Since Union Pacific demolished the only indoor maintenance facility on the line in 1997 - the last remaining stalls of the old Alamosa roundhouse - all maintenance on San Luis & Rio Grande equipment had to be done out in the elements. For a railroad with growing business - and in particular a growing maintenance-intensive steam locomotive roster - some sort of indoor facility with machine shop is almost a necessity. So, on Friday, 4-Jan-2008, the San Luis & Rio Grande Railroad broke ground on a new $3 millon, 26,000 square foot shop and office building in downtown Alamosa, CO.



The new shop building will be 175 ft. x 150 ft., and will be located in a large open field bounded by La Due Ave. on the east, Hunt Ave. on the west, Seventh Street on the south, and the mainline to Walsenburg on the north. The shops will have four tracks, with provisions for a fifth, and will do contract car and locomotive maintenance as well as tending to the railroad's own fleet. Ellis is hoping to attract outside steam locomotive work, as the facility will already have all of the tools and expertise needed to maintain the SL&RG's steam fleet. The building will also hold the railroad's new offices, to be moved over from the old Rio Grande freight house located north of the tracks at State Ave. and Sixth Street. Construction will be managed by Colorado Construction of Alamosa, and is estimated to be complete by late summer 2008.



In somewhat related news, the Alamosa County Social Services offices currently located in the old Alamosa depot are also being moved to a new building. This will enable the railroad, in conjunction with a new Colorado Welcome Center, to take over the real Alamosa depot and start using it for passenger operations.