Small Town News

Makeover required to lure new residents to Lordsburg, Hidalgo County

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With 220 United States Border Patrol agents stationed in Lordsburg, why is it that only 71 have chosen to make Hidalgo County their home? And that number is even a stretch, as only 71 have post office boxes.

The answer, according to Hidalgo County Economic Coordinator Tad Powers, is multi-faceted.

"It's no mystery that most of the agents are living in Silver City and Deming," Powers told Hidalgo County Commissioners at their regular meeting last week. "We are doing a terrible job keeping the money generated here, here."

The lack of housing is a major issue, but Powers said he has three developers very interested in creating housing here, two of which have already purchased land to do so.

Powers has conducted a survey among Border Patrol agents addressing housing issues. The survey was spurred by an inquiry from the Department of Homeland Security to the New Mexico Governor's Office asking about the housing crisis in Hidalgo County.

The results of the survey showed that agents would be more likely to move to Hidalgo County if several entities were in place, including a hospital, Wal-Mart, national grocery store chain and a mid range restaurant, such as a TGIFridays.

Powers said these things are unrealistic, but the next item on the list is feasible.

Cleaning up junk and debris in Lordsburg and its' outlying areas was ranked number five on the list.

"This is absolutely doable," Powers told Commissioners. "We need to create a pride of place in order to better our communities. This is not a problem just in Lordsburg, but throughout the entire county."

"Cleaning up the junk and debris should be our number one priority," agreed Commissioner Richard Chaires. "Once that is taken care of, a lot of things will begin to fall in place when it comes to the housing market." Chaires, who is also a real estate agent, pointed out that he's has seen time and time again where a buyer interested in a particular home will walk away because they are not happy with the neighborhood.

Although the survey was not conclusive, Powers said it appears that developers should be focusing on the single agents.

The number one fast food restaurant desired by Border Patrol agents was Wendy's, followed by Burger King and Sonic. Powers said he will also pass this information on to prospective developers.

The United States Border Patrol has let out bids on an all-new station that will be built west of Lordsburg off of Exit 20. The number of agents at the Lordsburg station is expected to balloon to 350 with the completion of the new station, further increasing the need for adequate housing.



Copyright 2009 Hidalgo County Herald, Lordsburg, New Mexico. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from SmallTownPapers, Inc.

© 2009 Hidalgo County Herald Lordsburg, New Mexico. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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