For residents of Lobo Village and employees working on UNM’s south campus, a quick meal within walking distance is out of the question. However, plans are being made to change that. Acres of University-owned land along Avenida Cesar Chavez will be leased to businesses that will provide services and amenities currently absent from the area.
According to the UNM Master Plan, UNM’s future real estate development proposal unveiled in August 2011, much of the vacant land around south campus is slated for development as commercial space.
Kim Murphy, director of real estate for UNM, said the University is hoping to persuade restaurants, among others, to build there.
“Whether it’s a sit-down restaurant, or a sandwich deli — yogurt shops, coffee shops, juice shops — these are the kind of businesses that expressed some interest in being down there,“ Murphy said.
Lobo Development, a non-profit corporation owned by the UNM Board of Regents, is responsible for attracting those businesses.
Murphy, who also works as an officer with Lobo Development, said that before businesses begin moving in, Lobo Development will have to contract private developers to fund construction and landscaping.
“We’re continuing to look for tenants, and we’re also looking for developers,” Murphy said. “Once we select a developer, then the planning process will really start and we’ll be able to engage a whole variety of interested parties.”
The planning process will involve choosing the layout and design of the buildings that will house the new businesses.
The so-called South Campus Placemaking Plan, drawn by Albuquerque architectural firm Dekker/Perich/Sabatini, recommends a mixed-use environment where the new amenities would be integrated with the existing housing, athletic and work facilities. The plan also suggests other improvements for the south campus, including widened sidewalks and landscaped trails, which aim to make the area friendlier to pedestrians.
Amy Coburn, consultant for Lobo Development, said the corporation is trying to respond to the needs of students as well as to the thousands of workers in UNM’s Science and Technology Park and athletic event attendees. Coburn said the organization is also hoping to attract businesses outside of the food industry that are tailored to the needs of nearby students, faculty and staff.
UNM student and Lobo Village resident Andrew Herring said many students are frustrated by the lack of nearby grocery stores.
“A few of us said it would be cool to have a grocery store within walking distance,” he said. “Just something you can walk to (would be a great addition). Something like a Smith’s or a Subway.”
Herring also said students would like a place to consume alcohol within walking distance.
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
“Adding a bar would be cool because you wouldn’t have to deal with driving, and that would be safer,” he said. They will probably never put one in though … I would think if it’s UNM property and ACC is just renting the land, I doubt it would go over very well in the local area, even if it isn’t technically on campus.”
