By Kevin Hendricks, The Paper.
Rio Rancho’s Governing Body shut the door Thursday on a Maverik gas station planned for the corner of NM 528 and Obregon Road NE, voting to deny the site plan over concerns that traffic would still flood a residential street even after a late compromise on highway access.
City staff and the Planning and Zoning Board had recommended approval, finding the 2.06-acre project met zoning requirements for the site’s C-1 special-use district. District 2 Councilor Jeremy Lenentine cast the only vote against denial, arguing the city had little standing left to say no. “I don’t think we have much grounds to stand on based on the previous meeting,” Lenentine said. “Therefore, I do support the project.”
The access fix that wasn’t enough
The council postponed the project in June so the developer could negotiate highway access with NMDOT instead of routing all customer traffic through Monterrey Road. NMDOT agreed Aug. 25 to a right-in-only entrance off NM 528, reflected in a revised site plan filed Sept. 2 — but still rejected a right-out, meaning vehicles leaving the store would still exit onto Monterrey. District 5 Councilor Karissa Culbreath questioned why the developer waited so long to press the agency. “The real conversations may not have started until mid-August,” Culbreath said. District 6 Councilor Nicole List said the partial approval made things worse, not better. District 3 Councilor Bob Tyler, who has pushed the city to work harder with developers navigating NMDOT, said the holdup wasn’t about opposing business. “It’s the fact that we don’t want to engage with residents, and NMDOT doesn’t get off their butts,” Tyler said.
Neighbors pressed the numbers
Kim Gonzalez, who lives at 1201 Monterrey Road directly across from the proposed site, told the board the location itself was the problem. “I believe its location creates serious traffic and safety concerns for our neighborhood,” Gonzalez said. Thomas Krupiak, a retired Albuquerque Fire Department lieutenant, pointed to a paper trail predating the project. “Rio Rancho police had already identified safety concerns on New Mexico 528 and Obregon. In 2024, the police traffic division asked NMDOT to consider northbound and southbound turning lanes at this intersection,” Krupiak said. Another resident told the board she had personally counted traffic on Obregon Road over two days this summer — 586 vehicles on a day school was in session, 219 on a day it wasn’t — and said a records request turned up 20 crashes at the Obregon/NM 528 intersection since Jan. 1.
Door not fully closed
Despite the denial, several councilors signaled they weren’t opposed to a Maverik in Rio Rancho generally — just this access plan.
Follow future zoning and development items before the Rio Rancho Governing Body:
- Agendas: rrnm.gov
- Meeting video: rrnm.gov/2303/Watch-and-Download-City-Meetings
- Public comment/records: [email protected] | 505-896-8708