Efforts to improve tourism facilities at the Four Corners Monument were highlighted Wednesday during ceremonies commemorating the site’s 125th anniversary.

Overlapped by Ute Mountain Ute and Navajo tribal lands, the unique geographic location common to Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Arizona is a popular stop for some 300,000 tourists annually and a source of income relied upon by vendors selling Native American jewelry, crafts and food in booths that circle the concrete monument.

But without running water or electricity for use by businesses and tourists alike, development at Four Corners has stalled, and over the years visitation has dropped.

That has prompted Congress to commit $2 million in new federal funds for basic infrastructure and a new interpretive center at the monument. That federal funding, outlined in a bill signed by the President, was approved in appropriations yesterday, with the catch being that each state must pitch in $500,000 before it is allocated.

"The four states need to contribute to this project, because for all of us this monument represents a doorway for economic development," said Selwyn Whiteskunk, vice chair for the Ute Mountain Ute tribe. "An interpretive center would preserve ours and the Navajos’ history and culture, and we are planning for that in a cooperative effort."

But more financial cooperation is needed from three of the Four Corners states. So far only Arizona, through its Department of Transportation, has secured its full share of the $500,000 in matching funds.

Utah has raised $100,000 at this point. Colorado has yet to ante up, and New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson vetoed funding that the state legislature had passed providing its full $500,000 portion.

States have until September 2001 to come up with the matching funds. Failing to do so would cancel the federal contribution, according to a spokesman for Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), sponsor of the federal initiative to fund the improvements.

"If the match is not there by the time the deadline sunsets, then the federal funds disappear," said Ron Dean, Hatch’s spokesman.

Preliminary sketches of one plan displayed by Ute Mountain Tribal Councilman Manual Heart show a small museum and education center with a vending area that offers better shade and more organization.

In that plan, natural grasses and native landscaping replace crumbling asphalt now at the monument, with portable bathrooms giving way to a permanent rest area that is hooked up to sewer water and electric lines.

"It’s not that different from home," said jewelry vendor Judy Kitseally of the lack of basic utilities. But the Navajo businesswoman, who has rented a booth from the Ute Mountain Ute tribe every summer for the past eight years, would like to see some improvement.

"I think that it would be better if we could have running water and electricity and some sort of restaurant for the tourists. Lately business has been slow, where five years ago it was much better," she said.

Providing a better outlet for Native Americans to sell their wares is important for not only the Ute and Navajo people, but for the Southwest’s economy in general, officials said.