ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) – If you saw it, it may leave you scratching your head, but one northwest Albuquerque park is starting to look a little like Paris.

West Bluff Park is tucked away in northwest Albuquerque overlooking the Rio Grande. It’s far from the Seine and the City of Light. But take a closer look, and you’ll find a bit of Paris.

It took Chris Kirn by surprise.

“I really was, it was a shock. I was walking and like, look at that, what’s that for? And then I realized it was lock of love,” said Kirn.

The idea behind love locks is couples sign a lock, attach it to a public fixture and toss away the key to symbolize their love. Some of the locks are dated from 2010.

Kirn says over the past six weeks though, he’s seen the locks in West Bluff Park multiply.

“First there were 10, then there were 20, then there were 30 and now there are 33 locks,” Kirn said.

Paris’s love lock bridge has become a major romantic destination, but there are so many locks, a group called No Love Locks recently launched a campaign to stop them, saying they’re endangering landmarks.

“There’s thousands and thousands and thousands of locks. Here, there’s only 33,” Kirn said.

The city’s parks and recreation spokesperson says right now there’s no issue with these love locks, but they will monitor the park to make sure they don’t get out of hand.

Kirn says they’re sweet reminders of lovestruck couples.

“It shows people’s commitment. It shows they really care for each other, and really want to be with each other,” Kirn said.
Love padlocks are found in major cities around the world including in Italy and Taiwan.

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