A historic southern New Mexico mining town that once shined with the gold rush could sparkle again with some garnet.
Otero County commissioners approved financial assistance Tuesday for a proposed garnet mining operation in Orogrande.
Commissioners and the Alamogordo Chamber of Commerce have been in talks with former Rosemont Realty CEO Dan Burrell about the $20 million project.
Burrell discovered one of the largest freestanding deposits of garnet in the U.S. in the Jarilla Mountains Mineral District.
Burrell has proposed establishing a mine and a crushing plant.
Officials say the project would be funded with industrial revenue bonds and the county would not be responsible for any debt incurred.
Orogrande was a booming mining town that experienced a gold rush in 1905.
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Information from: Alamogordo Daily News, http://www.alamogordonews.com
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