The people of Las Cruces and surrounding communities have “a deep pride and a shared ownership” in the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument, and its cultural and economic impacts for the region have far exceeded all expectations, according to U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., as hundreds of stakeholders, elected officials, and outdoor enthusiasts gathered at the Las Cruces Convention Centre on May 18 to celebrate the monument’s tenth anniversary.
On May 21, 2014, President Barack Obama signed federal legislation creating the monument at the White House, honouring Heinrich and former New Mexico U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Jeff Bingaman, “who were instrumental in preserving this treasured landscape,” Obama stated.
The nearly 500,000-acre monument, located less than 30 minutes west of downtown Las Cruces on Dripping Springs Road, includes five mountain ranges; hiking, biking, and horseback-riding trails; thousands of archaeological sites, including Kilbourne Hole (volcanic crater) National Historic Landmark, the Aden Lava Flow Wilderness, and 22 miles of the historic Butterfield Stagecoach Trail; the Chihuahuan Desert habitat with its unique wildlife and landscape; training sites for A
The monument also includes ten new wilderness areas established in 2019, as the “strong and broad coalition of local supporters” who helped create it “keep building on what we achieved in the designation,” Heinrich stated.
Heinrich singled out the late David Soules during his keynote speech at the event, stating that the Las Cruces novelist and New Mexico Game Commission member’s “eye for detail (and) behind-the-scenes work” were critical in mapping OMDP’s natural wonders, cultural treasures, and historic places.
Soules’ brother, state Sen. Bill Soules, D-Las Cruces, attended the celebration, as did his wife, former Las Cruces city councillor Kassandra Gandara. Attendees included new Las Cruces City Manager Ikani Taumoepeau and state Sen. Jeff Steinborn, D-Doña Ana, executive director of Outdoor New Mexico and a key figure in the monument’s establishment.
“It is your monument, not the government’s, not the BLM’s (U.S. Bureau of Land Management, which manages OMDP),” said state Sen. Carrie Hamblen, D-Las Cruces, who, as president and CEO of the Green Chamber of Commerce of Las Cruces, was also a major supporter of monument status.
The monument’s economic impact has “exceeded our initial predictions by 51 percent,” Hamblen stated. Many local businesses were established as a result of the monument’s designation, and they have not only reaped the economic benefits, but have also become “thoughtful stewards” of OMDP, which is commemorated in Las Cruces, Mesilla, and other communities with a cocktail, a cupcake, and a slew of other specialities – and businesses – named in its honour.
Mesilla Valley Search and Rescue’s Aaron Marquez can be seen during the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument event in Las Cruces on May 18.
Heinrich reported that visitation to the region had increased from pre-monument 2012. A study commissioned by the Green Chamber and published last autumn anticipated a total economic benefit of $234 million over ten years.
“I am so proud of how far we’ve come in a decade,” Heinrich commented, adding he was “even more excited about where we will go.”
“The work never stops,” said Patrick Nolan, executive director of the charity Friends of Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks, which hosted the tenth anniversary event. The monument’s ongoing goal, according to Nolan, includes developing “the next generation of public lands stewards,” safeguarding more land in southern New Mexico, and ensuring public access to protected places for present and future generations.
Johana Bencomo, a Las Cruces city councillor, served as the evening’s master of ceremonies. Bencomo and Nolan, who also serves on the Las Cruces Public Schools Board of Education, are married.
The event featured live and silent auctions, and Nolan honoured five local public lands champions: Mesilla Valley Search and Rescue, Doña Ana Search and Rescue, the Organ Mountain Technical Rescue Squad, the Las Cruces Fire Department, and Visit Las Cruces, the city’s tourism and visitors bureau.
