ALAMOSA — The Alamosa city council and a local developer have failed to reach a mutually agreed-upon timeline for construction of an RV park to be located on Alamosa Ranch, resulting in the whole deal coming to an end this week when council members were informed that the project was not moving forward.

The decision to pass was based on timing.

Manish Patel, the Alamosa businessman who wanted to purchase the 50-acre parcel of city-owned land, had presented a clear vision for the RV park project, a vision ultimately endorsed by the city council who acknowledged the economic benefits to Alamosa once the park was up and running. 

However, as negotiations advanced, it became evident the two parties had very different ideas on what would be a suitable timeline, as the possibility emerged of two or three years or even longer passing before ground was broken.

Alamosa City Manager, Heather Brooks, summed up the council’s concerns. “The value that the project would bring to the community needs to be realized faster. The council needed to have a clear idea of when the project would be started before agreeing to the sale. Since that timeframe couldn’t be agreed upon, the City felt it couldn’t go forward.” 

The decision also brought to an end a separate but related discussion the City was having with Alamosa businessman Arnold Salazar. Those discussions were dependent upon the successful sale of the land.

In what Brooks described as a “swap”, Salazar would have granted ownership to the city of Alamosa property he owns on Sixth Street in exchange for the city granting ownership to Salazar of approximately 23 acres of Ranch property immediately adjacent to the fifty acres in question.

Brooks says the city is still open to selling the property, with the caveat that any sale would be dependent upon the ability of a developer to prove a project would align with the city’s Master Plan for Alamosa Ranch, bring clear economic benefits to the community and have a reasonably short date when they could begin construction. “Open space has value,” she says. “The city is not going to sell the property to just anyone.”

Willingness to consider other offers is also not open-ended. “If someone approaches the city with a serious proposal in the next months, we can look at what they’re proposing. But if it’s longer than that -- like, a year or so – we’ll have to go through the whole public bid process again.”

Alamosa Ranch, formerly known as North Thomas Ranch, was purchased by the city in 1997. Comprised of more than 1300 acres of land, 1018 of which are currently leased by a local cattle rancher for grazing livestock and hay production. Other acreage is used for wildlife viewing, trails, river put-in/take-out, fishing, limited parking and a 27-hole disc golf course.

Alamosa Ranch is also the site of the historic Maddux Dairy which includes a dairy barn, a nearby hot springs artesian well and a 19th-century stagecoach stop, known as Wayside, that is one of the oldest standing structures in the city.

The ranch borders the Cattails Golf Course on three sides and is bisected along its western border by the Rio Grande, including a riparian border that provides significant, valuable habitat with abundant food, water, nesting and denning sites for wildlife. Although it’s not officially part of Alamosa Ranch, city-owned Blanca Vista Park is, essentially, part of the area and includes a 35-acre pond.

Since purchasing the property, the city of Alamosa has developed trails, the Oxbow Recreation Area and Blanca Vista Park. The city’s comprehensive plan for Alamosa Ranch (Microsoft Word - Ranch Master Plan Dec_5_2018 (cityofalamosa.org) is available for viewing on the city of Alamosa’s website.