This is a developing story.
A multi-million dollar project to tear down and rebuild the Chisos Mountains Lodge at Big Bend National Park was suddenly cancelled Wednesday just a month before it was set to begin.
Park officials did not announce or offer an explanation for the abrupt change in plans for the project, which was set to begin May 1.
The change was noted only on the park’s website, which was updated Wednesday afternoon to say the “construction project has been cancelled” and “will not proceed as planned.”
The park website also indicated the Chisos Basin area, which was set to close to visitor access for at least the next two years starting in May, will now remain open.
Spokespeople for Big Bend National Park and the National Park Service did not immediately respond to questions about the cancellation.
The project – which would have involved a complete teardown and rebuild of the decades-old lodge and restaurant – had already been delayed multiple times over the past year or so. The plan was funded by the Great American Outdoors Act of 2020 and also involved a project to replace the Chisos Basin’s aging water infrastructure.
It was not immediately clear Wednesday afternoon if the water line improvements have also been cancelled. The aging infrastructure in the Chisos Basin was partially to blame for a critical water shortage in the park’s popular mountainous area that lasted from around Christmas of 2025 to mid-February of this year.
Loren Riemer, Executive Director of the nonprofit Big Bend Conservancy, said in an interview that the decision was likely made at the Washington, D.C. level and related to construction costs that have rapidly escalated since federal funding was first approved for the project.
"My understanding is that they plan to reissue a solicitation focused solely on the Chisos Basin water supply rehabilitation, excluding the lodge reconstruction and other facility upgrades, as soon as possible," she said. "The rebid of the water project is really important."
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