Los Lunas to request property transfer for future economic development

LOS LUNAS — The village of Los Lunas is requesting a large property transfer from the state for what is known locally as The Grasslands, which holds potential for future economic development.

“The Grasslands is 286 acres of under-utilized and idle land that is owned by the state of New Mexico General Services Department, and it is right in the heart of our growing industrial area,” said Los Lunas senior economic developer Victoria Archuleta at the Jan. 30 village council meeting.

The Grasslands currently resides in an unincorporated area of the county, and is bordered by the Los Lunas Meta Data Center on the west end of Los Lunas. To the north of the property is the Isleta Pueblo and to the east is I-25.

Archuleta said as far as she is aware, the state does not have any plans for developing the property, and now would be a good time for the village to try and take ownership of it.

“I realized because this is not in the control of the village of Los Lunas, we do not qualify for any state funding to actually develop or even attempt to develop this land,” Archuleta said. “We have 2,200 acres of available industrial land, but it’s all privately-owned land.

“We have no control of any other specifically village-owned land near the industrial area. So that was kind of upsetting when all of these millions of dollars of state funding were available for locally-owned business parks, and we don’t have one.”

Archuleta then presented a conceptual plan for a potential business park on The Grasslands. The conceptual plan is based on an existing plan created in 2019 for the property, she said, but further pursuit of the idea was put on hold due to the pandemic.

“It includes recreational park space, family-friendly amenities and the original conceptual plan does include about 50 to 55 acres for what would be a convention center and mixed-use space,” said Archuleta.

With the revival of funds from the state for economic development and site readiness, and to help municipalities prepare and be proactive in building out utilities to attract new companies, I think now is a really opportune moment for us to try and secure The Grasslands into our control so we can move forward in developing our own Los Lunas business park in our industrial zone,” she told the council and mayor at the meeting.

Archuleta shared how roadway extensions are also built into the conceptual plan, as traffic congestion remains a concern within the rapidly-growing community.

“While we’re working towards breaking ground on the second interchange, we already know that there’s a need for a potential third interchange on the north side of Los Lunas, along our border with Isleta Pueblo,” said Archuleta. “Again, this is all conceptual and what could be, but I think the key goal is to get that 286 acres in our control, so that we could move forward with extended roadways and improved connections on the north side of Los Lunas.”

Potential site for New Mexico State Fair

Archuleta then noted that should the land be secured, it could potentially serve as a site for the New Mexico State Fair.

“Back in December, the governor and folks at the city of Albuquerque did say that the future of the state fair is uncertain. While I don’t anticipate it will move in the next five to 10 years, they have said that they want to develop affordable housing in Expo New Mexico’s current home,” she said.

The state fair currently occupies 230 acres at Expo New Mexico, and The Grasslands encompasses 286 acres, allowing for plenty of space should that land be chosen, but Archuleta emphasized that is a big “what if” as it currently stands.

“If we begin to develop our own convention center, event space and stadium, that could be ours to use and manage and rent all year round and, then in some future, also maybe rent that out to the state fair for two weeks,” she said.

There are many stakeholders and agencies aware and supportive of the village’s intent to request the land, said Archuleta, including local legislators, which is why she is seeking the council’s approval of resolution to pursue the transfer.

“Regardless of what happens to the state fair, we do need to secure this land so we can continue development in our industrial area,” she said. “Representative Brian Baca has agreed to carry a house resolution for us during this legislative session, but we do need our local resolution first.”

The Valencia County Commission and county manager are also supportive of the village working to secure the grasslands and annexing it into the village of Los Lunas, said Archuleta.

“The location is perfect for everything you talked about, either a business park or something in the recreation arena, so I’m supportive of it,” said Los Lunas Village Councilor Gino Romero.

“As a village, amazing things are happening around here,” said Los Lunas Village Councilor James Runyon. “There’s so much potential in this area, and we’ve already got a potential plan. I think that will be very influential, but we’ll see.”

All councilors then unanimously voted in approval of the resolution.

Language from the resolution states, “The location and size of the property additionally provides an ideal location for the New Mexico State Fair, an opportunity that the village of Los Lunas is highly motivated to pursue considering the significant economic benefits that this development would afford to the village and the larger region.”

The resolution also reads, in part, “the village of Los Lunas further recognizes the significant potential of the property as a publicly-owned industrial park, which would create an opportunity to support the State of New Mexico’s site readiness goals and drive economic growth, create jobs and enhance the quality of life for residents of the village of Los Lunas, Valencia County and the surrounding region.”