2 days ago
Rio Rancho City Council to decide fate of nuisance home
RIO RANCHO, N.M. (KRQE) – The city said it's been a hub for criminal activity where there's also been a gas explosion right in the middle of a Rio Rancho neighborhood. Now, the city is inching closer toward tearing that home down.
'Hoping they just level the house down because it's structurally damaged,' said an anonymous neighbor of the nuisance home. That sentiment is shared by most neighbors in the North Hills neighborhood in Rio Rancho.
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After years of violations, including abandoned cars, mounds of trash, and even a recent gas explosion, Rio Rancho city government is now considering demolishing the home on Blackberry Road. 'It's an eyesore over there, a lot of garbage that blows around there in my neighborhood,' said Henry West, another neighbor nearby.
And that's just the start of the issues that the city has documented. Rio Rancho police have responded to the home 113 times for calls tied to theft investigations, stolen vehicles, drug overdoses, and a stabbing. 'I can tell you there was a lot of activity there for the year and a half I've lived here, they would come and go all day and night,' said West.
The possible demolition is the second 'problem home' that Rio Rancho City Council has targeted over the last month.
This home was red-tagged from a gas explosion that neighbors caught on surveillance camera, with video showing the windows bursting. 'A few weeks ago, there was an explosion. I was home watching television, and I heard a big bang. It sounded like someone banged on my wall,' said West.
While Rio Rancho city councilors should make a decision on the property this week, neighbors are hoping it's the beginning of the end of the home. 'I believe all these years our property values have probably gone down,' said an anonymous neighbor.
If Rio Rancho City Council approves the resolution on Thursday, the owner will have to fix the problems within ten days of getting notice. The city did not respond to KRQE News 13's inquiry on Tuesday about the home.
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