Rio Rancho, New Mexico facts for kids

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Rio Rancho, New Mexico

City

Seal

Logo

Nickname(s):

"The City of Vision"

Location within Sandoval County

Rio Rancho, New Mexico

Location in New Mexico

Rio Rancho, New Mexico

Location in the United States

Country

Founded

1961

Incorporated

1981

Area

• City

103.62 sq mi (268.38 km²)

• Land

103.36 sq mi (267.70 km²)

• Water

0.26 sq mi (0.67 km²)

Elevation

5,509 ft (1,679 m)

Population

(2020)

• City

131,852

• Density

1,006.63/sq mi (388.66/km²)

• Metro

910,950 (Albuquerque Metropolitan Statistical Area)

Time zone

UTC−07:00 (Mountain)

• Summer (DST)

UTC−06:00 (Mountain)

ZIP Codes

87124, 87144, 87174

Area code(s)

505

FIPS code

35-63460

GNIS feature ID

2410954

Primary Airport

Albuquerque International Sunport
ABQ (Major/International)

Secondary Airport

Double Eagle II Airport
KAEG (Public)

Rio Rancho (which means "River Ranch" in Spanish) is the largest city in Sandoval County. It is part of the big Albuquerque metropolitan area in the U.S. state of New Mexico. A small part of the city also reaches into northern Bernalillo County.

Rio Rancho is the third-largest city in New Mexico and is growing very quickly. In 2020, about 104,046 people lived there. The name Rio Rancho comes from the old Spanish ranches, called Los Ranchos, that were set up along the Rio Grande river. Since the late 1900s, Rio Rancho has grown into a suburb of Albuquerque.

History of Rio Rancho
People of Rio Rancho
Geography and Climate
- Weather in Rio Rancho
Economy and Jobs
- Housing and Development
Education in Rio Rancho
Media and News
Transportation
Sports and Entertainment
Notable People from Rio Rancho
Images for kids
See also

History of Rio Rancho

Rio Rancho Estates in 1970, with the Sandia Mountains in the background

Most of the land where Rio Rancho is today was once part of the Town of Alameda Grant. This area was settled by Spanish colonists in 1710. The United States took control of it in 1848 after winning the Mexican-American War. Before that, Mexico had been independent from Spain since 1821. The ranches in this area were used for raising cattle and sheep.

By the early 1900s, much of this land was sold to companies that invested in land. Because it was close to Albuquerque, it became a good place for new neighborhoods after World War II. In 1961, a company called Amrep Corporation bought about 55,000 acres of land. They started building a housing development called "Rio Rancho Estates". The first families moved into these new homes in the early 1960s.

Amrep hired Ezio Valentini to help sell the land. He held dinner parties for people in northern states to encourage them to buy land. Many people moved to the area, and the population grew ten times bigger between 1970 and 1980. The City of Rio Rancho officially became a city in 1981. That same year, a large Intel Corporation factory opened, creating many jobs and helping the city's economy grow.

Since the 1990s, Rio Rancho has worked to become more independent from Albuquerque. It created its own public school district and library system. The city also tries to attract more businesses so that people can live and work in Rio Rancho.

In the early 2000s, the city built a new downtown area called the Downtown City Centre. This area includes a new city hall, a campus for the University of New Mexico West and Central New Mexico Community College, and the Santa Ana Star Center. The Santa Ana Star Center, which hosts sports and live events, opened in October 2006. The new City Hall opened in September 2007.

People of Rio Rancho

Census data and expectations for Rio Rancho's population

Rio Rancho has grown a lot over the years. In 1980, there were about 9,985 people. By 2020, the population had grown to 104,046.

In 2020, about 40.3% of households in Rio Rancho had children under 18 living with them. The average age of people in the city was 35 years old.

Geography and Climate

Rio Rancho is located in the Albuquerque Basin, west of the Rio Grande river, which forms part of the city's northeastern border. To the west of the city, there is a steep slope called an escarpment.

Rio Rancho shares borders with Albuquerque to the south and the Santa Ana Pueblo to the north. The town of Bernalillo and the village of Corrales are to the east.

The city covers about 103.6 square miles (268.5 square kilometers). Most of this area is land, with a small part being water.

Weather in Rio Rancho

Rio Rancho has a dry climate because it is in a "rain shadow." This means the Sandia Mountains to the east and the Continental Divide to the west block most of the rain. On average, Rio Rancho gets about 8.90 inches of rain each year. The western part of the city, which is higher up, gets a little more rain and snow than the more developed eastern part.

The summers in Rio Rancho are hot, with average high temperatures in July and August around 93-96 degrees Fahrenheit. Winters are mild, with average high temperatures in January and December around 53 degrees Fahrenheit.

Economy and Jobs

Intel opened in the mid-1980s.

The Intel Corporation is the biggest employer in Rio Rancho. Other important parts of the local economy include services, retail stores, and government jobs.

Rio Rancho is home to Intel Fab 11X, which is one of the largest factories in the world that makes computer chips. This factory, which cost $2 billion, opened in 2002. It was the first Intel plant to make 300 mm silicon wafers, which can hold almost twice as many chips as the older 200 mm wafers.

In 2005, Rio Rancho was the first U.S. city to offer citywide voice-over-WiFi (VoWiFi) service, allowing phone calls over Wi-Fi.

Several call centers are also located in Rio Rancho. A Walmart store opened in 2006, which helped bring other stores and businesses to the area.

An innovation center called "FatPipe" also opened a branch in Rio Rancho. It helps new businesses and ideas get started in the city.

Rust Medical center opened in 2011.

Housing and Development

Aerial view of suburban Rio Rancho

After the housing market crash in 2008, many homes in Rio Rancho faced foreclosure. However, by the late 2010s, the housing market had fully recovered. Many new housing developments started up again. In 2020, real estate sales were strong in Rio Rancho, helped by low interest rates and reasonable housing prices.

Education in Rio Rancho

Rio Rancho offers many educational opportunities. The University of New Mexico has a campus in Rio Rancho that focuses on health sciences.

Central New Mexico Community College also has one of its campuses in downtown Rio Rancho, close to the UNM campus.

Most students in Rio Rancho attend schools in the Rio Rancho Public Schools district. The city has two main public high schools:

V. Sue Cleveland High School (opened in 2009)
Rio Rancho High School (opened in 1997)

Other schools in the area include:

Mountain View Middle School
Eagle Ridge Middle School
Lincoln Middle School
Rio Rancho Middle School
Independence High School
Vista Grande Elementary School
Enchanted Hills Elementary School
Cielo Azul Elementary School
Colinas Del Norte Elementary School
Sandia Vista Elementary School
MLK Elementary School
Maggie Cordova Elementary School
Joe Harris Elementary School
Rio Rancho Cyber Academy

Some parts of Rio Rancho are served by the Jemez Valley Public Schools district or Albuquerque Public Schools.

Rio Rancho also has two public charter schools, The ASK Academy and Cyber Academy, for grades 6–12. Both schools focus on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education.

Media and News

Rio Rancho is home to the Albuquerque area's only oldies-format radio station, KDSK (AM). This station, also known as "Rio Rancho Radio," started broadcasting in the area in 2015. It features local Rio Rancho events and has a weekly show with the Mayor of Rio Rancho. The station's signal reaches the entire Albuquerque metro area and six counties in central and western New Mexico. Residents can also get TV and radio broadcasts from Albuquerque.

The local newspaper is the weekly Rio Rancho Observer. People can also read the daily Albuquerque Journal, which has a special local version for Rio Rancho called Rio West.

Rio Rancho also has a special TV channel for government meetings, available through the city's cable provider, Cable ONE.

Transportation

ABQ RIDE, Albuquerque's public transportation system, has a bus route (251 Albuquerque-Rio Rancho Rail Runner Connection) that connects Rio Rancho to the New Mexico Rail Runner Express train station at Journal Center.

In 2011, ABQ RIDE added more bus routes (96 Crosstown Commuter and 155 Coors Blvd) and a new express route (551 Jefferson/Paseo Del Norte Express) into Rio Rancho.

The Rio Metro Regional Transportation District runs Rio Transit, a special door-to-door bus service for senior citizens (55 and older) and adults with disabilities (18 and older) in Rio Rancho. This service helps people get around Monday through Friday.

Rio Metro RTD also has a bus route for commuters in the Enchanted Hills neighborhood of Rio Rancho. This bus connects residents to the US 550 New Mexico Rail Runner station. There are also bus connections from the US 550 Rail Runner station to other nearby towns.

Sports and Entertainment

Santa Ana Star Center

Rio Rancho has been home to several sports teams. The New Mexico Scorpions, a minor-league ice hockey team, played at the Santa Ana Star Center from 2006 until 2009.

The New Mexico Wildcats, an indoor football team, also played at the Star Center in 2008 and 2009. Later, the New Mexico Thunderbirds (a basketball team) and the New Mexico Mustangs (another hockey team) played there, but both teams moved away by 2012.

Since 2015, Rio Rancho has been the home of the Duke City Gladiators, a professional indoor football team. They play their home games at the Santa Ana Star Center.