Time-lapse
Build-out animation
See the center come together
City of Albuquerque time-lapse of the North Domingo Baca Aquatic Center build-out.
Under construction · 7521 Carmel Ave NE, Albuquerque
Finish the pool New Mexico has already started.
An indoor 50-meter competition natatorium and an outdoor family aquatics park at North Domingo Baca Park — promised in the City's 2005 master plan, broken ground in January 2024, and built so far through six years of steady, bipartisan work.
~$62M
secured through 15 legislative, bond, City & APS actions (Mar 2026)
~$36M
remaining gap — and it grows while the rest stays un-contracted
63% funded of ~$98M total project cost State $23.6M · City & APS $38.4M
NDBAC lines of effort · updated through March 2026
Two lanes, one finish line
Design & construction and funding have moved forward together every year since 2020. Here is the whole record at a glance.
Current progress
Latest site photo
Where construction stands
Conceptual design · Huitt-Zollars / CABQ
What we are finishing
A year-round natatorium beside an outdoor family aquatics park — a regional destination on Albuquerque's north side.
What
An indoor natatorium and an outdoor aquatics park
One site, two phases, built to serve everyone from toddlers learning to float to Olympic hopefuls, high-school teams, masters swimmers, water polo, therapy and seniors.
Indoor natatorium Phase 1 · year-round
- Competition pool
- 50-meter, 8-lane Olympic-regulation pool with a movable bulkhead — long-course and short-course racing in one tank
- Diving
- Two 1-meter springboards and a high dive in the deep end
- Warm-up pool
- Separate heated warm-up / cool-down pool that doubles for group fitness and swim lessons
- Seating
- More than 1,000 seats — spectator viewing on the upper concourse plus participant bleachers on deck; more than West Mesa Aquatic Center
- Support
- Dedicated and family locker rooms, dry classroom / training room, check-in lobby, offices, judges' area, accessible viewing positions and an elevator
Outdoor aquatics park Phase 2 · summer
- Leisure pool
- Free-form recreation pool with a zero-depth "beach" entry — accessible for wheelchair users and young children
- Slides
- Two waterslides from a shaded tower
- Lap lanes
- Outdoor lap / activity lanes for lessons, fitness and summer programs
- Deck
- Large deck with shade structures, lawn and terraced seating on the retaining wall
- Access
- Its own gated entry and pavilion from the park side, connected to the natatorium's north lobby
Infant & youth water survivalSwim lessonsFamilies & summer recreationAPS high-school swim & diveClub (USA Swimming) teamsMasters & Senior OlympicsWater poloTriathletesAquatic therapy & rehabAdaptive & special-needs swimmersLifeguard jobs for teensHigh-altitude training camps
Renderings and plans are the Huitt-Zollars conceptual design (60-meter version).
Where
North Albuquerque's missing public pool
NDBAC sits at 7521 Carmel Ave NE, just north of Wyoming & Paseo del Norte — reachable from I-25, the Paseo and Alameda bridges and ABQ RIDE route 31. The map shades every Bernalillo County census tract by the CDC's Social Vulnerability Index and marks every public pool the City operates.
CDC/ATSDR SVI 2022 (overall percentile)
low → high vulnerability (quartiles)
Indoor pool
Outdoor (summer)
Interstate
NDBAC
3.4 mi
to the nearest public pool from NDBAC — Eisenhower, outdoor and summer-only. The nearest year-round indoor pool is 4.3 mi away (25 yd); the only public 50-meter pool, West Mesa, is 10.4 mi.
0
public pools of any kind in the northeast quadrant north of Eisenhower Pool — including everything north of Paseo del Norte.
158K
people live within 5 miles of NDBAC, including ~31,000 children, served today by one 25-yard indoor pool and two summer pools at the circle's edge.
261K
county residents live more than 3 miles from any year-round indoor public pool.
0.83
SVI of the two most vulnerable far-north tracts — 1–2 miles from NDBAC but 3–3.5 miles from any pool. NDBAC is a regional hinge for these neighborhoods and for Rio Rancho, Corrales and Sandoval County families who already drive in.
Data: CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index 2022 (tract percentile RPL_THEMES, ACS 2018–22 population) · pool list: CABQ Aquatics (Sunport Pool closed for 2026). Tract shapes are approximated from 2022 tract centroids. Pool locations from CABQ map links; interstates from U.S. Census TIGERweb (simplified). Distances are straight-line. Analysis: Citizens for NDBAC, Sept 2026.
Reading the map
Why vulnerability and pool access go together
The CDC's Social Vulnerability Index ranks every census tract on 16 factors — poverty, households without a car, housing-cost burden, single-parent households, disability, age, language and more. Those same factors decide who can get to a pool: families without a backyard pool, a club membership, a second car or the budget for private lessons depend on public pools and City swim programs.
Less accessHigher-SVI households are the least likely to have a private pool, reliable transportation or paid lessons.
Fewer swimmers55% of U.S. adults have never had a swim lesson; drowning rates are highest where access is lowest (CDC).
More riskDrowning is the #1 killer of children ages 1–4 and falls hardest on the communities with the least access.
Learning to swim lowers itFormal swim lessons reduce drowning risk (CDC). A public pool with lessons close to home makes a neighborhood measurably less vulnerable.
Why
Public safety, public health, and a return on investment
Swimming is a life skill, and lessons need pools. In a desert state with acequias, ditches, lakes and the Rio Grande, New Mexico drowns at a higher rate than the nation.
#1
Drowning is the leading cause of death for U.S. children ages 1–4 (CDC).
+24%
New Mexico's drowning rate above the national rate — 11th highest in the country (CDC 2024 data).
+28%
Rise in drowning deaths among children 1–4 in 2022 vs. 2019; 4,500+ Americans drown each year (CDC Vital Signs).
55%
of U.S. adults have never taken a swim lesson. Formal lessons reduce drowning risk for children (CDC).
Sources: CDC Drowning Prevention; CDC Vital Signs: Drowning Increases in the U.S. (2024); New Mexico Kids! citing CDC 2024 state data; NMDOH, Drownings in New Mexico.
USA Swimming · New Mexico
The presentation lawmakers saw
USA Swimming's New Mexico presentation — shown at the Roundhouse on 3 February 2025 — lays out the need for a second 50-meter pool and what it unlocks for the state.
Draft utilization
A pool that is full from day one
Lessons and open swim, APS high-school practice and meets, club long-course season in summer, water polo, masters and therapy. A 50 m × 25 yd layout can run meets for up to ~750 long-course or ~1,300 short-course swimmers (USA Swimming coach estimate).
What people are saying
Once completed, it will fulfill the need for equitable access in a part of the city where a public pool is missing … from infants to seniors, and recreational swimmers to competitive swimmers.
It's time to end the public pool "desert" in our part of the city.
We are in dire need of more pools in Albuquerque … It will create opportunities for people who do not normally have access to a pool to learn and enjoy swimming as well as giving young adults a chance to work as lifeguards.
The 50 meters is very important to develop our competitive swimmers. I will continue placing money on this project and encourage other legislators to do the same.
We will not stop until we achieve our goal, and we are proud to join efforts with many vocal and determined community members to make this pool a reality.
The NM Senior Olympics in 2018 and the 2019 National Senior Games held in Albuquerque was a huge success; however our aquatic facilities were challenged.
National swim teams from China and Japan have been coming to Albuquerque since 2014 … There is a shortage of qualified aquatic facilities (50 meter pool time).
A local public pool was non-existent without a drive of 15 minutes or longer … Our city deserves and needs an outstanding aquatic facility.
During the high school swim season we are often constrained by how many lanes we can use because we share practice time with other schools.
"We can't afford our own and it's important for our kids to learn how to swim!"
"I have been waiting 15 years!"
"HS kids going down to Highland stinks!!"
"North ABQ is the only part of city missing indoor-outdoor swim pools."
"I would definitely use this facility if it were built."
Economic impact · connecting the dots
It pays for itself — through the economy it creates
A 50-meter pool with 1,000+ seats lets Albuquerque host regional meets, Senior Games, water polo tournaments and high-altitude training camps it turns away today.
Visiting teams and families spend on hotels, restaurants and retail near Balloon Fiesta Park — gross-receipts and lodgers' tax that now flows to Los Alamos, Farmington or out of state.
Local families get lessons, fitness and therapy close to home, lowering drowning risk and health costs for decades.
Proof point: the Greensboro Aquatic Center (NC) was built for about $19M and its events generated an estimated $124M over five years (Jan 2020–Feb 2025). Like most public pools, day-to-day operations run a modest subsidy; the return shows up in the local economy and tax base.
The comparison that matters
$124M
Greensboro Aquatic Center events, 5-year economic impact
$36M
NDBAC's remaining one-time funding gap
~$19M
Greensboro's original construction cost (2011)
$224M
Greensboro CVB estimate of GAC event impact to date
Sources: GAC Events report Jan 2020–Feb 2025 (posted on the current Citizens for NDBAC site); Greensboro Aquatic Center; SwimSwam. Economic impact is visitor spending, not facility revenue.
When
Happening now — a whole-of-New-Mexico effort
The natatorium's vertical construction began in September 2025. Every year since 2020, neighbors, coaches, swim families, the City, APS, the County, the Governor and legislators from both parties have moved this project forward.
7
legislative sessions in a row (2020–2026)
27
legislators from both chambers and both parties
1
Governor — $5M in 2023
4
City G.O. bonds approved by voters
1st
APS bond ever for a City pool
15
funding actions, ~$62M total
Sep 2025Natatorium building begins
Vertical construction of the indoor natatorium — about $40M of work — follows the retaining wall, site work, pump room and utilities.
NowConstruction continues
About $62M is secured. Alternates 1 & 2 (~$76M) are waiting on full funding; see the progress photo above.
Nov 3, 2026General election
New legislators take office in January. Every one of them can champion NDBAC.
Jan 19, 202758th Legislature convenes
A 60-day session with capital outlay on the table — the chance to close the ~$36M gap.
How
Funding: the big picture, and why now
Funding kept pace with the original plan — ~$62M raised is double the 2021 estimate. What moved was the finish line: construction inflation in New Mexico ran far ahead of the nation.
Funding secured (cumulative)Estimated / bid project cost
Sources: NDBAC Lines of Effort and Cost-Increase Talking Points (Design C estimate Aug 2021; Huitt-Zollars Opinion of Probable Cost Jan 2024; CABQ bid evaluation, Project 705286, Apr 2024; CABQ 2026 cost update plus retaining wall and design/testing fees).
Hall of Fame · $500K or more
The people who moved the needle
Brook BassanCity Councilor, District 4 · championed $23M+ in City funds
CityAlbuquerque voters & CityG.O. bonds 2019–2025 and City budgets
$36.4MAlbuquerque Public Schools2021 bond — APS's first contribution
$2MMichelle Lujan GrishamGovernor of New Mexico · capital outlay
$5MNicole TobiassenState Senator · capital outlay
$3MMark MooresState Senator · capital outlay
$2.49MMarian MatthewsState Representative · capital outlay
$2.15MNicole ChavezState Representative · capital outlay
$2MDiane Torres-VelásquezState Representative · capital outlay
$1.25MMartin HickeyState Senator · capital outlay
$1.23MMimi StewartState Senator · capital outlay
$950KDaniel Ivey-SotoState Senator · capital outlay
$800KDayan Hochman-VigilState Representative · capital outlay
$725KNatalie FigueroaState Representative · capital outlay
$500KEvery contribution, 2020–2026 · hover to pause
The full roll
2026 · 57th Legislature, 2nd Session$4.62M
Nicole Tobiassen Sen.$2M
Nicole Chavez Rep.$1M
Diane Torres-Velásquez Rep.$250K
Mimi Stewart Sen.$250K
Marian Matthews Rep.$250K
Pamelya Herndon Rep.$290K
Martin Hickey Sen.$125K
Elizabeth "Liz" Thomson Rep.$100K
Natalie Figueroa Rep.$100K
Harold Pope Sen.$100K
Heather Berghmans Sen.$50K
Jay Block Sen.$50K
Katy Duhigg Sen.$50K
2025 · 57th Legislature, 1st Session$4.33M
Nicole Tobiassen Sen.$1M
Diane Torres-Velásquez Rep.$1M
Nicole Chavez Rep.$1M
Marian Matthews Rep.$350K
Martin Hickey Sen.$300K
Mimi Stewart Sen.$200K
Jay Block Sen.$100K
Dayan Hochman-Vigil Rep.$100K
Meredith Dixon Rep.$100K
Elizabeth "Liz" Thomson Rep.$50K
Heather Berghmans Sen.$50K
Natalie Figueroa Rep.$50K
Harold Pope Sen.$50K
Pamelya Herndon Rep.$20K
2024 · 56th Legislature, 2nd Session$1.05M
Marian Matthews Rep.$350K
Martin Hickey Sen.$300K
Mimi Stewart Sen.$100K
William "Bill" Rehm Rep.$100K
Elizabeth "Liz" Thomson Rep.$50K
Natalie Figueroa Rep.$50K
Pamelya Herndon Rep.$50K
Dayan Hochman-Vigil Rep.$25K
Harold Pope Sen.$25K
2023 · 56th Legislature, 1st Session$6.17M
Michelle Lujan Grisham Gov.$5M
Marian Matthews Rep.$500K
Mimi Stewart Sen.$200K
Natalie Figueroa Rep.$100K
William "Bill" Rehm Rep.$100K
Elizabeth "Liz" Thomson Rep.$100K
Dayan Hochman-Vigil Rep.$50K
Antonio "Moe" Maestas Sen.$50K
Harold Pope Sen.$50K
Pamelya Herndon Rep.$15K
2022 · 55th Legislature, 2nd Session$3.94M
Daniel Ivey-Soto Sen.$800K
Martin Hickey Sen.$500K
Marian Matthews Rep.$450K
Karen C. Bash Rep.$300K
Dayan Hochman-Vigil Rep.$300K
Mark Moores Sen.$300K
Natalie Figueroa Rep.$200K
Gregg Schmedes Sen.$200K
Mimi Stewart Sen.$200K
Pamelya Herndon Rep.$100K
William "Bill" Rehm Rep.$100K
Elizabeth "Liz" Thomson Rep.$100K
Bill Tallman Sen.$90K
Meredith Dixon Rep.$50K
Martinez $50K
Bill O'Neill Sen.$50K
Gail Armstrong Rep.$50K
Gail Chasey Rep.$25K
Antonio "Moe" Maestas Sen.$25K
Harold Pope Sen.$25K
Christine Trujillo Rep.$25K
2021 · 55th Legislature, 1st Session$2.74M
Mark Moores Sen.$2.19M
Dayan Hochman-Vigil Rep.$250K
Marian Matthews Rep.$250K
William "Bill" Rehm Rep.$50K
2020 · 54th Legislature, 2nd Session$802K
Capital outlay, HB 349 (sponsors not itemized)$802K
City · APS · G.O. bonds$38.4M
City of Albuquerque 2019 G.O. bond program$1.90M
City of Albuquerque FY2021 City budget (Jun 2020)$3M
Albuquerque voters 2021 G.O. bond$3M
Albuquerque Public Schools 2021 APS bond — first ever for APS$2M
City Council · Councilor Brook Bassan FY2023 City budget (Jun 2022)$15M
Albuquerque voters 2023 G.O. bond$5M
City of Albuquerque City allocation (Dec 2023)$3M
Albuquerque voters 2025 G.O. bond$5.50M
2026 · 57th Legislature, 2nd Session$4.62M
Nicole Tobiassen Sen.$2M
Nicole Chavez Rep.$1M
Diane Torres-Velásquez Rep.$250K
Mimi Stewart Sen.$250K
Marian Matthews Rep.$250K
Pamelya Herndon Rep.$290K
Martin Hickey Sen.$125K
Elizabeth "Liz" Thomson Rep.$100K
Natalie Figueroa Rep.$100K
Harold Pope Sen.$100K
Heather Berghmans Sen.$50K
Jay Block Sen.$50K
Katy Duhigg Sen.$50K
2025 · 57th Legislature, 1st Session$4.33M
Nicole Tobiassen Sen.$1M
Diane Torres-Velásquez Rep.$1M
Nicole Chavez Rep.$1M
Marian Matthews Rep.$350K
Martin Hickey Sen.$300K
Mimi Stewart Sen.$200K
Jay Block Sen.$100K
Dayan Hochman-Vigil Rep.$100K
Meredith Dixon Rep.$100K
Elizabeth "Liz" Thomson Rep.$50K
Heather Berghmans Sen.$50K
Natalie Figueroa Rep.$50K
Harold Pope Sen.$50K
Pamelya Herndon Rep.$20K
2024 · 56th Legislature, 2nd Session$1.05M
Marian Matthews Rep.$350K
Martin Hickey Sen.$300K
Mimi Stewart Sen.$100K
William "Bill" Rehm Rep.$100K
Elizabeth "Liz" Thomson Rep.$50K
Natalie Figueroa Rep.$50K
Pamelya Herndon Rep.$50K
Dayan Hochman-Vigil Rep.$25K
Harold Pope Sen.$25K
2023 · 56th Legislature, 1st Session$6.17M
Michelle Lujan Grisham Gov.$5M
Marian Matthews Rep.$500K
Mimi Stewart Sen.$200K
Natalie Figueroa Rep.$100K
William "Bill" Rehm Rep.$100K
Elizabeth "Liz" Thomson Rep.$100K
Dayan Hochman-Vigil Rep.$50K
Antonio "Moe" Maestas Sen.$50K
Harold Pope Sen.$50K
Pamelya Herndon Rep.$15K
2022 · 55th Legislature, 2nd Session$3.94M
Daniel Ivey-Soto Sen.$800K
Martin Hickey Sen.$500K
Marian Matthews Rep.$450K
Karen C. Bash Rep.$300K
Dayan Hochman-Vigil Rep.$300K
Mark Moores Sen.$300K
Natalie Figueroa Rep.$200K
Gregg Schmedes Sen.$200K
Mimi Stewart Sen.$200K
Pamelya Herndon Rep.$100K
William "Bill" Rehm Rep.$100K
Elizabeth "Liz" Thomson Rep.$100K
Bill Tallman Sen.$90K
Meredith Dixon Rep.$50K
Martinez $50K
Bill O'Neill Sen.$50K
Gail Armstrong Rep.$50K
Gail Chasey Rep.$25K
Antonio "Moe" Maestas Sen.$25K
Harold Pope Sen.$25K
Christine Trujillo Rep.$25K
2021 · 55th Legislature, 1st Session$2.74M
Mark Moores Sen.$2.19M
Dayan Hochman-Vigil Rep.$250K
Marian Matthews Rep.$250K
William "Bill" Rehm Rep.$50K
2020 · 54th Legislature, 2nd Session$802K
Capital outlay, HB 349 (sponsors not itemized)$802K
City · APS · G.O. bonds$38.4M
City of Albuquerque 2019 G.O. bond program$1.90M
City of Albuquerque FY2021 City budget (Jun 2020)$3M
Albuquerque voters 2021 G.O. bond$3M
Albuquerque Public Schools 2021 APS bond — first ever for APS$2M
City Council · Councilor Brook Bassan FY2023 City budget (Jun 2022)$15M
Albuquerque voters 2023 G.O. bond$5M
City of Albuquerque City allocation (Dec 2023)$3M
Albuquerque voters 2025 G.O. bond$5.50M
Why now is the time to act
+125%
Inflation, not scope growth
The 2021 estimate ($30.6M) to the April 2024 bid ($68.7M). The program is intact; value engineering controlled cost rather than shrinking the facility.
60–138%
New Mexico ran hotter
National construction costs rose ~20% in 2021–24 (Turner Index); New Mexico public projects rose 60–138% in the same window (LFC), with a 2,000-worker labor shortage.
+$22.3M
Waiting costs more
The price rose again between the 2024 bid and the City's 2026 update. Alternates 1 & 2 (~$76M) remain un-contracted — every year of delay adds to the gap.
15
Consistent effort
Separate legislative, bond, City and APS actions since 2020 — seven legislative sessions ($23.6M) and eight City/APS/GO-bond actions ($38.4M).
~93%
A national pattern
Campbell County, Wyoming's aquatic center saw a comparable jump over a similar three-year window — NDBAC is the larger, more complete facility.
0.47%
The state can close it
New Mexico holds $7.6B in unspent capital outlay across ~6,400 projects. NDBAC's gap is under half a percent of that — and NDBAC is shovel-ready and spending every dollar it receives.
Ask your legislators to finish NDBAC in 2027
The 60-day session of the 58th Legislature convenes January 19, 2027. Capital-outlay requests are made by individual legislators — find yours, tell them the pool serves all of New Mexico, and ask them to put NDBAC on their list.
History
A grass-roots, non-political effort
Citizens for NDBAC is a group of neighbors — not a party, not a campaign. Swim parents, former and current competitive swimmers, Senior Olympians and masters, high-school coaches, therapists and advocates for disabled swimmers, engineers, architects, grant writers and neighborhood-association board members, working with whoever will help finish a pool Albuquerque promised in 2005.
Neighbors with neighbors
Constituent meetings
- Neighborhood associations — NorEste, Vineyard Estates and North Albuquerque Acres boards put their support on record and carried it to their members.
- Citizen design review, Jul–Oct 2021 — in-person sessions, Zoom and email rounds that led the City to choose design Option C.
- Subject-matter-expert input, Nov 2021 — coaches, officials, therapy and adaptive-swim experts refined Option C; the pool grew to allow more programming.
- Swim families & coaches — club, high-school, masters and water-polo communities organized testimony, letters and turnout.
- Bond campaigns — neighbors handed out hand fans and flyers to pass the 2021 City and APS bonds, and each G.O. bond since.
Constituents with officials
Meetings with decision-makers
- City Council, District 4 — Councilor Brook Bassan's July 21, 2021 public meeting with Huitt-Zollars, coaches, athletes and residents (in person and on Zoom).
- Mayor & Parks and Recreation — ongoing meetings with the Mayor's office, the COO and the Parks & Recreation Director on design, schedule and cost.
- City Council meetings — residents signed up for public comment at council meeting after meeting to keep NDBAC on the agenda.
- APS Board of Education, Aug 2021 — constituents made the case that won APS's first-ever $2M bond contribution to a City pool.
- State legislators — district-by-district outreach every session since 2021, and the 3 February 2025 day at the Roundhouse.
North Domingo Baca Park master plan, adopted with neighborhood participation, promises an aquatic center.
Neighbors organize after Councilor Bassan names the aquatic center a top-three goal.
Public meetings, citizen design review, and the APS and City bond campaigns.
Outreach to legislators every session; environmental review approved 9–0.
Groundbreaking with the Governor, the Mayor, legislators and the community.
Supporters from across New Mexico at the Roundhouse.
January 2024 · North Domingo Baca Park
Groundbreaking ceremony
3 February 2025 · The Roundhouse, Santa Fe
Supporters at the Capitol
In the Rotunda, above the House, within the Senate and at the Round Table — USA Swimming presented, sponsors from both parties stood side by side, and the day ended at the Governor's office. The 2025 session delivered more than $4 million in capital outlay.