Alamo City Dream Center Advances as Mayor Sharon McDonald Champions Faith-Community Partnership

Alamogordo, N.M. — On a night already marked by emotional testimony and leadership transition at City Hall, the Alamogordo City Commission approved a key resolution backing the Alamo City Dream Center, a project championed by Mayor Sharon McDonald and Acting City Manager Dr. Stephanie Hernandes and concepualized by Pastor Anthony Torres and his wife Sasha Torres of Mountain View Church.  Mayor McDonald, leaned into the base that got her elected, her faith community and local partnerships. This project is consistent with her vision of incremental, block-by-block improvements that could position Alamogordo as a replicable model for other municipalities through stronger neighborhoods, military ties, and nonprofit, faith and business collaborations.

Despite what some observers describe as resistance from a voting bloc on the commission seeking to slow or derail elements of that "broader community based agenda", the body voted 6-0 Monday evening (June 9, 2026) to authorize up to $200,000 as seed support for the Dream Center. 

City staff, working under the compassionate direction of Acting City Manager Dr. Stephanie Hernandez, carefully reviewed the use of opioid settlement funds to ensure the project was structured in a legally compliant and fiscally responsible manner, with no risk to local taxpayer dollars. The funding originates from state-administered opioid settlement payouts not taxpayer funding.

Mayor’s Vision and Key Commission Allies

Mayor McDonald has framed her leadership around practical, neighborhood-level progress — strengthening everyday quality of life while leveraging Alamogordo’s unique assets: its military partnership with Holloman Air Force Base, local businesses and nonprofits, and faith communities. The Dream Center approval fits squarely inside that approach, block by block.

Mayor McDonald has already been in early stage and preliminary conversations with state and federal leaders on this project to assist in pushing forward additional funding. She is joined in this effort by Commissioner Warren Robinson, a former minister at Owen Chapel and a strong advocate for faith-based partnerships, who has stood arm-in-arm with McDonald and also Commissioner Mark Tapley to move the initiative forward.

Project History

The project originated with Pastor Anthony Torres and his wife Sasha Torres of Mountain View Church, who moved to Alamogordo in 2015 with a clear mandate: build a church defined not by its walls but by what it does for the community. For a decade they have operated an annual winter shelter during freezing weather, provided free funeral services with meals to any family in need since 2020, and responded during the Ruidoso fires by sheltering 329 families (1,523 people total) with 625 staying overnight and all receiving food and supplies.

Pastor Torres told commissioners the Dream Center represents the next evolution of that work — one designed to “stay in this town forever” even after he and his wife are no longer leading the church. The facility will expand capacity for homeless support with showers, laundry, meals, and storm shelter space; operate a soup kitchen serving free community meals Monday–Friday starting at 4:00 p.m.; provide adequate room for the church’s free funeral services; and serve as a ready emergency/disaster relief site for the city and county.

Its official mission statement, presented on the record, reads:

“Alamo City Dream Center exists to serve our community by feeding the hungry, offering a safe time shelter with access to showers and laundry, providing emergency crisis to Otero County when needed with relief, restoring, dignity, renewing and hope, and to restore every life we serve.”

Strong Community Support on Display

The meeting drew a standing-room-only crowd that stayed for an extended session and showed that the mayor and city manager has significant broad based and vocal community support on community oriented initiatives. 

When the resolution passed, the chamber erupted in loud applause, with shouts of “Praise the Lord” heard from attendees — a clear demonstration of community alignment with the project and with Mayor McDonald’s neighborhood-focused approach.

This strong public backing mirrors the enthusiastic community response McDonald has received for other initiatives, including the upcoming District 5 citywide cleanup and similar block-by-block neighborhood efforts. 

Together, these projects show that residents and local faith leaders are strongly aligned with McDonald, Pastor Anthony Torres, and Sasha Torres of Mountain View Church in delivering practical improvements that strengthen the community.

Pastor Jerry Martinez also rose to deliver a strong endorsement of the Dream Center. He explained that he has frequently paid out of his "own pocket to house at-risk individuals in local hotels during extreme weather" and emphasized that a dedicated facility like the Dream Center is desperately needed in Alamogordo.

Project Details and Partnership Model

The proposed center would be a standalone 501(c)(3) with its own board, though Mountain View Church retains ownership and oversight. Plans call for a roughly 6,500-square-foot building on land the church group will donate across the street from the existing church property. A preliminary estimate from White Sands Construction placed core construction at approximately $1.9 million, with additional costs flagged for fire suppression systems and other infrastructure.

The $200,000 commitment from state opioid settlement funds is structured as a conditional, one-time contribution tied to the project reaching a functional stage. Presenters emphasized they are seeking parallel support from Otero County and will aggressively pursue state and federal grants opening later this year.

Police Chief David Kunihiro voiced support, noting "any effort that provides shelter, meals, and stability can help keep people off the streets." Volunteer Wendy Arquitas of Runner’s Refuge, which feeds roughly 175 people several days a week on donations alone, highlighted recent multi-county work on homelessness funding and shared examples of acute local need and endorsed the project.

Political Undercurrents and the Larger Stakes

The vote occurred against the backdrop of a packed public forum earlier in the evening that featured sharp criticism of commission dynamics and the handling of former Acting City Manager Dr. Stephanie Hernandez’s departure. Several speakers praised Mayor McDonald, Commissioner Robinson, and Commissioner Tapley for standing on principle and community.

In that context, the Dream Center approval can be read as a tangible win for the mayor’s collaborative, partnership-driven model — one that deliberately brings faith communities, neighborhoods, the military installation, and local government into alignment on practical quality-of-life issues.

The visible community support, including the standing-room-only attendance and spontaneous “Praise the Lord” reaction, underscores that the broader community of residents are strongly behind these quality of life efforts.

Next Steps

With the resolution now approved, the Dream Center team will move forward on detailed design, grant applications, and county-level coordination. The project is explicitly positioned not as a short-term fix but as permanent infrastructure that addresses homelessness, food insecurity, dignity, substance-abuse recovery support, and disaster readiness in one integrated facility.

Mayor McDonald’s broader agenda — emphasizing block by block improvements to the neighborhoods, military and business partnerships, and deeper engagement with the faith community and community non-profits — may continue to face headwinds from within the commission. But, Monday’s vote and the extremely strong public response, demonstrate a clear community alignment with her vision of incremental, partnership-based improvement.

Full details of Resolution 2026-19 and the project packet are available through the City Clerk. Mountain View Church can be reached directly for questions about volunteering, donations, or the Dream Center vision.

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