City Focused on Building “Third Places” for Albuquerque Families

ALBUQUERQUE – Today, Mayor Tim Keller, City Councilors Joaquin Baca and Louie Sanchez, and members of the community came together to celebrate the start of construction on Phase Two of the Joan Jones Community Center. This is part of the City’s ongoing focus on creating safe “third places” for families to go. A third place is somewhere outside of the home and the workplace where people can go to connect with their community and socialize.

“The City is creating places for families to connect with their neighbors and get the services they need, whether it’s a meal, access to a gym, or an after school program,” said Mayor Tim Keller. “These places are more than just community centers, they can be the home away from home for folks of all ages to help spend time with their friends and create safer neighborhoods.”

The City continues to work to make sure there are community resources accessible to all Albuquerque families, like with the recent opening of the Santa Barbara Martineztown Multigenerational Center, and the ongoing work on the Jack Candelaria Boxing Gym and Community Center and Cibola Loop Multigenerational Center. Community and Multigenerational centers provide critical resources to people of all ages, offering programming for out of school time, gyms, meals, sports and recreation activities, and many more ways to connect with neighbors.

The Joan Jones Community Center is located in the historic neighborhood of Atrisco. Before it was constructed, there were two run-down portables known as the Pat Hurley Community Center. The new Joan Jones Community Center is now expanding to add a fitness room, mini-gymnasium and more meeting space, all things that the growing community needs and has been asking for. The City and community have continued to fight to bring this expansion to life, even as COVID and increasing construction costs put the project’s timeline in limbo. The construction is expected to be completed in under two years and will be done by FacilityBUILD.

“Joan Jones’ tenacity for this community was unbelievable, and this project wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for her and the late District 1 Councilor Ken Sanchez,” said City Councilor Louie Sanchez. “I’m so happy that we’re not done here, and we can’t wait for the next phase of this space to be open for all of us to use.”

“All of this work speaks to the collaboration that’s happening to get things done for our communities,” said District 2 Councilor Joaquín Baca. “I’m grateful to be working together with so many colleagues and partners to bring projects like this to the finish line.”

“This neighborhood needs beautiful spaces for youth and community members to utilize,” said Director Kata Sandoval. “We are eager to get this project completed for them to enjoy, as we continue to work to bring services to families across Albuquerque.”

The late Joan Jones was a prominent community advocate and served as the Pat Hurley Neighborhood Association President for over 20 years. She did not live to see the new facility, but the late City Councilor Ken Sanchez shared the plans with her so she would know what was to come for the community she loved.