene, we saw used needles on the ground, human feces on the sidewalk, and trash surrounding the property. One business next door was happy to see the motel be shut down. He has constantly complained to the city about the felony activities happening at or near the motel. The nefarious activities at the motel attracted problems at his business. His business now resembled that of a zombie apocalypse protection zone with fortified walls and topped with razor wire.
The Albuquerque Police Department was on scene to provide security for the ACS and CABQ Code Enforcement employees while they worked to shut the motel down.
The shut down is on the heels of a controversial police shooting involving Matthew “Solo” Garcia. On Friday Officers encountered “Solo” after he became confrontational with them as the same city departments from today were there trying to remove trespassers and find new housing options for them. “Solo” was at one point singled out, handcuffed, and placed in the back of a police car without being properly searched. The result was 45 minutes later Officers decided to remove “Solo” to officially arrest him when he admitted to having a gun that officer Cadena observed him holding behind him. When officers tried to take the gun from “Solo” a scuffle ensued and it resulted in officers shooting him dead.
The Tewa Lodge opened in 1946 and had been an off again on again tourist attraction along Route 66. However, in the past 30 plus years the TEWA has only attracted some of the most shady of characters and cretins of society.
Tim Keller runs a nice city!
Are you on the ballot?
If the city of Albuquerque was sincere about protecting this neighborhood and enforcing the rule of law they would take possession of this property and convert it into a Police Substation. Sadly it will probably burn down per any abandoned building in Albuquerque.
The real issue in this tragic incident lies in Mayor Tim Keller’s failure to prevent his city from spiraling into freefall for far too long. The mayor has been more focused on garnering support for his ineffective liberal philanthropy, catering to the homeless and those unwilling to recognize that society requires law and order. No one in the city’s administration at the time took the necessary steps to properly negotiate with the DOJ regarding reasonable and feasible reforms for the Albuquerque Police Department. Instead, they blindly signed the consent decree (known as CASA), which handcuffed officers with impractical policies. Anyone familiar with CASA could foresee that it would lead to chaos in Albuquerque for years to come.
Officers now find themselves unable to perform their duties without violating one policy to comply with another. The use-of-force policy alone is over 10 pages long, filled with vague language like “when feasible” or “where reasonable,” and overly focused on de-escalating every situation. Officers are told to de-escalate as soon as they encounter a combative subject, only to be later criticized for not using force sooner to stop the situation from escalating. The entire police force is bound by a progressive, modern mantra—a ‘woke’ agenda—that positions the department as kinder and gentler, a stance that the city’s most problematic individuals have exploited. It’s disheartening to see that what other cities have experienced under a DOJ consent decree has also unfolded in Albuquerque after ten years of this policy.
What’s worse, it has become routine for the mayor to deflect blame for the city’s growing crime problem onto the consent decree, instead of taking responsibility for his failed approach. Despite being repeatedly told that crime is dropping, the citizens of Albuquerque know better—the nightly news tells a much darker story, filled with reports of heinous crimes. Meanwhile, the courts have been far too lenient in recent years, allowing crime to fester. This past weekend’s tragic incident is just one more piece of evidence showing how out of control Albuquerque has gotten.
Take Central Avenue, for example. From east to west, it has become a cesspool of vagrancy and social derelicts, drawn in by the mayor’s ‘woke’ policies. What was once a vibrant part of the city is now plagued by crime and disorder, with no meaningful effort from the city’s administration to restore law and order.
I have the utmost respect for any young person brave enough to work under such constant scrutiny, only to be rewarded with yet another “additional concern memo” or a “Blueteam entry.” When will the mayor stop simply throwing money at the problem—a solution that has clearly failed—and realize that in order to recruit and retain a sufficient police force, the working conditions must be manageable? Officers are racing from call to call all day long, without even enough time to gather their thoughts and write a well-articulated police report. If they take too long, another new unit will reprimand them for being on a call for too long, then notify their supervisor.
Today’s officers face more scrutiny and oversight than nearly any other profession. Take brain surgeons, for example: despite the high-risk nature of their work and the fact that medical malpractice results in far more deaths than police actions, society generally accepts that mistakes will happen in the medical field. When patients tragically die, the medical profession isn’t subjected to the same constant public criticism or microscopic scrutiny that officers face when dealing with life-or-death situations. For police, every action is questioned, and the expectation of perfection has become the norm, even though they are often forced to make split-second decisions in chaotic environments. At what point does this relentless oversight become too much, driving officers away from a profession they once loved, especially when they realize they have 24 more years of this ahead of them?
Well said. I wish everyone would take the time to read your comment. Thank you Sir.
Thank you! You are right on target. Keller must go.
¡Fuck the police!
Wow – you’re quite the keeper, aren’t you? Please don’t call 911 when you get into a jam – since you hate cops and all, and I want to ensure my taxpayer dollars are being spent wisely.
I don’t call 911 as it is a joke either they don’t answer, place you on hold or just play with citizens..I’ll continue to be my own hero thank you, have a blessed day.
Ditto. Well said, Mathias. The 10 o’clock news showed yesterday’s city council meeting where city council members and many members of the community came down hard on the police for the shooting of a handcuffed criminal. The news showed no one voice an opinion on defending the police for having a very difficult job dealing with the zombies who have taken over Central Ave and other parts of Albuquerque. All I saw was politicians and citizens attacking the police. The zombies have destroyed the International Drugs district (IDD), and we have people complaining that the police didn’t check if the criminal was armed. If you defend the police, then you are a racist in this woke town. APD morale will only worsen, and the zombies will get only more emboldened in their crimes because they are protected by a woke culture. I have been a landlord in the IDD for 37 years. Over those years, I have had three drug dealing tenants. Every time I confronted them on their night traffic disturbing the other tenants, they would scream at me about their “rights”. I didn’t know that dealing drugs and keeping up your neighbors with your drug addict customers were rights, but they are correct. Those are the rights that a woke culture will defend. Over the years, the rights of criminals to commit crime has taken precedence over the rights of law-abiding citizens to have a safe, non-violent, and quiet environment. Some of these woke defenders of criminals will quote you Ben Franklin who said, “”Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.”
Unlike us, Franklin didn’t have to deal with zombies who are destroying his city and turning his community into a food and pharmacy desert. The only drugs you can buy now in the IDD are from the drug dealers. When the police try to clean up just one building infested with drug activity, the woke defenders of zombies come out in force to condemn them. It is a very sad state of affairs. It will only get worse…
It’s a shame out city management had to wait so long to do this. Especially sad that an old icon was turned into a S%&t hole and allowed to be ruined. Poor ol’ Solo. Sometimes life just hands you a bad day when you make stupid decisions.
Just heard that O’Niell’s Pub, Salt & Board, and Slice Parlor in Nob Hill are all closing. Sad to see what has become of the Central corridor. Spending 135 million on the ART project was a collosal failure. Our City Management are all idiots including the City Council.
Tewa owner reached out for help from cabq, I’m willing to bet they didn’t expect the city to shut them down.
As a landlord, I fear zombie encampments encroaching on my property or breaking into a vacant apartment. Once they get a foothold, then they can scare off many of my law-abiding tenants and they will tear up the apartments. They will break drywall to look for copper. Once they destroy the plumbing, they will have no toilets to use, so the fecal matter will pile up. This is my nightmare scenario, and I just saw it happen at the Tewa. In the past 3 years, I have had 2 homeless encampments pop up in front of my property. I called 311 and 242-COPS. The response was underwhelming. It took 3 months of calling before the city responded on the first encampment. The second encampment just disappeared on their own after 4 days leaving–no thanks to the city. With the 2nd encampment, I even called Albuquerque Criminal Safety, ACS. I left a message because they were closed when I called. They never returned my call.
The city is punishing the owner of TIWA for the zombie takeover. Look we call you ,the city, and you often come too late. The zombies destroy the rental property, then they punish the landlord with code violations. Punish the victim. Nice job Keller!
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!! I live right around the corner from the Tewa. Been enjoying nights without gun fire, addicts up and down my street!! Now, if APD would close 2 more buildings on Domingo NE between Palomas and Madiera, then us as neighbors can start taking our neighborhood back!! Letting our kids play outside without worring about having an addict pulling a needle out of their arm as we walk out. I picked up 8 used needles a few days ago from our apartment property. But to APD, thank you so very much!!!
Mayor Tim Keller’s administration is a failure.