Three ballot questions would fund parks and trails, a new public safety complex and road, water and wastewater projects without an anticipated increase in current property tax rates

Damien Willis, Organ Mountain News

SUNLAND PARK - Voters will decide in November whether Sunland Park can issue up to $8.25 million in general obligation bonds for recreation, public safety, roads and water and wastewater infrastructure.

The City Council voted 6-0 Tuesday, Aug. 18, to place three bond questions on the Nov. 3 general election ballot.

The largest question would authorize up to $3.5 million for work on existing roads, construction of new roadways and construction or improvements to water and wastewater infrastructure.

A second question seeks up to $2.5 million to design and construct a new public safety complex and purchase new fire and public safety equipment and vehicles.

The remaining $2.25 million would go toward construction of a regional recreation center, upgrades to existing parks and construction of the Rio Grande and other municipal multiuse trails and wayfinding.

Each question will appear separately on the ballot, allowing voters to approve or reject each category of spending.

The bonds would be repaid through property taxes. City officials said, however, the program is structured to replace existing debt as it is retired rather than add another layer of debt on top of it.

“As certain debt is retired that’s already been issued, this new debt would step in its place,” bond counsel Chris Muirhead told councilors.

“The property tax rates, which are currently in place, are not anticipated to increase,” he said.

The proposed bonds continue a general obligation bond program approved by Sunland Park voters in 2022. Muirhead said those bonds have been issued and the money is available and being used for city projects.

General obligation bonds allow municipalities to borrow money for capital projects and repay the debt using property tax revenue. Because the debt is backed by property taxes, voter approval is required.

If approved by a simple majority, the three November questions would authorize the city to issue up to the amounts listed for each category. The city would have four years to issue the bonds, and individual bond debt could extend for as long as 20 years.

Officials deliberately wrote the ballot questions broadly, Muirhead said, giving the city flexibility to use the money for projects that fall within each approved category.

The resolution must be submitted to the Doña Ana County Clerk by Aug. 27 for the questions to appear on the Nov. 3 ballot.

Damien Willis is founder and editor of Organ Mountain News. If you have a personal story to share or a lead we should follow up on, reach out at OrganMountainNews@gmail.com or connect with him on X at @damienwillis.