Rt. 66 Drive Thru Arch
Mike worked with the NMSU welding department to design and build the Rt. 66 Arch which has attracted thousands of visitors to Grants.
The arch is a major draw to visitors and residents of our area. The Chamber placed a counter on the arch and found that over 1000 vehicles per month were photographed under the arch.
The arch took several months to build and has become a "must see" for visitors. Click the video below to see the installation of the Arch.
Travelers and visitors across America are posting on social media of themselves under our Rt. 66 Drive Thru Arch which promotes our City, County, and State!
Caboose
This caboose was gifted to Grants and sat on a railroad spur in Grants for 7 years until Mike took action. In his first year as councilor, he brought several companies together to move, restore and paint the caboose.
People visit the caboose every day to take selfies and family photos.
It took a mighty effort to move the 40,000 pound caboose.
— Name, Title
Click on the video below to see the process of moving the caboose.
New Logo For Grants
Mike spearheaded the effort to create a beautiful new logo for Grants which is seen on our city vehicles, buildings, advertising, water tank and more.
What should a good logo do for your city?
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A good logo helps visitors recognize and remember your brand identity.
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It sets you apart from the competition.
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A good logo helps establish trust with visitors.
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It makes a great first impression and helps you to create a brand identity.
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Gives your City a symbol through which people can better remember you.
CDT Gateway Community
You know all those hikers you see in and around Grants and Milan in the spring and fall? Michael contacted the Continental Divide Trail Coalition so Grants could become a host city for the 150 hikers who spend approximately $25,000 in Grants and Milan each year.
Established by Congress in 1978, the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail (CDT) spans 3,100 miles between Mexico and Canada, traversing five states and connecting countless communities along the spine of the Rocky Mountains.
CDT Gateway Communities are welcoming destinations along the Continental Divide Trail for people from around the world looking to experience the CDT. For long weekends with the family, a place to start a new hiking adventure, or a can’t-miss stop on a road trip through the Rocky Mountain West, CDT Gateway Communities are the first stop! Grants and Milan are one of those Gateway Communities.
If you have an opportunity to talk to one of these hikers, do it. They all have different reasons and stories about why they are hiking this 3100 mile trail.
Wayfinding Signage
The turquoise directional signs you see throughout Grants were created at the NMSU welding department through the efforts of Mike and Team 66.
Those of us who live here know how to move around in our city but visitors who have never been here can get very confused and easily lost.
When a visitor drives down 1st St., they are unaware that 2nd St. is also a one-way street going the other way. So it's very easy to get confused and lost.
The wayfinding signs direct people when they are on any of our main thruways.
Fishing in the Riverwalk
Mike contacted the NM Department of Game and Fish and requested they begin stocking Riverwalk Park. Now they bring 1600- 9" rainbow trout and 160- 16" rainbow trout to the pond each year.
Fishing is a favorite activity of any family and especially children. Our Riverwalk pond offers free fishing to any person under 12, anytime, year round.
This is the kind of "device" we like to see in a childs hands.
What a great way to spend time with you children!
Summer Concert Series
The Amphitheater at Riverwalk Park was not being used until Mike teamed with Mainstreet to start the Summer Concert Series which brought music to our area every Saturday night.
The Amphitheater is a beautiful facility in our Riverwalk area. It was not being used until Mike took action.
We also started showing outdoor movies during the warmest nights of the summer.
Some of the best bands in New Mexico have played in the Riverwalk Amphitheater.
Grants Public Library
Mike began advocating for the new library in 2006 when the former Alco building became available. When he became Mayor Pro-Tem, it finally happened.
When Mike ran for office in 2006, part of his platform was to move our small library to the large Alco building.
One of the first things a family looks for when they are considering a move to Grants is...what kind of Library does Grants have.
We now have a beautiful, new, state of the art library thanks to our city manager Laura Jaramillo and the City Council of 2016.
Grants/Milan Airport
Mike supported and promoted the Grants Municipal Airport 1.5 million dollar upgrade which included resurfacing the runway.
We expanded the length of our runway to accommodate almost any type of jet or airplane.
Virtually any type of aircraft can now land at our renovated airport.
We also provide space for emergency medical air transport at the airport.
Our Future
Grants needs a hotel downtown. It would increase foot traffic and economic growth in our downtown area. We would see between 100 and 500 new visitors each day in our downtown area.
This is the former County Building and former Grants High School. It is a historic building and should never be removed. We should incorporate this building into a new downtown hotel. We should work with a developer to create a Rt. 66 museum, hotel, and convention center. There was a commercial kitchen in this building which can be restored. The plumbing and electrical for the kitchen still exists and can be re-used.
A Hotel in the downtown area would provide much needed foot traffic and economic growth. Restaurants, coffee houses, bakeries, and cocktail lounges would finally have a chance to succeed in the downtown area.
The County would continue to own and operate the building as a convention center and would continue to utilize its current office space.
The New Convention Center would feature a historic timeline that would include:
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Ancient History
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Spanish Influence
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Railroad
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Mining
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Rt. 66
Click on the bottom of the image to see the slide show.
Downtown Waterpark
We should transform the city hall fountain into a Waterpark Splashpad for summer fun!
This is the old fountain in front of City Hall. The infrastructure that operates this can be used to operate a Waterspout Splashpad.
These new Splashpads are the most popular playgrounds for children and adults in the country. They're much safer and less expensive than swimming pools.
The pad would be lit at night to create a stunning look that would attract visitors and enhance our already beautiful downtown area.
Downtown Crosswalk
Right now, anyone who walks across Santa Fe Ave. anywhere between 5th St. and McDonalds, is breaking the law. Huh? We need a pedestrian crosswalk with street lights at either 9-11 Ave. or Iron Ave. so people can cross Santa Fe Ave. safely. The businesses on the south side of Santa Fe Ave. need this to help their businesses survive.
New Mexico Film Industry
Mike would open up a relationship with the thriving New Mexico Film Industry.
What started as a niche industry in New Mexico has become an economic powerhouse. Today, the film industry supports hundreds of local businesses and thousands of jobs across the state. With $5.75 billion in production spent in New Mexico, it's one of the state's fastest-growing industries.
There are many filming locations in our area that the industry doesn't know about. Mike will reach out the production companies and introduce them to the beautiful possibilities in our area.
There is no reason why we can't be a part of this industry. We just need to form a relationship with these companies.
Mt. Taylor Nordic Center
and First American Ceremonial Center
We should celebrate, utilize, and enjoy our most beautiful Turquoise Mountain.
We need a facility on Mt. Taylor to host all the events that are already happening up there. It would be shared by the US Forest Service, our local Pueblos, The Navajo Nation, The City of Grants, and Cibola County.
Mount Taylor is Tsoodził, the blue bead mountain, sometimes translated Turquoise Mountain, one of the four sacred mountains marking the cardinal directions and the boundaries of the Dinetah, the traditional Navajo homeland. It is also a sacred site for surrounding pueblos. There should be a part of the facility that our native brothers and sisters can operate as a ceremonial center (similar to to Pueblo Cultural Center in Albuquerque). The American Indian Religious Freedom Act of 1978 protects the rights of Native Americans to exercise their traditional religions by ensuring access to sites, use and possession of sacred objects, and the freedom to worship through ceremonials and traditional rites.
During the summer months, it would be used as an Equestrian Center, mountain biking, hiking, and competitive racing. There are over one million people within 1.5 hours of Grants that would support this kind of facility. The Forest Service would have a permanent office at the center and serve as caretakers of the facility.