History

Built for Living.
Living for Progress.

Located in the Playas Valley, the town site of Playas sits cradled by the Little Hatchet Mountains to the east and the Animas Mountains to the west. A seasonal lakebed (the "playa" from which the valley and town derived its name) lies nearby, filled mainly by the monsoons of July. The level fluctuates with precipitation during the year. The Little Hatchet Mountains hosted several mines during the mining peak from the late 1880s through the early 1900s. The area was selected because of the valley's abundant water supply for railroad operations.

In 1902, Phelps Dodge and Company built the El Paso and Southwestern Railroad to tie El Paso, Texas, to the copper mines of Bisbee, Arizona, and other Arizona mining towns. New Mexico's Hwy 9 grew along the railroad, creating a "Border Route" between Columbus and Rodeo. The valley grasslands grew a healthy cattle business, viable with the building of the railroad. The Playas Siding was a major station at which cattle were loaded for market. In 1971, many years after operation of the railroad ceased, Phelps Dodge (PD) built a copper smelter about 10 miles south of the siding. Because the area provided little housing options, PD built a town for employees of the smelter. It was isolated, but complete with 250 rental homes, six apartment buildings, one bowling alley (Copper Pins), grill, rodeo ring, helicopter pad, parks, fitness center, shooting range, medical clinic, community center, baseball fields, bank, large mercantile, post office, and swimming pool. The town maintained about 1,500 residents and became a commerce center for ranchers and area citizens.

Copper prices fell and in 1999, PD made the decision to close the smelter and the town. A skeleton crew remained housed in Playas to manage the ongoing environmental maintenance as, and after, the smelter was demolished and removed. Four years later, New Mexico Tech signed a $5 million purchase agreement with PD. The town became a training arena for first responders and counter-terrorism programs and soon expanded its capabilities for military, Border Patrol, law enforcement, and research entities. As training ranges became consistently utilized, new structures and venues were built and implemented, both within the premises and on surrounding land leased from local ranchers. Today, the Playas Research and Training Center accommodates national and international training and research. Its reputation has grown and is respected in many security arenas.