Ruidoso Has Big Plans for White Mountain Recreational Complex

RUIDOSO, NM – April 8, 2021– During 2019, the Village of Ruidoso took on the rigorous task of developing a Comprehensive Plan with input from every department as well as from many businesses and individuals from throughout the community. Out of this exercise, each department was able to develop a strategic plan based on the feedback and ideas that came out of this series of meetings and workshops. For the Parks & Recreation Department, one of the biggest items that were discussed during this exercise was the future of the White Mountain Recreational Complex, and several conceptual plans were presented for athletic field expansions and adding more softball and baseball fields for the community to use.

“In 2020, we took several steps to help make the vision of expanding the White Mountain Recreation Complex a reality,” said Lynn Crawford, Mayor of Ruidoso. “We acquired 5.5 acres of adjacent property for the purpose of adding more open space and more athletic fields to accommodate the tournaments that are so important to our local economy. We also reached out to the community and did a survey to see what they wanted us to do with the golf course and the surrounding areas.”

Based on the outcome of the survey, in November of 2020, the Village Council voted to adopt a Resolution to support the further acquisition of adjacent acreage for open space and athletic fields. The Village is currently in the final stages of acquiring an additional 9.5 acres of adjacent land for the project.

“Through this process, we could potentially add several ballfields to our local facility inventory,” said Rodney Griego, Director of Parks & Recreation. “This would give us more fields to accommodate the community needs and allows us to build upon the three existing fields at the Eagle Creek Sports Complex which will remain in play for local leagues and tournaments.”

The Village spent a total of $1.5 Million in local funds to acquire the properties. Local funds will also be used to fund the Master Plan. Once that is completed, it is anticipated that a combination of local funds, grant monies, and possible school district funding will be needed to complete the final design. A major component of the project is a public engagement campaign designed to maximize the opportunity for public input and allow for a constant distribution of information to the community about the progress of the project. 

The project will begin within the next few months as Village personnel is able to clarify the scope and clearly identify the project stakeholders. A project dashboard will be available for residents to follow at Ruidoso-NM.gov.