The New Mexico Legislature’s capital-outlays package includes $2 million for Albuquerque’s proposed Route 66 Visitors Center and another $50,000 for Route 66 signage in the city.
KRQE-TV in Albuquerque listed more than 100 projects approved by the Legislature and governor, including the two Route 66 items.
The Route 66 Visitors Center on Nine Mile Hill on Albuquerque’s west side will cost between $6 million and $8 million.
In April, Bernalillo County chose the West Central Community Development Group to operate and manage the facility. Mullen Heller Architecture will design the center, with a final planned mockup by the end of this year.
Construction will occur in phases, but no completion date is certain, although earlier reports stated 2020.
However, with the state covering one-third to one-quarter of the cost, that should help expedite the project.
The city of Albuquerque purchased the land in December 2016, with an original estimated construction cost of $3.4 million. The cost rose as planners became more ambitious with the project, wanting it to be a “destination” site.
The facility will contain offices, community meeting and exhibit space, including multimedia space, and a potential restaurant and taproom. The facility will also provide outdoor space for exhibits, meetings, and gatherings. A “neon graveyard” for orphaned Route 66 signs also is planned.
Because the state was sitting on a $2 billion surplus and its revenues were booming because of oil and gas revenues in the south side of the state, lawmakers approved $900 million in capital-outlays projects, which was a record.
(Artist’s rendering of the proposed Route 66 visitors center in Albuquerque via Bernalillo County)