The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Las Cruces District Office is seeking public input on its draft business plan to modify existing fees at the Three Rivers Petroglyph Site. The district is proposing to increase fees for day-use, campground, and group facilities.

These fee increases are being proposed to meet growing maintenance needs due to increased visitation and operating costs of the site. It has been more than12 years since fees have been changed. The new proposed fees will enable the BLM to improve services, add amenities desired by visitors and help ensure the site remains a place the public can be proud of for years to come.

The proposed fee increases are as follows:
1) Day use from $5 to $7;
2) Campsites from $7 to $10;
3) Tour bus fees from $15 to $20;
4) RV hookup campsites from $18 to $25; and
5) Group site fee from $50 to $60 per day.
These changes are proposed to be implemented in late summer 2024.

“The BLM recognizes Three Rivers Petroglyph Site for it’s cultural, historic and recreational value, both to our local communities and to the thousands of visitors from across the country and the world,” said District Manager Scott Cooke. “We are proposing these fee changes so that the same experiences will continue to be available to generations of future visitors.”

Through criteria established by the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act, the BLM conducted an assessment on the number and kind of amenities provided at the site. A comparative market study of fees charged for other similar recreation facilities in each local area was also used to determine the proposed fee adjustments. The proposed fee changes will be reviewed by the Southern New Mexico Resource Advisory Council in June.

The Act allows the BLM to keep 100 percent of the recreation fees collected and use the funds locally to operate, maintain and improve fee sites. Fees are one part of a comprehensive funding strategy to support recreation sites and services. This funding strategy also includes appropriated funding, volunteer assistance, interagency cooperation, grants, partnerships with the private sector, and commercial operations.

The BLM is proposing to use the increase in funds to broadly enhance recreational amenities, by adding additional RV sites with utility hookups and shade structures, update the water system, and expand upon and enhance all interpretive exhibits, signage and kiosks across the site. To better manage visitation to the area, the BLM is transitioning to Recreation.gov, the federal government’s public lands reservation system which will help market the site to visitors who may not otherwise hear of Three Rivers, make payment of fees more efficient, and offer cashless payment options.

The draft business plan is available online at https://www.blm.gov/programs/recreation/permits-and-fees/business-plans. The public is invited to provide direct feedback about the fee proposal by contacting the BLM Las Cruces District Office by mail at 1800 Marquess St., Las Cruces, NM 88005 Attention: Three Rivers Fee Increase or email the public inbox at blm_nm_lcdo_mail@blm.gov. The comment period runs from April 9 – May 8, 2024.