Plans are now being advanced for the construction of a modern and comprehensive athletic complex that will go up on the campus of New Mexico Highlands University.
The project has been long in the planning and thinking phase, with school officials particularly wanting to modernize the Sanchez Family Stadium, which was completed in the summer of 1941 by workers with the New Deal’s National Youth Administration program.
Altogether, the Las Vegas-based school expects to spend upwards of $85.5 million to complete the complex, with the first phase centering on the $5.1 million upgrade of the stadium that will include an entirely new field, lighting, and scoreboard.
A significantly larger $14.8 million in phase two of the project will see the building of a new grandstand on the west side of the stadium, along with a new press box and suites, as well as restrooms and concessions space.
The athletics master plan for the project, notes the Santa Fe New Mexican, stands to become “the largest athletic expenditure in New Mexico history.”
Additional features in the plan include the $14 million construction of an indoor practice facility, a $12.1 million basketball arena; and the $10.7 million renovation of the Stu Clark Center, housing athletic services and offices.
Highlands, with a current enrollment of around 2,900 students, has contracted with Ampere Sports Design of Kansas City, Missouri, to put together a plan for all the hoped-for athletic facility work. Ampere is a nationally recognized firm that has designed a wide variety of sports facilities across the country.
Funding for the athletic facility work at Highlands has not yet been secured, and will almost certainly come through State of New Mexico sources, most likely in the form of a capital outlay approved by the state legislature.
October 30, 2025
By Garry Boulard
Photo courtesy New Mexico Highlands University
