Sunland Park — more than a race track

Looking toward Sierra del Cristo Rey Mountain from Sunland Park City Hall. Photo by Phyllis Eileen Banks

Does Sunland Park, just outside El Paso, Texas bring to mind horse racing? It is much more than that. It is not in Texas, either, but in New Mexico. Until 1960 this area was known as Anapra, where Don Juan de Onate crossed from the east side of the Rio Grande into New Mexico in the 1500s. Robert Julyan in The Place Names of New Mexico states, "Despite the complexity of postal dates and postal names, this longtime inhabited community . . . has preserved its separate identity despite its proximity to an industrial area of El Paso and to the Sunland Park complex . . ." Located just west of the junction of NM 273 and NM 498, the name is explained as meaning "this side of the river."

Roadside History of New Mexico by Francis L. and Roberta B. Fugate indicates that when a race track was planned the name was changed to Sunland Park and located on the New Mexico side of the border. State laws made the decision easy because New Mexico allowed parimutuel betting at race tracks and Texas did not. With the track only 500 feet from El Paso the horse racing enthusiasts hadn’t far to go. Now a casino has been added next door to the track.

The City of Sunland Park is located at the New Mexico, Texas, Chihuahua, Mexico border and is just minutes away from the Santa Teresa Port of Entry, the only land crossing to Mexico in the area. It has all the amenities of a large city but none of the congestion. With 15,000 people, average age 28, Sunland Park is young, vibrant and growing. Incorporated in 1983, its enthusiastic city leaders invite residents to participate in the exchange of ideas. Planned projects include over 34 million dollars to be spent on infrastructure. The recently created Camino Real Chamber of Commerce has added a vital business support mechanism to the area businesses.

With more than 350 days of sunshine a year, mild winters, 9.2 inches of annual rainfall, low humidity and pleasingly hot summers, Sunland Park offers a year round favorable climate appealing to residents and tourists alike.

In addition to the attraction of the race track, a statue of Christ, one foot taller than the Christ of the Andes, overlooks Sunland Park. It is located on Sierra del Cristo Rey Mountain, in New Mexico, elevation 4675 feet. The mountain is composed of volcanic rock and is lower than surrounding peaks. It is visible for miles but is uninhabited due to inaccessibility. However, early travelers passed this mountain on packed mules originally giving it the name Sierra de Muleros (Mule Drivers Mountain). The monument is eight hundred feet above the level of the city on rugged switchbacks. The Cristo del Rey, 29 feet high carved from white limestone, has been visited by thousands of people on yearly pilgrimages to celebrate the anniversary of the Cross, October 17, 1940.

The monument overlooks New Mexico, Texas and Chihuahua, Mexico, the same three states that offer so much potential to the future of Sunland Park.

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