MetroABQ Blog

A Quick Trip to Mesa del Sol

Its worth a drive out to the MetroABQs newest community: Mesa del Sol. The 40-year-plan planned community is beginning to take better shape. The huge 13,000-acre master-planned city has numerous core businessesFidelity Investments, ABQ Studios-as seen by how full the commercial parking lots are during the day, The Aperture Center; also, the residential homes are being built & in years to come, the Master Plan includes 37,500 homes.

Regardless if you plan to live in Mesa del Sol or not, its an amazing place to go visit. Above is an interesting Bernalillo County Public Art installation at the end of the large Isleta Amphitheater parking lot, called Standing O, by Lorenzo Romero & Robert Goldie. Mount Taylor sits in the background, along with great west mesa details.

Below is a taste of driving into Mesa del Sol south from the MetroABQ area--you cant miss the Snakes.

From the Sites Southwest website: The snakes are a strong design feature that references the wildlife of Mesa del Sol. The landscape is composed of xeric plantings. Grasses are located near the snakes and native shrubs and trees are planted along cobble swales. In addition, water harvesting techniques were used to supplement irrigation from the non-potable water supply. Curb-cuts along the street harvest runoff water into the swales within the medians, taking advantage of elevation changes.
two rattlesnakes line the roadway, slithering up or down the mesa-side. More about them here.

This slithering snake can be found on your way to Mesa del Sol, along University Blvd, just south of the MetroABQ Sunport. Follow University just past Rio Bravo Blvd, and you cross over Montessa Park via a few well-placed bridges, experiencing undulating mesas and canyons along the way.