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Thursday, Mar 28th

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OHV park officials vying for grant dollars

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Monies to go toward park improvements, dozer

On Feb. 29, the city of Gallup and Red Rock Motor Sports  submitted a grant proposal to the New Mexico Department of Transportation’s Recreational Trail Program for improvements to the OHV/MX park.

If approved, the city would receive $109,790 from the NMDOT RTP and $5,000 worth of labor donated by RRMS, while it would pay $13,710. This is a reimbursement grant, however, which means the city would have to pay for all the costs up front and then get paid back by the NMDOT upon completion of the project.

Improvements listed in the proposal include a graveled parking lot, picnic tables with awnings, trail legends, and a Sweco 480 Trail Dozer. The grand total is $128,500.

The current parking lot is simply dirt, which can turn into a dust bowl on windy days, but it would be replaced with compacted gravel.

The lack of shade at the OHV park will be remedied with eight picnic tables and awnings, allowing riders to refuel on long days.

There is one information kiosk at the OHV area at the moment, but it will hopefully be joined by eight new trail legends to help people keep track of their location within the 500 acre area.

Lastly, the Sweco Trail Dozer would be used to maintain the one mile track which hosts motocross races and events.

Greg Kirk, current secretary and former president of RRMS, is excited about the grant proposal and noted that RRMS has received two previous RTP grants totaling $360,000.  As for this one, Greg said, “I do feel optimistic that we have a good chance of getting it.”

RRMS currently has seven board members and 40 club members.  They have been leasing the 500 acres of land that encompasses the OHV park from the city for the past six years.

Mayor McKinney commented on the grant postal, saying, “I think it’s fantastic.”

He applauds RRMS for creating an event space that attracts people to Gallup.

“They’re drawing lots of competitors from out of town and out of state,” said McKinney.

RRMS and the city are currently waiting to hear back from the NMDOT to see if the grant gets approved.

“This process usually takes a few months,” said McKinney.

Story and photos by
Shepherd Waldenberger
Sun Correspondent


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