Valle De Oro Master Plan

Sites and Wilson & Co. collaborated on a master plan for the country's first planned Urban Wildlife Refuge in Bernalillo Counties far south valley. The project team included the Albuquerque Metropolitan Arroyo and Flood Control Authority, US Fish and Wildlife, and Ducks Unlimited. The project is noteworthy for its extensive public interaction strategy which included workshops and charrettes, field trips, public meetings, refuge events, and meetings with 5 national and local agencies. The refuge's goals included being an asset to the community, attracting waterfowl and other avian and land-based species with habitats, six wetland/management units, fields inspired by the site's historic past, and pedestrian and equestrian trails. There were botanical study labs, children's learning exhibits, and a salt grass habitat at the site. Storm water quality devices that serve artwork clean the drainage water that enters the site and the Rio Grande.