The City of Albuquerque is offering $680,000 to buy El Vado Motel from owner Richard L. Gonzales, who wants to raze it and put up luxury townhouses. If the offer is rejected, the city intends to condemn the historic Route 66 property and seize it from Gonzales to save it from demolition, reports the Albuquerque Journal.
Gonzales has advertised the property for $2 million to $3 million. He bought it for $675,000 in late 2005, so Gonzales is trying a markup of at least 200 percent, despite the fact most of the motel’s furnishings have been removed and no maintenance being performed on the structure.
Mayor Martin Chavez has said before that he would use condemnation to take the motel from Gonzales to keep it from meeting the wrecking ball. In June 2007, he told the New York Times:
“If we can’t come to a resolution with the developer, we’ll condemn it and take it,” said Martin J. Chavez, the mayor of Albuquerque, who would like to see the El Vado and others like it turned into boutique motels catering to Route 66 tourists. “Route 66 is very much a state of mind,” he said. “It’s part of who we are. It would be like New York without the Statue of Liberty.” (my emphasis)
Sounds like the city is turning up the heat to reach a settlement more quickly.
UPDATE: The Landmarks and Urban Conservation Commission was scheduled Wednesday to act on a demolition application concerning El Vado. That matter has been deferred to March 12.
Again, it’s unlikely that LUCC will approve the application. It previously rejected a similar application, and it is the same body that unanimously designated El Vado as a city landmark.
‘Bout time. Good for Albuquerque. Maybe if they tie a can to Gonzales’ tail and send him packing, other developers will think twice before buying National Register properties for the express purpose of destroying them.