Posts Tagged ‘New Mexico Department of Transportation’

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.”

The City of Las Cruces Public Works Department and URS Corporation will hold a public meeting for the Jackrabbit Interchange (I-10/US 70) Study Project on Thursday, December 10, 2009 from 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. at the Picacho Middle School, W. Picacho and N. Motel Blvd.

Study Team members will provide project information and results of the Phase A investigations.  There will be an opportunity to view proposed alternatives and speak with team members during the open house from 6:30-7:00 p.m.  A presentation on the project will be given at 7:00 p.m., followed by questions and comments.

Background

A study is being conducted of the I-10 / US70 interchange (Interchange No. 135, commonly referred to as the “Jackrabbit” Interchange) to investigate and identify recommended geometric and operational improvements, and to accommodate future traffic growth and the planned High Mesa Road.

The origin of this study is based on recent and ongoing growth experienced in and around the City; evolving land development activity; and pending changes in the regional transportation network. Separate initiatives are presently underway to evaluate improvements to other segments of I-10 serving the City, dispose of large tracts of BLM land destined for new development, and advance planning for High Mesa Road which will access I-10 at or near the Jackrabbit interchange location. Expansion of the I-10 Industrial Park and the Las Cruces International Airport are also anticipated. The desire of the City of Las Cruces, the Las Cruces MPO, Dona Ana County, and the New Mexico Department of Transportation to respond to and plan for the effects of these influences creates the need for this study.

If you require special accommodations please contact Denise Weston at Parametrix by calling (575) 522-7400 or by emailing dweston@parametrix.com.