RIO RANCHO, N.M. — One new business after another is popping up along Unser where Albuquerque and Rio Rancho meet.

On the Albuquerque side, Chicken Salad Chick is set to open in April on the southwest corner of Unser and McMahon. It’s just one of several businesses that will open on that corner.

Keep driving into Rio Rancho and you’ll see a lot of dirt just north of the Presbyterian Rust Medical Center. That’s where The Village, a new shopping center, will be home to a high-end grocery store operated by Albertson’s called Market Street.

It broke ground in 2022, and the pandemic caused some construction delays. Now the owners say they’re aiming for an opening date of early next year.

Soon folks in Rio Rancho won’t have to travel to Albuquerque to furniture shop, because Furniture Row is set to open in The Village too.

If you’re not in the market for furniture, more retail stores are planned just across the intersection south of M’tucci’s. The leasing agent told KOB 4 they hope to break ground by the end of this year on up to 8,000 square feet of retail space.

They can’t say exactly what to expect in that space, but say that both national and local companies are interested. It will also include a drive-through.

As that area continues to grow, there are plans to widen both Unser and Paseo del Norte. According to the city’s website, the first phase of that project would make Paseo four lanes all the way from I-25 to Unser, and would make Unser four lanes from Paseo just past Northern in Rio Rancho. Construction on that project could begin in early 2025.