Submitted by Ken DeHoff, Corrales
In any functioning democracy, the bedrock of local governance is the public trust—the solemn agreement that officials will act with transparency regarding the land we share. In Sandoval County, that trust is being dismantled through a zoning process that prioritizes corporate secrecy over the safety of its citizens.
The recent approval of Conditional Use Permits CU-25-002 and CU-25-003 represents a profound failure of oversight. By definition, a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) is a surgical tool. It is designed to evaluate a specific land use that isn’t allowed “by right” because of its potential impact on public health, safety, and the environment. The law requires a specific review so that the community can understand—and the Planning and Zoning Commission can mitigate—the unique specific risks of a proposed use.
Yet, these applications were “blank check” requests by the Sandoval County Economic Development Department. Instead of disclosing a precise plan, Dora Dominguez requested permits to establish CUPs for “all uses” allowed within the General Industrial (I-1) district. By seeking blanket approval to “facilitate marketing,” the County effectively bypassed the very scrutiny that a CUP is legally mandated to provide. A recent Algodones homeowner’s conditional use permit, CU-25-001, to build a home on 4 acres received more scrutiny from the planning and zoning commission than this hypersonic missile factory did.
This wasn’t an oversight; it was a strategy of omission. While the public and the P&Z commission were told the CUPs were merely to “market” the site, reports indicate that the “Project Ranger” deal—a massive high-explosives hypersonic missile manufacturing plant—was already well underway.
The implications of this secrecy are profound. By refusing to name the specific use, the County avoided addressing the project’s most critical hazards: the transport and storage of high explosives, the potential for ground and water contamination and extremely hazardous sound pressure levels to neighboring properties. Without a precise use on the application, the Planning and Zoning Commission accepted all of these hazards on behalf of the community, with no mitigation plans. The Planning and Zoning staff report, with no information regarding the actual use of that land, declared as a fact that approval of these blank checks would have “minimal impacts on surrounding residential and agricultural uses and natural resources.”
By approving these “blank check” permits for all potential conditional uses, the Commission did not just streamline development; they stripped residents of their legal right to a meaningful public hearing on the actual risks to their lives and property. When government agencies act as agents for corporations to hide the “precise nature” of hazardous projects, they cease to be public servants. We must demand that these “blank check” permits be revoked and that any future development be met with the transparency the law requires and the honesty we are owed. And we must all make our voice heard clearly by those we elected to serve us – this was an unacceptable violation of the public’s trust by Sandoval County.
Couldn’t agree more! Follow the money!
Thanks Ken for taking the time to research this. What makes the County’s actions even more troubling is the timeline itself. The Planning and Zoning Commission approved the Paseo del Volcan (PDV) road alignment in early August—months before the public was told the true nature of Project Ranger—and the Sandoval County Commission formally approved that road project on December 10, 2025. Roads are not neutral infrastructure; they are enabling actions. Approving a major arterial extension in advance of a disclosed use constitutes pre-commitment, effectively locking in a hazardous industrial outcome before the legally required scrutiny ever occurred. By the time residents were allowed to speak, the County had already paved the way—literally and figuratively—making the subsequent “blank check” CUPs a procedural formality rather than a meaningful decision. This sequencing exposes the zoning process as a backfill exercise designed to ratify decisions already made, not to protect public health, safety, or trust.
No, To Project Ranger……..
I am so glad this is coming out. It’s time that crooked and underhanded politicians and corporations are exposed. The current government is self-serving (monetarily-you can rest assured they will become very rich supporting this dangerous project-and self-serving-they obviously knew the public would object and so kept this under wraps), and citizens in Rio Rancho and surrounding area need to know this secret, now public, project will be objected to and fought against. I am amazed that people don’t see that our “leadership” is behaving secretly and avoiding public scrutiny because of the questionable and dangerous conditions this project poses. The “hurrahs” for this project are from people who are saying the area will benefit from this project; they obviously don’t read the proof in the documents from those doing the research and uncovering these deceptive, harmful practices. If we don’t speak up now, we will face a future that includes poisoned land and water, scarred and banished wildlife, and dangerous conditions for residents. Do the residents in the area really want to deal with the impacts on our environment, explosions that will rock homes, and provide little contribution to NM? The claim that this project will provide 300 jobs eventually (over 6 years) is not enough to ignore the harm that will be done. We can’t wait to “vote someone else in” as the entrenched leaders are already in full swing with this project. What we need is full disclosure and much more open discussion and a vote from the PEOPLE who will have to deal with this.