Cibola County, NM

Education

The Grants-Cibola County School District encompasses all of Cibola County. The City of Grants, Village of Milan and communities on their periphery constitute the urban area of the district. Acoma and Laguna Pueblos on the east side of the district contain many individual communities served by the district. The district includes the Ramah Chapter of the Navajo on the southwest side of the county, however, the district has a transportation agreement with Gallup/McKinley County Schools to bus students to public schools in Ramah. The Pine Hill Bureau of Indian Affairs K-12 Boarding School also serves residents in this area. The Zuni Mountains and Mt. Taylor units of the Cibola National Forest constitute a large portion of the district. Schools in the district are as follows:

Health Care

Cibola General Hospital is a modern 50,000 sq. ft., 25-bed acute care hospital offering on-site general surgery, 24-hour emergency care, intensive care nursing, internal medicine, obstetrics, pathology, pediatric dentistry, podiatry, primary care, and radiology services. The hospital has a helipad on site and air ambulance service is available through Grants/Milan Airport. Currently under construction is a new medical office complex that will allow for more doctors in the area. Acoma Canoncito Laguna Hospital (ACL), located in Acoma, is operated by Indian Health Services.

Housing

Cibola County housing is predominately single-family, detached units with over 77% of families owning their home. Multi-unit structures account for only 9.5%. Housing can be purchased from $30,000 to $300,000 for custom ranch homes.

Local housing availability:

City of Grants - 3,804
Milan - 837

Lifestyle

• Outdoor recreation - Backpacking, mountain biking, hiking, fishing, hunting, cross country skiing, snowshoeing, snowmobiling, ATV access
• Arts and culture - Cibola Arts Council, Double Six Gallery
• History and museums - Acoma Sky City Cultural Center, Grants Mining Museum and Northwest New Mexico Visitors Center
• Community Events - Mt. Taylor Quadrathalon, 4th of July Parade & Rodeos, Fire & Ice Bike Rally, Tour de Acoma, Christmas Parade of Lights
• National monuments and State Parks - Acoma Sky City, Chaco Culture National Historical Park, Cibola National Forest, Continental Divide National Scenic Trail, El Malpais National Monument, El Morro National Monument, Bluewater State Park, and Ice Cave & Bandera Volcano
• National Register of Historic Places in Cibola County – Acoma Curio Shop, San Fidel; Bowlin’s Old Crater Trading Post, Bluewater; Candelaria Pueblo, Grants; Route 66 Rural Historic District-Laguna to McCartys, Cubero; Route 66-State maintained from McCartys to Grants, Grants; Route 66-State maintained from Milan to Continental Divide, Continental Divide; Zuni-Cibola Complex, Zuni Pueblo
• Village of Milan offers a natatorium, a multi-purpose gymnasium, two community rooms (accommodating 250 and 125 people respectively) and three parks.
• City of Grants offers a community college, a public library, a senior citizens center, an art gallery, a museum, two sports complexes, 10 parks and picnic areas, a skate park, a rollerskating rink, a bowling alley, a movie theater, and an 18-hole golf course for public use just off Interstate 40.
• Cibola County offers two full service casinos at the Pueblos of Acoma and Laguna

NMSU-Grants offers a Small Business Development Center in the City of Grants. The SBDC is located at 701 E. Roosevelt and provides business plan assistance, business financing resources, and business counseling and guidance. Clemente Sanchez is the SBDC Director and can be reached at 505-285-8221 x688.

Cibola County Commission provides leadership for the rural areas of the county along with the Pueblo of Acoma and Laguna Pueblo. The City of Grants is a home ruled charter city and has various business opportunities; Cibola Foundation, Inc. holds the Cibola Industrial Park with existing infrastructure and interstate access. The City of Grants has a master plan in place with Main Street for downtown revitalization and a master site plan for Grants Public Library. The Village of Milan holds 800 acres for the Milan Farm with significant water rights, interstate access and a master plan in place for a vision of a future rail spur. Much of the county’s land is owned by federal, state and pueblo governments, with ownership held by the National Monuments, National Parks, and State land offices. There are three existing land grants: Cubero, Seboyeta and Juan Tafoya Cibola County’s annual budget is approximately $15,000,000, which comes from property taxes and federal payments in lieu of taxes. The City of Grants and the Village of Milan have their Local Economic Development Act incentives updated.  

Taxes

New Mexico State University at Grants is a two-year college providing post-secondary education and work force development programs in film, mining, nursing and business which match the needs of employers throughout the region’s business and government entities. The campus also offers a GED program, adult basic education services, dual enrollment classes and bachelors degrees through distance education. NMSU-Grants provides a gymnasium, a library, and an auditorium.

Educational Attainment

• High school graduates - Grants/Cibola County School District 2010 - 723 Graduates on time
• Two-year college graduates - 2008-2009 Associate Degree 65; No Certificates 68
• 4-year college graduates - N/A
• Graduate and professional degrees - N/A
• SAT/ACT scores and drop-out rate - Total Completers 403 and non 27
• Educational attainment data is provided by the Census Bureau (last bullet from local school district)

Cibola County is in northwest New Mexico in the Colorado Plateau. It is bisected by the Continental Divide where the Rio San Jose and the Rio Puerco run east to Albuquerque; only 1 hour 14 minutes and 77 miles from Grants/Milan. Gallup is 1 hour and 66 miles to the west of Grants/Milan; and 79 miles to the Arizona state line. Farmington is 137 miles to the north and the gateway to the Four Corners area.

Highway

Interstate 40 passes through the northeast corner of Cibola County east and west from Albuquerque to Arizona.
Hwy 53 allows visitors from Arizona to pass through the Pueblo of Zuni and Zuni Mountains.
Other arteries connect the Pueblo of Acoma and Laguna Pueblo to Interstate 40 with Historic Route 66 that runs parallel to Interstate 40.

Air

Commercial airline carriers at Albuquerque International Sunport
Grants/Milan Airport offers a helicopter pad as well as a runway for
larger private planes.

Rail Service

Burlington Northern Santa Fe – freight
Amtrak – passenger service out of Gallup and Albuquerque