ALAMOSA — By late last week, the Alamosa Local Marketing District Board had not yet received any proposals for the Rio Grande Motorway building.

However, those interested in providing a new purpose for the building still have time to share their ideas with the marketing district. Earlier this summer the district extended the deadline for proposals to September 30.

Marketing board member Matt Abbey during the board’s most recent meeting said it was a good decision to extend the deadline, and he commended a recent community gathering for its brainstorming session on what the vacant building could be used for. “I think that’s exactly the kind of thing we want to have happen.”

He added that the way the request for proposals is worded, it is not necessarily the proposal coming in with the most financial backing that will be successful but rather the best proposal for the use of the building.

Alamosa Convention & Visitors Bureau Executive Director Kale Mortensen said he had not received any proposals yet but he had heard from interested parties who wanted to look at the building.

The board will consider proposals from for-profit, nonprofit, public and private entities, and although money is a consideration, it is not the only one. Those wishing to use the building could request it at little or no cost, Abbey explained. Uses of the building and how they fit into the marketing district’s mission are also important considerations.

Priorities for the marketing board include the use of the space for public events, the use of the space in a way that fits in with the neighboring depot complex, the potential for drawing visitors and tourists to Alamosa, financial offer and business plan, potential tax generation and job creation, and whether or not the proposal calls for redevelopment or demolition of the existing structure.

Located at Sixth (Highway 160) and Hunt, the building is in a strategic spot next to the railroad depot, the Welcome Center and the headquarters for economic development organizations such as the chamber, Small Business Development Center and SLV Development Resources Group.

The Request for Proposals can be found at https://www.alamosa.org/about-the-cvb-a-industry-partners.