Adrian Hedden
Carlsbad Current-Argus
achedden@currentargus.com

Money for a new jail, county offices and ongoing renovations of Eddy County’s historic courthouse topped the list of infrastructure spending priorities for the county over the next five years.

The county’s Infrastructure Capital Improvement Plan was presented Tuesday, May 20, at the Eddy County Commission’s regular meeting, directing its priorities for major projects from Fiscal Years 2027 to 2031.

In New Mexico, fiscal years run from July 1 to June 30 of each year and are named for the year when they end. Fiscal Year 2025 will end on June 30.

The plan was developed by county department heads based on needs for facility improvements and construction under their purview. The plan will be approved by vote at a future county commission meeting and submitted to the state of New Mexico’s Department of Finance and Administration.

“This doesn’t mean these projects need to be completed during that time frame,” said Community Services Director Steve McCroskey. “This will help us plan for the next five years.”

The first project included in the plan, and the No. 1 priority presented to commissioners for their approval, was a $4.8 million rebuild of the Eddy County Courthouse’s air conditioning system. The courthouse is in downtown Carlsbad and houses the county’s branch of New Mexico’s Fifth Judicial District, which also includes Lea and Chaves counties.

Second was a $175 million project to construct a new building for the Eddy County Detention Center, relocating the jail out of downtown Carlsbad to an area on the south end of town near the Cavern City Air Terminal.

Warden Billy Massingill said the funds were already approved by the county and the project was being developed by an architectural firm. He said the project would be ready to seek bidders for the work in February 2026.

“We’ve got a good plan, a good layout,” he said.

No. 3 was a $20 million plan to develop a consolidated dispatch center for first responders throughout Eddy County. No. 4 was $55 million for a county emergency room facility.

Eddy County Manager Mike Gallagher said design for the dispatch center project had not yet started but that funds could be sought from the state of New Mexico. He said the facility would serve all four of Eddy County’s municipalities: Carlsbad, Artesia, Loving and Hope.

District 1 Commissioner Ernie Carlson said he supported consolidating, but wondered if the municipalities would be on board. He said past discussions weren’t “exactly friendly.”

“As much expensive equipment that we’re talking about, it really doesn’t make sense for municipalities to be separate,” he said. “Technology and stuff changes so much, the cost can be astronomical.”

The fifth priority was a $6.3 million project to repair the McDonald Road Bridge in southern Eddy County, which was damaged by flooding. No. 6 was a new county administrative complex, or renovations to the existing building at Greene and Main streets in Carlsbad.

The project was expected to cost about $50 million.

Gallagher proposed moving the building from No. 4 priority to No. 6 to allow the dispatch and emergency room facilities to move up.

That was followed at No. 7 by $29.7 million to renovate the interior of the Eddy County Courthouse, modernizing the facility and improving court services, said Facilities Manager Jasmine Sosa.

Project No. 8 would allocate $15.3 million to renovate the Eddy County Fire and Rescue training grounds, and No. 9 would spend about $5.3 million on fire safety improvements at county buildings. The 10th priority called for spending $13.2 million on a new fire station on the north side of the county.

County commissioners did not express any opposition to the list of priorities.

Managing Editor Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, or @AdrianHedden on the social media platform X.