Innovate Las Cruces: Arrowhead Park Searching for Development Partner

The 225-acre Arrowhead Park real estate development on the campus of New Mexico State University in Las Cruces has hit a milestone of sorts. The project is at a point, says its executive director, that it is ready to join forces with a development partner for future stages.
Pictured is a rendering of the forthcoming Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine, to be located on the campus of New Mexico State University.
Wayne L. Savage told Business First that Arrowhead Park, part of the technology-and-research-driven Arrowhead Center, is on the lookout for a partner to collaborate on an ambitious 30 to 40 acre mixed-use development. An initial build-out, Savage said, would consist of about 120,000-square-feet of buildings — a mix of just about anything, save a multifamily component. There would be office, research, recreational and other commercial pieces, including education, said Savage. The development dollars for just the first couple years of work hovers around $20 million to $30 million. “You can’t put a price tag on the entire development just yet,” Savage said.
“Since 2012, we’ve brought consultants together to look at the [development] and one of the recommendations was to create a sense of identity. We need to create more of a sense of place, the landscaping, amenities — all part of the master planning process we envision for the next few years. We think we have the potential to be a more well-rounded project, not just [a research park],” Savage added.
A request for qualifications (RFQ) with a March 11 deadline for interested developers has been released. Savage said Las Cruces has kept a close eye on the momentum of Albuquerque’s Innovate ABQ initiative — stating that the two projects can be compared in many ways. “The city of Albuquerque may be a little ahead of the discussion, but we feel we’re there too,” Savage said.
The RFQ targets a developer or development team that is interested in designing, constructing, owning and managing anchor tenant and mixed-use facilities. Savage said he’s hopeful a New Mexico-based firm or team would emerge, but that the RFQ is open to anyone who is qualified.
Arrowhead has gotten renewed focus in recent months, as Santa Fe entrepreneur Dan Burrell and his family announced it would bring an $85 million private osteopathic medical school to the property.
More information and RFQ details are available here.
By: Damon Scott (Albuquerque Business First)
Click here to view source article.