New Mexico’s worst boondoggles (part 2)

A few weeks ago we released our list of the top 5 worst boondoggles in New Mexico. These are physical government projects (so not programs). We promised a second list to round out our top 10 list, so here we go.

6. As Gov. Bill Richardson had big-spending tastes. One of his many wasteful spending initiatives was the purchase of a Super Computer  known as “Encanto.” The computer cost New Mexicans $20 million and was quickly deemed obsolete. Larry Barker of KRQE 13 did a full investigation on the computer. The Rio Grande Foundation criticized the purchase at the time.  Ultimately, there is not reason for the State of New Mexico to own a “supercomputer” and it is no surprise this was a boondoggle.

7. $2.4 million Oñate visitors center: Built during the 1993-1994 time period in the Northern New Mexico hamlet of Alcalde, this Center was supposed to honor the legacy of Spanish Conquistador, Captain Juan de Oñate. It never achieved its goal and is now the home of the Northern Rio Grande National Heritage Center. It is one of many such “monuments” to New Mexico’s failed capital outlay “process.”

8. Berna Facio Professional Development Center is a facility owned and managed by Albuquerque Public Schools. It cost approximately $21 million to develop and construct. Opened in 2019, the facility features a large central meeting space for 500 people flanked by nine break-out rooms, a commissary, courtyard, and wide, flexible concourses serving as galleries and gathering spaces. The District continues to lose student population and desperately needs to downsize its footprint. 

9. The total taxpayer cost for Albuquerque’s Route 66 Visitor Center on West Central has grown to approximately $13 million to $14 million. The creation of this facility was political from day 1. New Mexico and Albuquerque have a tendency to spend big on public facilities that have a short shelf life due to the cost of staffing and maintaining them. We’ll see what happens with the Route 66 Visitor Center.

10. Geothermal power is a hot topic in New Mexico. A $43 million geothermal plant by a company called Cyrc Energy costs ratepayers lots of money according to a detailed Searchlight NM article.  The facility which sold its electricity to Public Service Company of New Mexico has proven to be a costly boondoggle with its own environmental issues.