Plans are still being studied for the construction of a visitors center in Albuquerque that will go up on the northeast side of the city at the base of the Sandia Mountain range.
More specifically, the project will be built within the boundaries of the 640 acres of the Elena Gallegos Open Space area, which is nestled within the Cibola National Forest.
City officials have said that the visitors center, or education center as it is frequently called, will be in response to the increased foot and bike traffic in the open space.
That traffic has increased from just under 150,000 visitors in 2010 to over 258,100 in 2020.
A feasibility study conducted earlier this year by the Albuquerque-based architectural firm of Dekker/Perich/Sabatini looked at several possible sites within the larger open space area, before suggesting a spot at the northeast corner of Tramway Boulevard and Simms Park Road.
The study additionally recommended the construction of a one-story building measuring around 4,800 square feet at that site which would house a lobby, classroom space, offices, restrooms, meeting room, and coffee bar.
While public input meetings on the project have already been held, a group called Save the Elena Gallegos Citizens Committee has been formed in opposition to the project. That group asserts that the building of any facility in the area would violate a 40-year-old legal covenant governing the space and restricting construction to such amenities as picnic tables and benches, restrooms, and shelters.
A website for the group also argues that proposed center has the potential of causing “very real and serious harm” to the Elena Gallegos Open Space’s ecosystem.
By Garry Boulard
