Skip to main content

Border housing sore subject for Arizona town

By WTOP Staff

ASTRID GALVAN
Associated Press

AJO, Ariz. (AP) — Some people here call it Sesame Street. Others call it Legoland.

Residents in the small former mining town of Ajo are describing the boxy-shaped, brightly colored houses built by the government for customs and border agents who work in and around the town.

A new report by the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general found that U.S. Customs and Border Protection overspent by about $4.6 million on new houses and mobile homes. Investigators say the government spent nearly $700,000 per house in a city where the average home costs less than $90,000.

Ajo residents say there were plenty of good homes to choose from and the government didn’t need to spend millions on new ones way above the market rate.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Emergency guide: What you should do to prepare for emergencies

By WTOP Staff
WASHINGTON — Do you know what you'd do if an emergency hits? What if you're at work, your spouse is stuck in traffic and your children are in school? There's no way to plan for every emergency, but you can make sure you're prepared for different scenarios, including making a plan for your family and building a kit of emergency supplies.
Read Next Story

Related News

Where to take the family while they visit DC

Step-by-step guide: How to make the perfect Thanksgiving pie

All remaining charges in Freddie Gray cases dropped