Española hopes museum, convention center will breathe life into plaza

Dec. 28—For decades, there has been near-unanimous recognition of the rich potential of the Plaza de Española.

But unlike the bustling, centuries-old plazas found in neighboring cities to the north and south, Española's is not lined with mixed development and generally has been "lacking vitality" — according to city plans — since it was dedicated 32 years ago.

City officials point to a new plan to build a museum and convention center on the plaza as a sign of movement toward the ambitious undertaking of revitalizing the site into a vibrant city center.

In November, the Los Alamos County Council unanimously approved $560,000 for the city of Española for design and engineering work on a "cultural heritage museum," as well as $100,000 for maintenance on the Bond House, a nearby 19th century home that houses a city museum.

The funding is part of Los Alamos County's Regional Capital Projects Fund, a recent iteration of the county's program created to fund projects in surrounding communities that house large numbers of Los Alamos National Laboratory employees. Almost $3 million total was approved from the fund last month, with much of the money going to Rio Arriba County for solid waste operations and a planned nursing home facility.

A memorandum of agreement approved by both Los Alamos County and the city of Española in May ahead of the funding stated "[Los Alamos County] and the Los Alamos National Laboratory cannot succeed without a healthy regional economy."

When Española Mayor John Ramon Vigil presented the city's plans to the Los Alamos County Council on Nov. 15, he said the funding would be used for design and engineering of the planned "cultural heritage museum and convention center" to make the project "shovel-ready" for a city funding request from the state Legislature during the coming session.

The city hopes to use the Bond House restoration funds, he said, to match a National Park Service grant.

"We're trying to focus on addressing our day-to-day issues," Vigil told the council, "but also we're focused on trying to represent and highlight some positive attributes of who we are as a community."

Vigil pitched the project as adhering to longstanding city plans for the plaza, part of an effort to develop the area with housing and businesses while maintaining the original vision of an arts and cultural hub.

A preliminary site plan for the diamond-shaped plaza places the museum/convention center on the southeast side, across from the Misión y Convento.

An ambitious master plan for the plaza completed in 1992 proposed a Spanish cultural center and a Native American center on the site. Aspects of both will be represented in the planned facility, Vigil said, along with booth space for local artists and artisans to sell their works.

A convention center to accommodate around 200 people is planned for a later expansion of the cultural center.

Since the early 1990s, many of the ambitious plans for the plaza have not come to fruition, such as a planned railroad museum that would tell the history of the Chili Line railroad that once ran through the property.

In February, former Española Mayor Javier Sánchez visited the Los Alamos County Council to discuss preliminary plans for a proposed amphitheater on the west side of the plaza, a development that was also in line with the 1992 plan. The project was being considered for the Regional Capital Projects funding that went instead to the cultural center in November. The site Sánchez proposed for an amphitheater was marked for "town home development" on Vigil's November plans.

The city's 2003 comprehensive plan stated "virtually everyone continues to see the opportunities for the Plaza, even if no one has yet found a way to tap its potential," and in 2017, "invest robustly to upgrade the Plaza into a true centerpiece for community gathering." The latter plan stated the plaza was "underutilized and a bit disjointed" and recommended a renewed focus on a mixed-use center that could support retail, restaurants, offices and residential development.

Pedro Valdez, a former Española city councilor and longtime member of the Plaza Development Foundation, has been engaged in planning for the plaza since the late 1980s.

"A new mayor comes in and things change," Valdez said, "but John Ramon wants to continue what [former Mayor] Richard Lucero and the council at that time had in mind."

Valdez said he believes "things can happen" at the plaza and throughout the city's downtown district with cooperation between the city, the plaza foundation and developers.

Speaking to Los Alamos County Councilors, Vigil said he hopes to "finally create the culmination of the plaza that was discussed 30 years ago.

"We're much more than just a pass-through city," he said.