Las Cruces councilors outline nearly $20 million in capital outlay requests. Here are the priority projects.

Michael McDevitt, Las Cruces Sun-News
·2 min read
Vehicles drive on Spruce Avenue at the intersection of Telshor Boulevard on Tuesday, Nov. 16, 2021. The city will be asking the state legislature to fund a $1.5 million project to reconstruct the intersection.
Vehicles drive on Spruce Avenue at the intersection of Telshor Boulevard on Tuesday, Nov. 16, 2021. The city will be asking the state legislature to fund a $1.5 million project to reconstruct the intersection.

LAS CRUCES - The city will ask for the state to fund nearly $20 million in small infrastructure improvements and other capital requests during the 2022 legislative session.

The Las Cruces City Council unanimously approved a list of 10 capital outlay funding priorities for the session during its Nov. 15 meeting. The 30-day session begins in January in Santa Fe.

The city is asking the state to fund a list of projects that totals $19.85 million. At an Oct. 25 council work session, Larry Horan, the city’s lobbyist, said that while the state may have more capital funding available to give out this upcoming session, it’s best to keep the request list limited to the city’s top priorities.

Here are the capital outlay requests passed by the council Monday.

  • $4.6 million to complete septic tank replacements in Hacienda Acres and Brittany Estates

  • $7 million to complete streets and drainage improvements on the East Mesa

  • $1.5 million to complete changes to the intersection of Telshor Boulevard and Spruce Avenue, including signal improvements, flood infrastructure and utilities

  • $180,000 for police equipment

  • $750,000 for police building improvements

  • $750,000 for fire department equipment

  • $840,000 for fire station improvements

  • $2 million to improve the city skate park and the design and construction of a new park

  • $2 million to build a parking area at Las Cruces Veterans Memorial Park

  • $230,000 for improvements, including energy efficiency measures, to the Juvenile Citation building in Las Cruces

Along with those requests, the city is expected to separately advocate for the state to invest in five large regional projects costing tens of millions of dollars each. More money will be available this year, Horan said, due to the governor having access to American Rescue Plan Act capital funds and excess revenues.

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The city has indicated the large projects will include the creation of a truck bypass road from the Santa Teresa Port of Entry to the Las Cruces industrial park, the addition of a solar farm to the industrial park, improvements to prepare the Las Cruces International Airport for commercial passenger service, a downtown public safety complex and a large-scale replacement or refurbishment of city water lines and water tanks.

Michael McDevitt is a city and county government reporter for the Sun-News. He can be reached at 575-202-3205, mmcdevitt@lcsun-news.com or @MikeMcDTweets on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: Las Cruces councilors outline $20 million in capital outlay requests