Only thirteen miles of dirt road? Things have improved since I worked there in the late 60s (that's 1960s). As I recall, it was more like thirty miles or so of not always well maintained road, heading either north or south.

Things like dirt roads,or actually having to hike, rather than driving up to the attraction, tend to weed out casual visitors or those just making use of the restrooms (not that there is anything wrong with using restrooms). Those folks will always have Mesa Verde, with its paved road and developed facilities - basically more civilized than Chaco. Working the information desk at Mesa Verde, I had a visitor who said they had fifteen minutes to see Mesa Verde, what was available. I advised them to go have a quick cup of coffee and maybe a fast tour through the museum.

Actually if you want to see the best preserved cliff dwelling, in the most scenic situation, in all the National Parks, you want to visit Keet Seel. Be prepared for an overnight stay after a minimum eight mile hike.

There is a perpetual tension between preservation and development, and in my biased opinion, the National Park Service mostly gets it right. But the proper amount of development is always up for discussion - there are those who would build chair lifts to the summit of Denali, if they could.