ABC-7 Listens: Is Doa Ana County illegally renovating private roads?

On Tuesday, ABC-7 reported on what will be the largest road renovation project in Doña Ana County’s history, per county leaders.

Commissioners unanimously approved $10.2 million worth of renovations on 31 publicly and privately owned roads in all five districts of the county.

“This county can afford this project,” said Doña Ana County Manager Fernando Macias.

A Las Cruces ABC-7 viewer named Janet took issue with the idea of paving private roads.

“I thought this constitutes an illegal donation of public money to private parties,” Janet wrote in an email. “What’s to prevent other private-road owners from demanding that *their* roads also be paved at public expense?

On Wednesday, Macias explained to ABC-7 the County is not renovating private roads at taxpayer expense. Before a County can improve a private road, the county must take ownership of the road.

“We’re not improving a private roadway any longer because it isn’t a private roadway,” Macias said. “It has become County property by one fashion or another.”

To become eligible, Macias said a road must be for the public benefit and servicing a colonia in Doña Ana County, like La Mesa, Chamberino or La Union. All the county’s colonias are listed in the 2017 “Capital Infrastructure Needs for Colonias” report. Colonias are unincorporated communities that often lack certain infrastructure and services provided by municipal government.

“It does not open the door in any way to paving someone’s street that only services a few people,” Macias said. “These kind of private road acquisitions by the county is to serve the larger community in the area.”