Armory keys changing hands in Friday ceremony

Mesalands Community College officially takes the keys for the closed armory building in Tucumcari during a ceremony Friday.

Officials from the college and the New Mexico State Armory Board will finalize the real-estate agreement at 1 p.m. at the armory at 1200 S. 11th St.

Maj. Gen. Kenneth A. Nava, adjutant general of the state of New Mexico, and college President John Groesbeck will sign the papers at that time.

Parts of the inside of the armory will be open for the public to see after the ceremony. Refreshments will be served.

The armory closed several years ago amid a round of consolidation of National Guard units across the state.

Mesalands announced in September it planned to purchase the 21,540-square-foot building and adjoining 7.86 acres for $1.

The college plans to use the armory, which contains a commercial kitchen and gymnasium, as future student center and athletics complex.