REQUESTING THE CONTINUED COOPERATION OF THE STATE HIGHWAY AND TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT IN THE PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE LAS CRUCES BYPASS.

WHEREAS, Las Cruces has experienced a tremendous amount of growth over the past years, with the city's population growing during the 1980s at a rate of thirty-seven and eight-tenths percent, from forty-five thousand eighty-six to sixty-two thousand one hundred twenty-six, and Dona Ana county has grown at an even faster rate of forty and six-tenths percent, from ninety-six thousand three hundred forty to one hundred thirty-five thousand five hundred ten; and

WHEREAS, since 1990, the population has continued to increase at a substantial rate of more than twenty percent; and

WHEREAS, this explosive growth has had a major impact on local facilities, including the overall transportation system, and alternate reliever routes and capacity enhancements for various thoroughfares have been analyzed, including improvements to United States highway 70; and

WHEREAS, United States highway 70 serves as the principal arterial east from Las Cruces to White Sands missile range, Alamogordo and Ruidoso and west to interstate 10 for access to Deming, Lordsburg and Tucson; and

WHEREAS, population growth experienced within the area has had a direct correlation with the level of traffic, with currently twenty-nine thousand seven hundred thirty-five vehicles per day traveling along the western segment of the highway, an increase of ten thousand vehicles per day within the interstate 25-United States highway 70 interchange area; and

WHEREAS, the Las Cruces metropolitan planning organization received assistance from the state legislature to contract for consultant services to determine alternate reliever routes and capacity enhancements for United States highway 70; and

WHEREAS, the study determined that the primary emphasis for transportation improvements should be to expand the capacity of the existing United States highway 70 funding for the United States highway 70 frontage roads and related improvements which have been allocated at a level of ninety-two million dollars ($92,000,000) in state and federal money; and

WHEREAS, the continuing growth of the area prevents the improvements to United States highway 70 from being a permanent fix; and

WHEREAS, the New Mexico state land office has in excess of ten thousand acres of land south of United States highway 70 and east of interstate 25 in Las Cruces that are primed for future urban development and, with private land in the area, this undeveloped land provides significant opportunity for early planning to meet the continuing growth of southern New Mexico; and

WHEREAS, the city of Las Cruces has worked with the United States bureau of land management and the state land office in an effort to begin the process of setting aside corridors for development of future arterials and a bypass that would connect United States highway 70 from a point near Organ to interstate 10 south of the interstates 25 and 10 interchange, and approximately two miles of the estimated sixteen and one-half miles of this route have been set aside; and

WHEREAS, the city continues to work with the bureau of land management and the state land office in an effort to firm up the final route alignment and establish a dedicated right of way for the southern bypass from United States highway 70 to interstate 10; and

WHEREAS, through continued planning and early right-of-way acquisition, Las Cruces, Dona Ana county and the state will be able to provide a logical continuation of the overall transportation network in southern New Mexico at the lowest possible cost;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the state highway and transportation department, the state land office, the United States bureau of land management, the city of Las Cruces and Dona Ana county be requested to continue their cooperation and development of a Las Cruces bypass; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the secretary of highway and transportation, the commissioner of public lands, the state director of the bureau of land management, the mayor of Las Cruces and the Dona Ana board of county commissioners.