A two-story structure that was built more than a century ago in downtown Raton, New Mexico, is now being listed for sale. Located at 140 S. 2nd Street, the DiLisio Building dates to World War I, and is classified as a Class B structure. The building was built by Italian immigrant and local businessman Joseph DiLisio and for seven decades housed a department store in his name, before becoming the home of the International State Bank. In the 1958 book Four Centuries of Italian American History, DiLisio, who in his youth was also a musician and shoemaker, is described as “one of the most prominent Italians in the whole state of New Mexico,” as well as the “prototype of the American self-made man.” Listed with the National Register of Historic Places, the structure, designed in what is known as the Decorative Brick Commercial style, features multiple stained glass transom windows, a working elevator, skylights, and the original hardwood floors. Entrance to the building at the southeast corner is framed by three Doric columns. The second floor features abundant office space, while a vault once used for the bank still exists in the basement. Asking price for the structure, which is topped with a wire sign spelling out “DiLisio’s,” is $550,000. The property is being listed by the realty firm of Home Associates, Incorporated of Raton. By Garry Boulard
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Design work for the building of a new College of Engineering structure on the campus of New Mexico State University may launch later this spring. Last fall voters across the state approved three general obligation bonds totaling nearly $260 million for the construction of senior centers, libraries, and a variety of facilities on the campuses of New Mexico’s colleges and universities. General Obligation Bond 3, which was approved with more than 60% of the vote, provided almost $216 million for public and tribal colleges and universities work. Of that amount, exactly $22.5 million was slated for the building of a new engineering facility on NMSU’s main campus in Las Cruces. The idea behind the engineering project, according to a NMSU press release issued last fall, is to “expand student-centric and experiential hands-on learning.” More specifically, the new building will “foster research opportunities through multi-disciplinary lab space for student projects and faculty collaboration.” A portion of the $22.5 million will also be used to demolish the Thomas and Brown Hall, which is located at 1305 Frenger Street. According to a NMSU spokesperson, the general obligation bonds have not yet been sold. But once that process is completed, design work on College of Engineering is expected to get underway. The voter-approved Bond 3 is also providing $13.5 million for the renovation of the Health and Social Services Building at NMSU, as well as the O’Donnell Hall, located at 1220 Stewart Street in the middle of the campus. Another $2 million is dedicated to the modernization and expansion of the school’s Nursing Skills and Simulation Center. By Garry Boulard A move is underway to push for speeding up of the permitting process for federal energy infrastructure projects. Speaking before an event sponsored by the Washington Post, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm remarked that an accelerated permitting can be done without negatively impacting the National Environmental Policy Act, “and the other permitting rules that protect the environment.” Granholm further explained that the goal of the permitting reform effort is to reduce delays and legal conflicts stemming from federal construction project policies. “We do not want bureaucracy and the bureaucratic red tape underbrush to slow the need for us to secure energy,” the Energy Secretary continued, noting a determination to “make sure that the projects that are existing are retrofitted and buttoned down, especially if they’re fossil infrastructure, so that we don’t have methane leaks.” A bill is currently under review in the House of Representatives calling for permitting reform, although that legislation has to date not received the official backing of the Biden Administration. Either way, said Granholm, “There needs to be much quicker permitting of all kinds of energy infrastructure, but particularly energy infrastructure that will lead us with alacrity to the goals of net zero by 2050.” By Garry Boulard A big box two-story retail structure just to the east of downtown Chandler, Arizona is now on the market with an asking price of $7.6 million. Located at 845 N. 54th Street in the Chandler Pavilions’ regional shopping center, the building is in a rapidly growing section of a rapidly growing city, an area dotted with a multitude of retail and restaurant operations opened in the last two decades. The just under 33,500 square foot structure was for several years the home to the popular children’s amusement center Bounce-A-Rama, which closed its doors in 2021. Before that, it served as an outlet for the United Electronics retail chain. Built in 1980, the structure, which is currently vacant, is listed as a Class A building and underwent a renovation in 2002. The property is being listed with the Scottsdale offices of Orion Investment Real Estate. By Garry Boulard Just weeks after the site for a proposed multi-purpose arena was rejected, members of the El Paso City Council have voted to commit additional funds to the search for a new location. In the fall of 2016, the council gave its approval to build the officially named Multi-Purpose Cultural and Performing Arts Center near Duranguito. That decision prompted a series of lawsuits on the part of community activists and preservationists opposing any move to demolish that historic section of the city. In January a majority of the council voted to abandon the site, noting in particular not just the long-standing opposition to the project but the millions of dollars in legal fees associated with putting the arena in Duranguito. Now the council has tasked the San Francisco-based architectural and planning firm Gensler with reviewing other sites for the project, allotting $25,000 for the effort. The firm has to date received up to $767,000 from El Paso for a draft feasibility study pertaining only to the Duranguito site. Now, although Gensler may survey a handful of new sites, it is understood that the firm will ultimately recommend just one location. In a report submitted to the city earlier this year, Gensler listed the pros and cons associated with a 12,000-seat arena that would cost $386 million to build; an 8,000-seat indoor and outdoor facility with a $113 million price tag; and an 8,000-seat arena, also with indoor and outdoor seating, at a cost of $183 million. Despite the Duranguito controversy, a recent online poll conducted by the City of El Paso indicated that 61% of respondents supported the general idea of building a new arena in the city. By Garry Boulard Up to $2.5 billion in federal funds are being made available for the construction of electric vehicle charging stations across the country. The Department of Transportation has announced that what is being called the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure Discretionary Grant Program has as its goal the building of an anticipated network of around half a million new charging stations by the year 2030. In making the funding available, said Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in a statement: “We are taking another big step forward in creating an electric vehicle future that is convenient, affordable, reliable, and accessible to all Americans.” According to a press release issued by the DOT, the new stations may go up anywhere, “along designated highways, interstates, and major roadways.” Notes the publication Utility Drive: the grants may also support the construction “parking facilities at public buildings, public schools, and public parks, or in publicly accessible parking facilities owned or managed by a private entity.” In the last two years, the DOT has provided up to $700 million in funding for the construction of electric vehicle charging stations. That funding has been available for use by cities, counties, local governments, and Tribal Nations. Also eligible: Special purpose districts or public authorities with a transportation function, including port authorities. Applications for the charging and fueling infrastructure grant program have a submission deadline of May 30 and can be sent via the website Grants.gov. By Garry Boulard Additional Federal Funding Secured to Help Spur Completion of Pivotal Ute Reservoir Water Project3/21/2023 A long-developing water project in eastern New Mexico is in line to receive some $89.5 million in funding coming out of Washington. The Eastern New Mexico Rural Water Project is made up of 120 miles of pipeline, as well as three pump stations. Focus of the project: extending water pipeline infrastructure from the Ute Reservoir to a handful of communities running along the Texas state line. The pipeline, upon completion, will transport potable water to the towns of Texico, Portales, and Elida. That water is intended for commercial, industrial, and municipal use. A section running from the reservoir to the city of Clovis, as well as the Cannon Air Force Base, has already been completed. Now the United States Bureau of Reclamation has given official notice to the Eastern New Mexico Water Utility Authority of fiscal year 2023 funding to advance construction of the project. The new funding comes on top of the $177.4 million in federal support that was secured last year. Clovis Mayor Mike Morris, in comments reported in the Eastern New Mexico News, said the latest federal funding will “keep the project on schedule for completion within the end of the decade.” For years in the planning stage, the project received federal authorization in 2009. By Garry Boulard To upgrade two always busy ports of entry, the town of San Luis, Arizona, which sits on the U.S./Mexico border, is seeking up to $25 million in funding out of Washington. The funding request has been made to the Department of Transportation and is specifically asking for what is called a Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity grant. Such grants are folded into the big Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which was passed in late 2021, and provides some $7.5 billion in funding to be dispersed to local infrastructure projects. If secured, the grant funding would pay for the upgrading of a 5-mile stretch along Cesar Chavez Boulevard. That roadway runs in an east-to-west direction and connects the San Luis I International Port of Entry with the San Luis II Commercial Port of Entry. In a letter sent earlier this year to Transportation Department Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Arizona Senators Mark Kelly and Krysten Sinema noted that the Cesar Chavez project will see the building of a “four-lane divided roadway that will include a shared-use path, sidewalks, signalized pedestrian crossing, street lighting, bus bays, transit stops and shelters.” City officials have long argued that upgrading Cesar Chavez Boulevard will also allow for a steadier flow of traffic, while also helping to reduce vehicular emissions and pollution in the area. The original San Luis Port of Entry was completed during the Great Depression. The $42 million San Luis II Commercial Port of Entry was opened in November of 2010. Crossings at the ports of entry are in excess of 2.3 million people annually. By Garry Boulard A new rule proposed by the federal Department of Energy governing energy conservation standards for distribution transformers is sparking opposition among the nation’s home builders. The Energy Department announced the proposed standards at the end of last year, with Jennifer Granholm, Secretary of Energy, remarking in a statement that “efficient distribution transformers enhance the resilience of our nation’s energy grid and make it possible to deliver affordable electrical power to consumers in every corner of America.” The Energy Department has estimated that if the new standards are finalized, CO2 emissions could be reduced by 340 million metric tons over a span of the next three decades. The Department has described that reduction as something akin to doing away with the annual emissions of up to 90 coal-fired power plants. But industry experts have said that the new standards would also require manufacturers to change over to a different type of steel that would add to the current 16-month order waiting period. Home builders have since met with the Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy to voice their opposition to the new standards. In that conference, Rob Myers, former president of the National Association of Home Builders, remarked: “I am very concerned that these new rules will make the supply issues we have with transformers even worse. We can’t get the transformers we need now.” In a press release, the NAHB has declared that the new standards would “add months to a lengthy order cycle that already takes more than 16 months to produce and deploy new transformers.” The Energy Department has said that it is soliciting comments from builders on the proposed standards change, with a deadline of March 27. By Garry Boulard One of the remaining classic historic buildings of downtown Pueblo is being listed for sale for just under $1.9 million. With an address stretching from 401 to 411 N. Main Street, the structure, known as the Colorado Building, measures nearly 97,000 square feet and includes an elegantly designed theater. The theater was called the Colorado Theater and, at construction, had a seating capacity of more than 1,000. The structure also features a terra cotta frieze just below its cornice. Built in 1925 for the Southern Colorado Investment Company, the four-story Art Deco-styled building, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, includes two elevators, and rooms with a ceiling height of 14 feet. The property is listed with the Denver-based Unique Properties. By Garry Boulard |
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