Archive for December, 2009

Private sector funding from the businesses and organizations throughout the New Mexico Borderplex is a mainstay of MVEDA’s ability to continue in its mission of creating new employment opportunities for area residents. MVEDA is proud to announce four new Partners:  Jaynes Corporation; Bohannan Huston, Inc.; The Dwyer Law Firm, LLC; and the Arid Group, LLC.

The Jaynes Corporation is the largest general contractor in New Mexico. Their headquarters are in Albuquerque and they have offices in Farmington, Durango, Colorado, Las Vegas, Nevada, and San Diego, California. They are presently constructing the City of Las Cruces Administration Building, the Las Cruces Convention Center and the Las Cruces Regional Recreation and Aquatics Center.  Rick Marquardt is the President and COO.

Bohannan Huston, Inc. is a full service engineering firm headquartered in Albuquerque. They have offices here in Las Cruces as well as Dallas, Texas and Denver, Colorado. Their Las Cruces office is managed by Rob Richardson, Senior Vice President and Managing Principal. Rob serves on the Board of Directors of the Greater Las Cruces Chamber of Commerce and is the Chair of Leadership Las Cruces.

The Dwyer Law Firm is a new downtown business in Las Cruces specializing in tax law. Licensed to practice law in New Mexico, Joshua Dwyer is a member of the Taxation and Business Law Sections of the State Bar of New Mexico as well as a member of the American Bar Association.

The Arid Group, LLC, located in Las Cruces, is an agricultural research company specializing in water supply and irrigation systems.  Matthew H. Stong is the managing partner.

MVEDA’s Partners are linked from MVEDA’s website.

The January meeting of the MVEDA Business on the Border Forum will be held on Tuesday, January 5, 2010 from 11:30 AM until 1:00 PM at the Day’s Inn Columbus Conference Center, 901 Avenida de Mesilla.  The meeting will begin with a hot entree buffet, followed by an update by MVEDA staff.

Gary Gomes, President of the High Tech Consortium of Southern New Mexico (HTC), will be the featured speaker.  The High Tech Consortium of Southern New Mexico is a grass roots non-profit organization established in 2003 to create a strong high tech business climate in Southern New Mexico and further the quality of life of our community.

The High Tech Consortium’s vision is to make New Mexico a regional technology leader and a national center for technical excellence. The organization’s goals are to:

• Promote a business atmosphere conducive to growing the high-tech sector in Southern New Mexico.
• Be the regional voice representing and advocating the political and business related interests of the technology sector.
• Establish partnerships that promote high-tech industries in Southern New Mexico.
• Support the development and retention of a qualified high-tech workforce in the region.
• Actively foster an environment that produces excellence in education at all levels.
• Support endeavors that enrich the quality of life in the region.

HTC’s areas of focus are:

• Broadband
• Commercial Space
• Digital Media
• Homeland Security
• Renewable Energy

Luncheon cost is $15.00 per person, payable by cash, check or major credit card. The meeting is open to the public and reservations are not required

Release Courtesy of NMSU Communications & Marketing Services

Photo Courtesy of NMSU

Bulldozers are rolling through a chunk of desert owned by New Mexico State University. The heavy equipment is building a new road and laying utilities to better connect NMSU’s Arrowhead Business and Research Park with the rest of campus. The project is also expected to help attract new investments, new clients and eventually thousands of high-paying jobs to the park.

The road will extend south for approximately one mile from the intersection of Payne and Wells streets to Sam Steel Way, which runs parallel to Interstate 10. Construction is scheduled to be complete in March 2010.

The project represents nearly $2 million in investments, including a $900,000 grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration. Other money for the project came from the state of New Mexico, local road funds, the New Mexico Department of Transportation and NMSU.

“The road will really open up the whole park,” said Kevin Boberg, Arrowhead Center’s CEO. “We can’t do any other development without the utility backbone the road delivers.”

The business and research park is located on the south end of NMSU’s Las Cruces campus between Interstates 10 and 25. The first 11 acres of the 257-acre park are already in development. The most recently completed building, Spaceplex 2, is home to General Dynamics and opened last summer.  The next building scheduled for construction will be nearly 8,000 square feet and be broken into smaller, 1,700-square-foot pads for businesses intending to establish themselves before jumping into larger spaces.

Other plans for the research park include working with the Las Cruces Public School District to construct an early college high school where high school students could take college-level courses for credit.

“Without the infrastructure, we wouldn’t be in a position to take advantage of these opportunities,” said Vickie Galindo, Arrowhead Center’s director of workforce innovation and business development. “We would not have been able to make this happen without the EDA and help from New Mexico Secretary of Economic Development Fred Mondragon.”

Zoe Richmond, Union Pacific’s Director Public Affairs, Arizona & New Mexico Corporate Relations, sponsored a breakfast for MVEDA Partners and updated them on the status of the new terminal planned for Strauss (Santa Teresa), New Mexico. The $150M terminal expansion was announced by Union Pacific CEO Jim Young and New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson in October, 2006.

Zoe Richmond

Richmond’s presentation noted that Union Pacific has invested more that $1 billion in projects along the Sunset Corridor which runs from Los Angeles through El Paso. She pointed out that Union Pacific now owns 2,219 acres of land surrounding the Strauss terminal location. The land was acquired by trading an $11 million ranch in central New Mexico to the State Land Office. The timeline for the start of construction has been delayed due to the economic downturn.

Article Courtesy of the Las Cruces Bulletin

Denten Park

MountainView Regional Medical Center announced last week that health care executive Denten Park has been appointed as its chief executive officer. Park has served as the hospital’s chief operating officer since June 2008.

“It’s been a pleasure to serve this community, medical staff and hospital staff over the past 18 months,” Park said in a statement. “We have some of the finest physicians and employees in Las Cruces, and I welcome the opportunity to work with them to continue the success and outstanding care they provide patients at MountainView.”

On Jan. 14, after almost two years at MountainView, then-CEO Randall Hempling quit to take a position as CEO of Shasta Regional Medical Center in Redding, Calif. Subsequently, Carol Schmoyer of Western Medical Center in Bullhead City, Ariz., served as the hospital’s interim CEO. Schmoyer was replaced by veteran health care executive Jim Geist, who recently stepped down.

“We’re very supportive of Denten, and are looking forward to the advantages of his strengths and history with our hospital and community,” said Dr. Ismael Lopez, chairman of the hospital’s board of trustees, in a statement.

Prior to his arrival in Las Cruces, Park was associate CEO at Payson Regional Medical Center in Payson, Ariz., and interim CEO at Mountain West Medical Center in Tooele, Utah. He served as the administrator of both a long-term care facility and a center for developmentally disabled in Evanston, Wyo. He also has a background in private retail business.

“We’re delighted,” said Dr. Denise Leonardi, chief of medical staff at MountainView. “Denten brings continuity and a fresh perspective.”

Park has a bachelor’s of arts degree and master’s degree in business administration from New Mexico State University.