Rio Communities, a small town one hour south of Albuquerque, was threatened by a Heavy industry Rezone of 300 acres brought forward by Harvey Yates – owner of Jalapeno Corporation, Cibola Land Corporation, and partial owner of the Rio Grande Industrial Park south of Rio Communities, that would expose residents to harmful air pollutants and potential water contamination.
Working in collaboration with Protect Rio Communities and Valencia Water Watchers, we helped spread the word about the proposed zoning changes, and use our social media platform to inform followers about important rapid response actions, including community meetings, petitions, and protests.
Tino Co-Director of
Valencia Action Network (VCAN) Speaking at Planning and Zoning
Sign outside of Planning and Zoning
Public Hearing
Hundreds of residents showed up at public hearings before Planning & Zoning to speak out.
On March 2nd 2023, the Planning & Zoning Commissioners voted unanimously to DENY THE REQUESTED REZONING — 262 acres to Heavy Industrial and 38 acres to Heavy Commercial — in a first victory for concerned residents.
In a win for Rio Communities, on April 24, 2023 Harvey Yates withdrew his application for a Heavy Industry (I-3) rezone of 300 acres in Rio Communities.
Warning from Mountain View Residents:
Mountain View, a residential community south of Albuquerque, NM, is home to one of the state’s largest industrial parks. Mountain View resident Dr. Magdalena Avila (UNM) says her community serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of mixing heavy industry with residential neighborhoods.
“Mountain View has dealt with challenge after challenge of being a dumping ground for toxic industry, including storage tanks for major fuel distributors, large and small wrecking yards, hazardous railyard shipments and toxic leaks, and many other sources of ground and air contaminants. In the 60s, babies were dying of high levels of nitrate poisoning and plumes from contaminated water draining down from Kirtland Air Force Base.
I would hate to see Rio Communities and the Rio Grande corridor get assaulted by hazardous waste and toxic contamination in the way that we have been. For 50+ years, we, the residents, have been paying the price for this so-called development. It has been a cumulative congregate of toxic industrial developments since the 1950s, which has led to extensive toxic dumping amid policies which have supported industry instead of vulnerable residents.”
-- Dr. Magdalena Avila, UNM
