By Brenna Goth | The Arizona Republic
AJO – A cluster of yellow, blue and salmon-colored homes recently sprouted in the desert here, just west of the Spanish Colonial Revival-style plaza and north of the New Cornelia mine lookout.
And taxpayers paid millions of dollars for it.
The federal government spent, on average, more than $600,000 apiece to plan and build the 21 two- and three-bedroom houses and develop the surrounding area to attract U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel to live in this small former mining community. The new homes range in size from 1,276 to 1,570 square feet.
Most similar-size homes in Ajo sold last year for less than $100,000, according to a database maintained by the Arizona Daily Star.
Altogether, the government has paid $15 million for the homes plus 20 park-model trailers in Ajo, according to documents examined by The Arizona Republic.
