History of the Mark Twain Neighborhood III

and…….does this sound familiar?

The Association’s activism in the community made it “newsworthy”.

The area north of I-40 served the neighborhood with a much used (and beloved by some) park and tennis courts but they were doomed by the relentless commercial development of what would become known as the Uptown area.

Another park and tennis complex was, however, in the offing across Louisiana, even if the local media was still coming to grips with how to spell it.

Another signature victory for the neighborhood and Association came with the establishment of the Tom Bolack Urban Forest.

The City, then as now, was sometimes inclined to apply the brakes to Neighborhood Associations’ influence.

At some point in the late 1990’s or early 2000’s the original Mark Twain Neighborhood Association disbanded.  In 2012 a group of neighbors living south of Constitution reformed the Association within boundaries of Lomas to the south, Constitution to the north and between San Pedro and Louisiana.

In March 2025, after an extensive process of outreach and meetings, the by-laws of the Mark Twain Neighborhood Association were amended to extend its boundaries to re-include the neighbors living north of Constitution and south of I-40.

With an expanded community membership and channels for communication, Mark Twain NA is positioned, going forward, to elevate and amplify its voice in advocacy for positive solutions to the many challenges facing residents of Albuquerque.  We live in a unique and marvelous place, the only city in the entire America’s that sits in a rift valley, one of the only large cities in the world with a river running through it that has preserved nature on both its banks, that was born in a cradle of ancient civilizations, and has fused a diversity of rich cultural inheritances while embracing modernity (though not without stumbles).  Mark Twain is situated as close to Albuquerque’s beating heart as it could be. 

Sincere thanks to the following who made it possible to construct this “history”.

Pete Dinelli blog post History of Uptown published April 23, 2019

Heidi Snow for pictures, history info, and good ideas.

Albuquerque Special Collections Library (Central & Edith), with particular thanks to Shana