BernCo bats around name for new HQ
Bernalillo County is investing more than $50 million to create its new administrative headquarters in Downtown Albuquerque. Its elected officials want staff to invest a little more time in coming up with a name.
County commissioners were scheduled to vote last week on a new moniker for Alvarado Square, the eight-story building where the county will eventually consolidate about 900 of its employees presently scattered at other sites.
But the idea recommended by the county’s naming and memorial committee — Bernalillo County Government Center — elicited a wan response from the board.
Commissioner Debbie O’Malley called it “boring,” saying she would have liked an Alvarado reference in the title, a nod to a name long associated with Downtown.
Commission Chair Maggie Hart Stebbins did not express enthusiasm either. She won board approval to defer a decision until the committee came forward with some additional choices.
“I tend to agree with Commissioner O’Malley that perhaps it would be good to give us a couple more options,” Hart Stebbins said.
Tia Bland, chair of the naming and memorial committee, said Bernalillo County Government Center was put forth by County Manager Julie Morgas Baca and her top administrators. The committee also solicited feedback from the public via the website and newsletters, asking if the name should somehow incorporate “Alvarado.”
Eight people submitted feedback, Bland said, with some saying that adding “Alvarado” might make the
name too long or serve to focus on the building’s past instead of its future. But O’Malley disagreed. “I thought it would be kind of nice to do BernCo at Alvarado Square or something like that, so I will not be supporting (Bernalillo County Government Center),” she said. “I don’t like it. I think it’s very boring, and I just ... don’t think there’s anything wrong with that historical reference.”
The county bought Alvarado Square in 2017 for $2.7 million and is now beginning a renovation and expansion that will cost another $49.4 million. It is slated to move into the building in 2021.
LOGGING LINCOLNS: Anyone ask you for $5 lately? There are 14 Albuquerque City Council candidates pursing public financing, and the only way to qualify is by securing hundreds of $5 donations during the month of May. Those who meet the contribution target will each get about $40,000 to campaign ahead of the November election.
According to the City Clerk’s website, the candidates seeking public financing are:
District 2: Steven Baca, Isaac Benton (incumbent), Joseph R. Griego, Robert Raymond Blanquera Nelson, Zachary A. Quintero and Connie Vigil.
District 4: Brook L. Bassan, Athena Ann Christodoulou, Mary Sue Flynt, Ane C. Romero and Hailey Josselyn Roy.
District 6: Pat Davis (incumbent) and Gina Naomi Dennis. District 8: S. Maurreen Skowran. Trudy Jones, District 8’s sitting councilor, said she is seeking reelection but will privately fund her campaign. District 4’s current councilor, Brad Winter, has announced he will not seek reelection.