City Councilor Pat Davis Introduces Nuisance Action Against Two Convenience Stores With More Than 1000 Police and Fire Calls Since 2018

City Councilor Pat Davis introduced nuisance legislation against two convenience stores in the Southeast that have, together, accumulated nearly 1,000 police and fire calls since 2018.

“While we have used our nuisance legislation against abandoned and dilapidated housing in the past, it is extraordinary for the City to use these proceedings against active businesses - but neighbors, and myself, are fed up with the round-the-clock problems and the apparent inability of these businesses to take meaningful steps to clean up these properties themselves,” Councilor Davis says.

Earlier this year, neighbors in Nob Hill, Parkland Hills, and South San Pedro neighborhoods met with Councilor Davis to evaluate problem properties in the area and these 7-11s were identified as problem hubs. The Councilor, 7-11 management, City Legal, and state alcohol enforcement officials have since met to initiate nuisance abatement plans.

“7-11 has come to the table and committed to doing what’s needed to make these stores good neighbors,” says Davis. “By introducing this legislation, we are formalizing the process as outlined by City law.”

The City’s nuisance abatement ordinance allows the City to initiate nuisance proceedings against any property that has “a repeated pattern of calls for service and complaints of vagrants, suspicious persons, suspicious cars, general calls for welfare checks, disorderly conduct, domestic violence, domestic altercations, domestic disputes, loud parties, loud music, neighborhood complaints, noise ordinance violations, and public drunkenness.”

Councilor Davis has asked for the legislation to be heard at public hearings in October, but Davis says he will defer action as long as the plan is in place and in compliance.

The two 7-11 convenience stores located at 3801 Central Ave NE and 5401 Kathryn Ave SE routinely rank at the top of the police department’s most frequent calls for service locations.

At 5401 Kathryn SE:

• The Police Department has responded to this property 296 times between January 1, 2018 and April 30, 2019 (16 months), for calls including:
  • 1 shooting
  • 2 stabbings
  • 11 other assaults
  • 49 thefts or larcenies, including thefts from the business
  • 3 stolen automobiles recovered on the property
  • 12 domestic disturbances
  • 3 felony warrant arrests
  • 195 other disturbance calls including shots fired; and
• The Fire Department has responded to this property 70 times between January 1, 2018 and April 30, 2019 (16 months), for medical calls; and
• The City of Albuquerque's 3-1-1 center has received 691 complaints from residents reporting incidents within a one block radius of this location in the past two years.

At 3801 Central NE:

• The Police Department has responded to this property 437 times between January 1, 2018 and April 30, 2019 (16 months), for calls including:
  • 1 stabbing
  • 18 other assaults
  • 4 felony warrant arrests
  • 41 incidents of shoplifting, grab and runs, and forgery
  • 125 calls for suspicious activity
  • 2 calls for vandalism
  • 246 disturbance calls to include fights, panhandler, shots fired; and
• The Fire Department has responded to this property 119 times between January 1, 2018 and April 30, 2019 (16 months), for medical and fire related calls; and
• The City of Albuquerque's 3-1-1 center has received 436 complaints from residents reporting incidents within a one block radius of this location in the past two years.