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‘There’s not a lot of space for expansion’

LANL town hall addresses community concerns on housing, road safety, the environment

Stephanie Nakhleh's avatar
Stephanie Nakhleh
Jan 23, 2025
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Los Alamos National Laboratory Director Thom Mason and LANL’s Science, Technology, and Engineering Executive Officer Angela Mielke held a virtual town hall Tuesday evening, Jan. 21, addressing several local concerns while also promoting the Lab’s recent achievements and future plans. Questions were submitted both before and during the meeting via email.

The North Community, as seen from LA Mountain - photo by Stephanie Nakhleh

LANL hiring and growth stabilizing

LANL's explosive growth appears to be tapering off. At the town hall, Mason announced that hiring will drop to 1,200 new employees this year — less than half of 2023’s historic peak of 2,500 hires.

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The scale of LANL’s recent expansion is striking: the Lab’s workforce has grown from 11,743 employees in 2017 to about 18,000 today. This growth has dramatically impacted both commuting patterns and housing co…

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