Plans for Sandia Peak mountain coaster will not move forward
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – It was supposed to be a transformative theme park-like ride built on the top of the Sandia Mountains, but the dream of a Sandia Peak Mountain coaster has now been extinguished. 'I think we can sum it up that we are not going to pursue the mountain coaster,' said Gary Forrest General manager, Sandia Peak Ski Area.
Story continues below
Business: Forbes Travel Guide's 2025 Star Award winners include 5 New Mexico businesses
Crime: New Mexico man found guilty of raping woman he met on social media
Don't Miss: APD asks for adult and parental figures to get involved to curb juvenile crime
Sandia Peak first sparked the idea a decade ago in the hopes of bringing more thrill seekers to Albuquerque's iconic mountains. Now, the long-discussed mountain coaster is no longer part of the picture for ski area managers.
The official end, for now, came several weeks ago when Bernalillo County Commissioners voted to terminate the possibility of issuing industrial revenue bonds for the project which was first approved in 2016.
Since then, the Sandia Peak Ski Area is now under new management with different ideas. 'It's not the vision that we want to portray for this mountain. We want to portray it as a ski area and improve the facilities that have been here as opposed to just try and replace it with different things,' said Forrest.
Mountain Capital Partners is now going on nearly two years of running the ski area and says it's focused on getting more people there for their more classic thrills.
'If you want to have a real thrill, you need to come up and learn how to ski and board and that's way better than a mountain coaster. It's a sport, what I call a life sport, that if you understand how to use the tools that are provided for you, is life-changing. It's amazing' said Forrest.
They're also looking to upgrade the lodging area, lift chairs and snow-making machines in the future. 'And this winter, if anything, it's just showing people in Albuquerque that we're going to do whatever is possible to keep it open as long as possible,' said Forrest.
Right now, a lack of snow has closed the ski area but crews say they're making more snow with hopes to reopen again this season.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
City looking to fill empty corners in Albuquerque neighborhoods with housing
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – The City of Albuquerque is kicking up efforts to add more housing. Its latest move is offering up plots of land around the city for developers to fill in. One of four spots the city is hoping to develop into homes is located in a prime spot across from the Railyards. 'This is a joint partnership between using state funds and city land,' said Joseph Montoya, Deputy Director of Health, Housing, and Homelessness. Story continues below News: Albuquerque couple facing charges in 4-month-old's death Investigation: Politicians sink $13M in closed New Mexico tourist attraction Trending: Videos show man in dumpster getting dumped into waste truck in Albuquerque Events: Albuquerque Summerfest's 2025: What you need to know The department has more than a million dollars in state capital outlay money to fund affordable housing projects, and now they are asking developers to submit housing proposals. They said the goal is to provide homes to low-income families. 'So, these are folks that earn less than 80% of their income, so a family of four, that's about $78,000 a year household income,' said Montoya. The largest location is a two-acre lot on 90th Street and San Ygnacio Rd., where, in addition to giving the developer the land itself, the city will also offer nearly $780,000 to subsidize construction. The city said it will consider proposals for single- or multi-family homes like condos or townhomes on that site. 'The opportunity for more townhouse condo development, right? Which I think will be fun, but none of them are large enough for any mixed-use issues,' said Montoya. The three smaller lots in the Barelas neighborhood, the city said, would be best suited for single-family home development. In addition to the land, a developer would receive nearly $500,000 from the city. KRQE News 13 spoke to a resident who says the neighborhood needs the housing. 'There isn't enough, but hopefully you know stuff like this will get it popping to have a lot more development,' said Rick Espaline, a nearby resident. The posted deadline to submit a proposal is July 8, but the city said they'll likely extend that period to get as many proposals as they can. Last month, the city sent out a request for information for 11 other locations throughout the city, asking developers for ideas. They said 10 organizations responded, showing interest. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
Park Square Market in Uptown opens for business
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) — After months of construction, a new market place is open for business in one of the busiest parts of Albuquerque. Park Square Market in Uptown held its grand opening on Wednesday. Story continues below News: Albuquerque couple facing charges in 4-month-old's death Investigation: Politicians sink $13M in closed New Mexico tourist attraction Trending: Videos show man in dumpster getting dumped into waste truck in Albuquerque Events: Albuquerque Summerfest's 2025: What you need to know This comes from the same people who made the Sawmill Market in Old Town. 'This is a lot similar to Sawmill,' said Heritage Hotels & Resort CEO Adrian Perez. 'It gives you the opportunity to have multiple different food types, all under one roof. You have burgers, you have pasta you have pizza. Healthy bites like salads, you have a great ice cream vendor in Neko Neko. A great ramen vendor. a great coffee vendor.' The market is laid out as two buildings connected by a courtyard. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Yahoo
Why are there no Michelin-starred restaurants in New Mexico?
NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – It's one of the top honors a restaurant can receive: being recognized by the Michelin Guide for its cuisine. Over 1,500 U.S. eateries are published in the guide, and 260 have earned a coveted Michelin star. But why are none of those establishments in New Mexico? It turns out the Land of Enchantment joins a long list of states in the country that are not considered by Michelin Guides, and it's not because they lack top restaurants or food. As of 2025, Michelin inspectors only cover cities in seven states: New York, Chicago, California, Florida, Colorado, Texas, and Atlanta, and D.C. Los Ranchos De Albuquerque restaurant named 2025 James Beard award finalist That list will be expanding soon, as the Michelin Guide announced in April that it would include states in the South, including Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. Michelin is always looking to expand, but only after certain standards or criteria are achieved. 'To publish the Michelin Guide [in a specific area], we need first and foremost culinary potential,' Gwendal Poullennec, the international director of the Michelin Guide, told Bon Appetit in 2024. 'Today, I have inspectors scouting about 20 destinations where we do not yet have a restaurant selection, but that we are considering for future years. It's always a several-year process because we must see the openings and the consistency.' But it's more than just consistency or 'culinary potential' that brings a Michelin Guide to town. In recent years, Michelin has partnered with local and state tourism boards to help fund the creation of a new guide for that area — but only after the inspectors have deemed the local food scene to be worthy. In 2023, The New York Times reported that California's tourism board had paid Michelin $600,000 in 2019 to cover the cost of expanding its culinary inspections beyond the Bay Area and Napa Valley. Tourism groups in Florida, Atlanta, Colorado and Texas all reportedly agreed to similar financial partnerships. When asked about these newer financial partnerships, Poullennec, speaking with Bon Appetit in 2024, suggested that the Michelin's arrangements with these tourism boards (or, as he called them, 'destination marketing organizations' or DMOs) help to defray the editorial expenses involved with producing the guides. 'The involvement of DMOs in establishing new Guides does not have any influence on the Inspectors' judgments regarding the destination assessment, the restaurants in the selection, or award distinctions,' the inspector told Nexstar. 'DMO teams have no access to the Inspectors' work or the final selection until the list of selected restaurants is revealed by the MICHELIN Guide.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
