Sandia Knolls, NM

Sandia Knolls is a Bernalillo County census-designated place of 1,252 people in the 2020 census, at the southern end of Monte Largo east of the Sandia Mountains. The Albuquerque metro reaches into this mountain setting, with Edgewood's undeveloped land to the north and San Antonito and Sandia Park about three miles west. The Sandia Mountains shape the horizon and the roads, while the CDP's 2.8 square miles sit on the East Mountain side of the Albuquerque region. Albuquerque Public Schools serves the area, tying a small mountain community to a large metro school system.

Sandia Knolls functions within the larger East Mountain chain of communities. NM 14 and local roads tie it to San Antonito, Sandia Park, Tijeras, and Albuquerque, so school and service trips follow the mountain corridor. Monte Largo and the Sandias keep the physical setting distinct from the valley city. For a prospective resident, the key fact is the combination of an Albuquerque school connection with a 6,900-foot foothill location.