Small Business Saturday on New York Avenue and Ribbon Cutting 1 pm Alleyway Improvement Project

What happens when a community of artisans, small business owners of New York Avenue, the Holloman Spouses Organization - HSO, leadership from Alamogordo MainStreet, government leaders such a Commissioner Sharon McDonald, students from Mountain View Middle School, Alamogordo High School, New Mexico State University Alamogordo, nonprofits such as Otero Arts, With Many Friends - Alamogordo, Courtney McCary and friends, and local businesses such as French Brothers, Foxworth-Galbraith Lumber Company, Pioneer Bank - Alamogordo, Taylor Ojeda Creations, Melinese Boner, the Alamogordo Center of Commerce, Rocky Mountain Cannabis, Zuni Electric Inc, Loco Bank, Home Depot and more collaborate and work toward a vision of community improvement?

Holloman Spouses Organization creates public art in Alamogordo’s New York Avenue side street art project.

What happens is a collaborative project to bring a dull and dreary alleyway at the edge of the neighborhood of Chihuahuita at 10th Street and New York Avenue to life as a part of the New York Avenue “side street” art alley project. 

Students at Middle View Middle School working on their mural for the New York Avenue art project

What began as a vision of the business owners of New York Avenue, working through Alamogordo MainStreet for the last several years to reimagine the Downtown District;  as a center of commerce, history, art and culture; some visible signs of that effort is finally coming to life.

The alley way for the 1st National Bank Parking lot behind Roadrunner Galleria and Blush Salon is coming to life with a renovation of color and live vegetable gardens. 

Join the ribbon cutting, Small Business Saturday at 1 pm and see the collaboration of alley way murals and community gardens crafted by With Many Friends Alamogordo.

Recently the downtown merchants received a “safety grant” for lighting and cameras for the alley ways. Next was a grant from the AARP Livable Communities and the work began! 

With Many Friends Alamogordo creates community gardens on New York Avenue’s alley way side street project

AARP Livable Communities grants are issued to community organizations with a focus on diversity, equity and inclusion while improving the already built and social environment of a community to create vibrant public places that improve open spaces, parks and access to other amenities. 

Alamogordo MainStreet was granted $10,000 to kick off the effort. Then individuals and other businesses added to funding and volunteering and a collaborative approach is working toward a better future for New York Avenue.

With a grant from AARP Livable Community Grant as seed money artist work day and night for the Alamogordo MainStreet Project

Alamogordo MainStreet president Claudia Loya beams with pride “this is just the beginning of a major transformation that has taken years of groundwork in the making. The next two years will bring a huge transformation of Alamogordo’s MainStreet - New York Avenue.”

Alamogordo MainStreet president Claudia Loya with Roadrunner Galleria owner Linda Logan

District 5 Alamogordo City Commissioner, Sharon McDonald who has assisted with the project stated; “it was a joy to watch and see how Alamogordo Main Street was able to gather support in the community to make this project happen. I am proud to be a part of the supporters.”

Alamogordo City Commissioner Sharon McDonald hands on power washing and preparing for the murals on New York Avenue’s Side Street Project

Cities that have  successful downtowns often have public art, engaging storefronts, attractive landscaping and other amenities that improve the walkability and enjoyment of downtown areas. The Alamogordo MainStreet, New York Avenue, Chihuahuita neighborhood, alleyway, side street project is the first phase, of several moving parts, to bring a transformation to Alamogordo’s once dying downtown. 

Courtney McCary and friends volunteered on New York Avenue

Alamogordo’s downtown, New York Avenue, since the founding till the 1970s, was the heart of the city. Located at the edge of the Chihuahuita neighborhood bordered by 10th Street, the 800 and 900 Blocks of New York Avenue were the most racially and culturally significant and diverse business interests of Alamogordo.

Successful downtowns serve as a community space where members of all segments of the community can come together for parades, shopping and other community events. The downtown is usually home to a community's arts and cultural offerings—which also act as an economic driver and catalyst for business development and are a key to attracting new businesses and regional economic development.

If Alamogordo truly wants to grow, evolve and attract business interests and credible corporate investment a vibrant interesting and engaging downtown is a key component.  

The end of the 1970s till the 2018 saw an economic downturn to New York Avenue and the many vibrant storefronts of the past were nothing but ghosts of yesteryear.

Then around 2019, Alamogordo MainStreet gained its footing and began the legwork to gain collaborating members and work with the city and state on a vision of revitalization with a tribute to the character of the past. 

City hearings were held, public input to surveys and design elements discussed and finally the state granted $1.9 Million for infrastructure improvements that are in process with surveys, environmental impact studies and engineering work being done behind the scenes. Groundbreaking of sewer, sidewalks and other infrastructure improvements will begin in the new year. 

Alamogordo High School Students work on mural on New York Avenue’s Side Street project.

Businesses are growing, changing and evolving.

Post Covid 19 Roadrunner Emporium tested and encouraged the arts community under the leadership of Rene Sepulveda and Chris Edwards. For over 2 years they tested hosting art classes, live music, artisan creations and garnered lots of state and national publicity to the district.

Newspapers and magazines such as New Mexico Magazine and New Mexico Influence Magazine did stories on the efforts to promote and reinvigorate the district with Sepulveda and Edwards championing the message of New York Avenue as the crossroads of history art and Galleria

New business moved to the District such as Zia Comics, the Local Bodega, Copper Rose Salon and Spa, Clay Time Pottey alongside established businesses such as Victoria Alamogordo, Mia’s Collectibles and they are growing and evolving.

There has been much success with the concept of locally made, locally grown and artisan that the Local Bodega under the leadership of Linda Logan wanted a larger audience and location. Thus the Logan’s purchased Roadrunner Emporium from Edwards and Sepulveda growing and tweaking it into a hybrid concept of the Roadrunner Galleria home of the Local Bodega at 928 New York Avenue, Alamogordo. The business is prospering and evolving with local creations and the primitive Americana Designs of Our Little Country Store, lower level. 

Cindy Nowaczck’s Our Little County Store at Roadrunner Galleria 928 New York Avenue

New York Avenue business owner Linda Logan expressed, “this  year makes our first holiday season at our new location as the Roadrunner Galleria featuring the Local Bodega and now we offer a new plant store- Plants Alive!. We are so excited to see the progress and the ribbon cutting with the allyway project. With our move to 928 New York Avenue we now facilitate over 100 local micro businesses and are more focused than ever on home made, home grown and local. Come on down and shop local. We are the anchor store at the corner of New York Avenue and 10th Street the crossroads of history, art and culture. Come on down, we are open nightly.”

Roadrunner Galleria featuring the Local Bodega and our now a new plant store- Plants Alive!

Alamogordo MainStreet was doing the heavy lifting of garnering government support, herding the merchants toward a common goal and building alliances. 

Come  on down Saturday at 1 pm to New York Avenue and take a peak of the initial steps of creativity at the ribbon cutting by the Alamogordo Center of Commerce of the alley way side street project. And of course, while on Alamogordo’s MainStreet - New York Avenue, be sure to shop and explore the various merchants for Small Business Saturday for some amazing deals and one of a kind finds. 

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