[5] The district was similarly defined in resolutions passed by the Albuquerque City Council and New Mexico State Senate, although Siesta Hills was not explicitly mentioned.

[9] Before World War II, the area that now makes up the International District was mostly unpopulated apart from the small community of La Mesa and a few other scattered homesteads, some owned by African Americans.

After the war, Albuquerque experienced a major population boom, with many new residents attracted by government jobs at Kirtland Air Force Base and Sandia National Laboratories.

[11] Meanwhile, a business district filled with motels, diners, and service stations developed along Central Avenue, which was designated as part of the famous U.S. Route 66 in 1937.

The International District's abundance of low-cost motels and apartments made it a landing place for immigrants and other newcomers to the city, including refugees from Southeast Asia (especially Vietnam) and later Central America.

[12] However, the neighborhood also attracted a significant amount of criminal activity, which led to alarmist media and residents to refer to it pejoratively as the "War Zone" by the late 1980s.

[19] Two sites in the International District are listed on the National Register of Historic Places: the National Humane Alliance Animal Fountain, which sits in front of the headquarters of Animal Humane New Mexico on Virginia St., and the Tewa Lodge on Central Ave. Another historic motel, the La Mesa Motel, is no longer standing.