Rio Rancho Fire Chief James Wenzel warned city councilors Thursday that a proposed high-hazard facility in Sandoval County could strain the city’s fire department resources and pose unique safety challenges.
Wenzel told the council Nov. 13 that Project Ranger, planned for county property just outside city limits, will trigger automatic aid responses from Rio Rancho Fire Rescue. The facility’s operations involve hazardous materials that require specialized safety protocols.
Days later, California-based defense contractor Castelion officially announced it had selected Sandoval County for the project, a 1,000-acre hypersonic missile manufacturing campus located about 3 miles west of Rio Rancho city limits. The facility promises to bring more than 300 jobs with average salaries of $100,000 and generate more than $650 million in economic output over the next decade.
“Our responders are the primary responders to this location,” Wenzel said during his presentation. “We have to have the ability to understand any variances and exceptions in the suppression systems.”
Safety concerns mount
The project has sparked significant community debate since New Mexico was named a finalist in August. Technical documents show emergency explosion scenarios could affect structures up to 5 miles away, with 5,933 buildings within that radius. The site sits 2.9 miles from Rio Rancho’s Northern Meadows neighborhood.
The fire chief outlined three main concerns: communication gaps between agencies, operational impacts on the department and questions about which jurisdiction has authority over fire code enforcement.
Wenzel noted that communication had been “limited and inconsistent” initially but said recent weeks have shown improvement between the facility operator and Sandoval County.
Call volume projections
Wenzel said the department anticipates six types of emergency calls from the site, ranging from fire alarm activations and medical emergencies to hazardous material incidents and large-scale fires. He compared the facility to Intel’s Sandoval County operations, which generate an average of 75 calls annually for Rio Rancho Fire Rescue.
Project Ranger will primarily pull resources from Fire Stations 2 and 6, forcing other stations to backfill those areas and potentially spreading crews thin across the city, according to the presentation.
Fire code variances
The facility’s developers have requested two major fire code exceptions through the State Fire Marshal and New Mexico Construction Industries Division: no fire sprinklers in hazardous buildings and no fire hydrants for those structures. Both requests reference Department of Defense standard 4145, which prohibits water suppression systems in facilities storing oxidizers due to potential volatile reactions.
The State Fire Marshal approved the sprinkler exemption but deferred the fire hydrant decision to the local authority having jurisdiction, in this case, Sandoval County Fire Rescue.
Wenzel said developers verbally agreed to install fire hydrants and sprinklers in non-hazardous buildings on the property.
Jurisdiction questions
The fire chief said Sandoval County holds official jurisdiction over the site, but Rio Rancho crews would be first responders under the departments’ automatic aid agreement. That agreement, established in 2013 and updated in 2023, automatically dispatches Rio Rancho units to certain areas of the county without requiring a mutual aid request.
The agreement is due for renegotiation in 2027.
Wenzel said officials discussed drafting a memorandum of understanding among Rio Rancho Fire Rescue, Sandoval County and the State Fire Marshal’s office to clarify expectations and involvement for all parties. The Rio Rancho City Council later required such an MOU before releasing any city funds for the project.
“I think an enterprise like this deserves to have that seat at the table,” he said.
Economic development package
County and state officials approved a $10 million incentive package in October under the Local Economic Development Act, with $5 million from the state, $4 million from Sandoval County and up to $1 million from Rio Rancho. The money will be used for land acquisition and infrastructure upgrades, including the extension of Paseo del Volcan.
Officials said the agreement includes full clawbacks if the company doesn’t meet job creation and safety benchmarks. The county also approved $125 million in industrial revenue bonds for the project in August.
Safety planning
The chief said the facility’s high-risk classification will require pre-incident safety planning and aerial familiarization training for all Rio Rancho fire crews across three shifts, not just those stationed nearest the site.
Annual fire inspections would be conducted jointly with the State Fire Marshal’s office to ensure fire suppression and alarm systems meet required standards.
Castelion plans to invest more than $100 million over the first four years of development and expects to break ground in early 2026. The campus will produce solid rocket motors, conduct static tests and assemble components, though no missiles will be launched from the site and no chemical synthesis will occur on-site, according to company officials.