Balloon Fiesta is Back for ‘Burque
Sept. 18, 2021
The City of Albuquerque is ready to welcome back eager balloonists and spectators to Balloon Fiesta Park next month. After a hiatus last year for COVID-19, Mayor Keller and other city leaders announced plans to bring back Balloon Fiesta this year.
“We couldn’t be more excited to welcome everyone back to Balloon Fiesta Park next month for what is truly one of the most spectacular events in the world,” said Mayor Tim Keller. “I’m so grateful to our community for its commitment to keeping each other safe, and I can’t wait to see all the families enjoying this special time of year together.”
Throughout the pandemic, Balloon Fiesta Park has served as a critical location, offering widespread COVID-19 testing as well as opportunities for socially distanced recreation and activities. Over the past year, the City’s Parks and Recreation and Municipal Development Departments have stayed hard at work, making needed improvements to the park and surrounding area to improve the overall experience.
“While Balloon Fiesta will have some exciting new surprises this year, what we’re most looking forward to is getting back to the familiar event we know and love,” said Paul Smith, Executive Director, Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. “We’re glad to have people back at Balloon Fiesta and enjoying the rest of what Albuquerque has to offer as well.”
While things will look familiar as Balloon Fiesta Park will once again fill with locals and visitors, there are important modifications and protocols in place to ensure a safe event. City departments are working together to make help keep residents and visitors safe from traffic control and public safety to park maintenance and clean up.
The City’s Parks and Recreation department maintains Balloon Fiesta Park year-round. In preparation for the return of the event they worked with the Department of Municipal Development (DMD) to repair the east parking lot. They also repaired roads and potholes around the park, created a new parking area for the Gondola Club, and have made sure the park is ready for the AIFB tents to be set up.
In anticipation of the influx of guests, the Solid Waste Department (SWD) will host their annual Company’s Coming cleanup event next Saturday. This event not only gets the Balloon Fiesta Park ready for visitors, but provides an opportunity for neighborhoods to be cleaned up as well. During the event, SWD will continue their work to keep Albuquerque beautiful. We encourage Balloon Fiesta attendees to recycle and ask that they don’t litter.
The Albuquerque Police Department will work with DMD Security to assist with traffic. Detectives will also be conducting operations in parking lots throughout the event and Auto Theft will be conducting operations in hotel parking lots. Albuquerque Fire Rescue will also be on scene to assist with any incidents that may arise on the field.
The Department of Arts and Culture will be hosting a number of events to celebrate the Balloon Fiesta, providing family fun during the nine-day event at a number of City facilities. Event information can be found at cultureabq.com.
A video of the full update can be found here.