Creating new opportunities for nearby neighborhoods and fostering meaningful improvements

New Mexico Fairgrounds Master Plan

From rodeos and concerts to community gatherings, more than 500 events fill the 230‑acre (93-hectare) New Mexico State Fairgrounds each year. While the fairgrounds have remained a vital civic anchor, the surrounding area has faced growing challenges including economic decline, homelessness, and public safety concerns.

Recognizing both the site’s cultural significance and its untapped potential, the State of New Mexico set out to reinvest in one of their most important public assets while also addressing some of Albuquerque’s most pressing challenges. The State engaged our team to lead the master planning process for the fairgrounds.

Through extensive data and site analysis, paired with an iterative community engagement process, our team of planners, landscape architects, and engineers examined how people move through the fairgrounds, how fair operations could evolve over time, and how new uses might be introduced. We evaluated three design concepts that highlighted opportunities to modernize the site, expand year‑round use, and introduce housing, parks, and economic activity.

The resulting three‑phase master plan reimagines the fairgrounds as a walkable, mixed‑use destination. The first phase reorganizes the site, tying it together with a new soccer stadium, an eight-acre (three-hectare) urban park, more than 430 units of mixed-income housing, and major public safety improvements.

Approved by the State Fairgrounds District Board and supported by $92 million in bonding capacity and $114 million in funding from the state’s general fund, this ambitious plan sets the stage for future development and a stronger economy.