Alamogordo’s Opportunity to Tap into New Mexico’s $2.4 Billion Recreation Economy

A new National Park Service (NPS) report shows that 782,469 visitors to White Sands National Park in 2021 spent $46,418,000 in communities (primarily Alamogordo) near the park. That spending supported 630 jobs in the local area and had a cumulative benefit to the local economy of $55,724,000.

With an average of 287 Days of Sunshine, outdoor actives abound throughout Alamogordo and all of Otero County. Alamogordo is the perfect location to “set up camp” to enjoy all the incredible attractions the area has to offer. 

Alamogordo is a perfect example of a community that is and can significantly benefit from recreational tourism. With White Sands National Park and the Lincoln National Forest nearby, a downtown redeveloping into a destination of interest with shopping, art and cultural activities; recreational tourism matters in creating a diverse economy for Alamogordo. 

In 2022, overall New Mexico received $11.2 billion in tourism revenue, $8.3 billion of that was in direct visitor funding. Rural recreation destinations similar to Alamogordo in opportunity have grown rapidly in recent years, and recreation and tourism development has become a popular vehicle for rural economic development. Recreation development involves more than just tourist-related businesses, such as hotels and restaurants; it encompasses all economic growth that results from people moving into the community to take advantage of its recreational amenities. This kind of development has the potential to dramatically transform a stagnant rural community into a thriving community by attracting retirees, entrepreneurs, and young workers, diversifying the economy, and improving the quality of life with a broader array of goods and services.

Recreational development and commerce attracts migrants who tend to have higher levels of education than nonmigrants.  ERS research has found that recreational development leads to a more educated population, particularly when education is measured by the share of adults with college degrees.

Recreation development is also associated with good health (measured by age-adjusted death rates), as might be expected from the higher number of physicians (per 100,000 residents) in recreation counties than in other rural counties. 

Studies show that rural recreation counties such as Otero County New Mexico exhibit a considerable degree of diversity in socioeconomic conditions. For example, counties with ski areas and with significant biking and hiking opportunities bring into them the wealthiest, best educated, and healthiest populations among all recreation county types to shop, participate and engage and enjoy the area offerings. (Alamogordo political and business leaders should take note.) 

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) has released economic data for 2022 exhibiting outdoor recreation’s powerful and positive economic impact on the U.S. economy. The outdoor recreation economy in New Mexico grew 1.8% from 2021 to 2022, according to the BEA. This year’s report also shows that outdoor recreation creates $2.4 billion in value added for New Mexico and accounts for 1.9% of state GDP, including nearly 28,000 jobs.

The BEA report shows 2022 as the largest recorded measure for outdoor recreation contribution to GDP and outdoor recreation compensation in New Mexico since the BEA started calculating the size of the outdoor recreation economy in 2012.

When Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham created the Outdoor Recreation Division (ORD) in 2019, she also targeted the industry as a key driver to diversify New Mexico’s economy. Since then, New Mexico’s ORD has invested $10 million in trails and infrastructure projects and awarded Outdoor Equity grants to 181 organizations so over 58,000 youths can experience recreational activities.

“As the state continues to exceed previous years’ measurements of the outdoor recreation industry, it reinforces Gov. Lujan Grisham’s decision to identify the industry as a key sector for our state economy,” Acting New Mexico Economic Development Department Cabinet Secretary Jon Clark said. “Every corner of our state benefits from the overall efforts to bolster access to the outdoors for all New Mexicans. The outdoor recreation industry is a consistent economic and jobs driver, even in times of economic uncertainty.”

“The BEA data validates the ongoing efforts of New Mexico's Outdoor Recreation Division to create jobs through the Trails+ grant program, support economic growth, and offer equitable access to the outdoors through the first-of-its-kind Outdoor Equity Fund," ORD Director Karina Armijo said. "Based on the data, we can affirm these outdoor recreation-focused programs benefit all New Mexicans and outdoor recreation businesses throughout the state.”

At a national level, these new numbers show outdoor recreation generates $1.1 trillionin economic output (2.2% of GDP), comprises 3.2% of U.S. employees, and creates five million jobs. This means the outdoor recreation economy contributes more to the U.S. economy than farming, oil and gas extraction, mining, and utilities.

“It comes as no surprise that outdoor recreation and the outdoor economy continue to demonstrate outstanding growth, which also supports the historic trends in outdoor participation we have seen in recent years,” Kent Ebersole, President, Outdoor Industry Association, said. “The outdoor recreation participant base grew for the eighth consecutive year to a record 168.1 million participants, and new participants are increasingly diverse and looking to businesses to lead on sustainability, equity, and conservation. This new data demonstrates the strength of the outdoor recreation industry and our collective power to drive sustainable economic growth while protecting – and growing access to – the benefits of the outdoors for everyone.”

This is the sixth consecutive year that BEA has released government data on this critical industry sector. Today’s release shows how the outdoor industry continues to be a super sector. The industry played a vital economic and social role throughout the pandemic and has since sustained remarkable growth and continued to boost local economies. The outdoor recreation economy remains a steady source of strength nationally and a booming job creator locally.

Key Highlights from the 2022 data on the outdoor recreation economy by activity:

• New Mexico saw a 11.6% increase in 2022 YOY in total outdoor recreation activities.
• Top core outdoor recreation activities include RVing, boating/fishing, snow activities, equestrian, and motorcycling/ATVing.
• The compound annual growth rate since 2019 has increased 1.5% overall, 5.9% in core OR activities (such as those listed above).
• Total core OR activities accounted for $1.04 billion in value added, while supporting OR (construction, travel, tourism, government) accounted for $1.34 billion in value added.

Commentary: Alamogordo and Otero county government leaders must focus on more collaboration with Santa Fe and the various entities at the state and federal level to facilitate partnerships and grants to build the local economy with recreational tourism as a vital component.

The Alamogordo Center of Commerce and the local economic development efforts should coordinate and better publicize and collaborate with a wider audience. Local government leaders should expand bike lanes and pathways around the city and into the mountains paths to better exploit the engine of recreational tourism. Economic Development via recreational tourism is a critical component to grow the local economy and create more opportunities in employment and growth for the city of Alamogordo and Otero County. 

Tourism is the largest service industry globally, accounting for nearly 10 percent of global GDP. Nearly 293 million jobs, or one in eleven jobs around the world, are within the tourism sector. Tourism is currently featured in three of the Sustainable Development Goals. Alamogordo is better positioned than most communities to garner a larger share of those economic dollars. Let’s grab with gusto and seize the opportunities before us! 

BEA News Release: https://www.bea.gov/news/2023/outdoor-recreation-satellite-account-us-and-states-2022

ORR New Release: https://recreationroundtable.org/news/new-government-data-report-showcases-outdoor-recreation-economys-growth-clout/

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