For years, the stretch of Central Avenue west of Old Town has had its share of empty lots and tired old buildings. On Monday, Oct. 5, one of them started turning into something new.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, Mayor Tim Keller, developers and business leaders broke ground on La Curva Apartments, a workforce housing project going up on a former motel site along Central in West Old Town. According to KOB 4, Palindrome Development's first phase is expected to add 70 units in 2027, and a potential second phase could bring another 70.
"This stretch looks like what we hope the future of Route 66 in Albuquerque will look like," Keller said. "It is vibrant, it's all sorts of mixed use and mixed income. It's a reflection of who we are."
Built for the 'missing middle'
La Curva is aimed at a group politicians like to call the "missing middle." These are households earning between about $54,000 and $81,000 a year. They make too much to qualify for most subsidized housing but, in most cases, not enough to buy a home.
In exchange for state and city help, the developers must offer below-market rents to households earning between 80% and 120% of the area median income.
"We are providing a product for individuals that are working but cannot seem to have the incomes to qualify for traditional affordable housing," said Rebecca Valarde, Palindrome's director of development.
KOB pointed to the state's Housing Needs Assessment, which says households in that 80% to 120% range make up about one in five New Mexicans. The report found the shortage for that group is in new rental housing, not affordable units.
How the deal came together
The first phase is a $22.35 million project. The state provided a $15 million loan through its Opportunity Enterprise Fund, and the project also landed a 14-year tax abatement. KOB reported that the project was made possible by those two pieces of public help.
That abatement went through the city's redevelopment process. According to the Albuquerque Development Commission's July minutes, the commission voted 3-0 to recommend the tax abatement to the City Council for the La Curva project. The minutes list the developer entity as West Central LLC and place the site at the northeast corner of Central Avenue and Simonds Street NW, within the Historic Central Metropolitan Redevelopment Area.
City officials said the project is part of a push to deal with vacant and run-down properties along the Central corridor.
"When you look up and down Central Avenue, the thing we hear about is too many vacant lots, too many dilapidated properties," said Terry Brunner of the city's Metropolitan Redevelopment Agency.
KOB also cited state figures showing the median New Mexico rent is $1,021 a month, compared with $1,388 nationally. A household needs to earn at least $41,000 a year, or about $20 an hour, to afford that median rent, and roughly half of New Mexico households earn less.
Why it matters for Contractors
A 70-unit apartment building on a cleared infill lot is a solid job, and La Curva could turn into a second one if phase two moves forward. That means concrete, framing, roofing, stucco, windows, plumbing, electrical, HVAC, drywall, flooring and finish work, plus site and utility work on a busy stretch of Route 66.
Infill on a main road comes with its own headaches. Traffic control, tight staging space and working around neighboring businesses are all part of the job. Contractors who've built along Central before will know what to expect.
No general contractor has been named publicly for La Curva, and we aren't naming one here. Local subs interested in the work should reach out to the developer's team.
The bigger story is the financing. Workforce housing for the 80% to 120% income range doesn't qualify for most traditional affordable housing programs, which has made it hard to build. State loans like the Opportunity Enterprise Fund and longer tax abatements are tools aimed right at that gap. If La Curva works, it could be a model for more middle-income apartments along Central and elsewhere in the state.
For contractors, that could mean a steadier pipeline of mid-sized apartment jobs in the years ahead.