Visitor Center – Truth or Consequences NM

Description

Now a visitor center, what was constructed as a community center in Truth or Consequences was constructed by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in 1938.

From The New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties (2004): “A WPA project completed in 1938, the former Hot Springs Community Center is one of the best examples of the Spanish-Pueblo Revival style in Sierra County. On a concrete foundation, the building is one story with a flat stepped roof with parapets. The greater height of the central core of the building denotes the auditorium located at the rear of the building. Consisting of a steel skeleton, the building’s walls are of adobe with a brown stucco facing. Vigas extend from the parapets of some of the lower walls. Single and paired windows are 6/6 double-hung, and the main entry is a recessed multi-light double leaf door topped with a multi-light transom. Flanking the interior hall leading to the auditorium are a series of small rooms and alcoves, some of which functioned as reading rooms during the period of significance. Despite the addition of a small court room along the north side and a municipal recreation building at the rear, the building retains its original appearance at its principal façade.”

The building, which later served as the Lee Belle Johnson Senior Recreation Center, is now the Truth Or Consequences Visitor Center, which “also houses the Spaceport America Visitor Center in the auditorium.”