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Growth Management proposes online permitting, code enforcement addition and LiDAR update
Summary
The department seeks funding for an online permitting system with code-enforcement module, an additional code-enforcement officer, LiDAR-grade topography updates and community-plan work including Labajada and SLDC updates.
Santa Fe County Growth Management presented FY26 initiatives on Oct. 11 that prioritize an online permitting platform, code-enforcement staffing, LiDAR topographic updates and continued community planning and land-use-code revisions.
Director Alexandra Ladd described three primary goals: begin user-group outreach and contractor-managed rewrite work for targeted Sustainable Land Development Code updates (including inclusionary zoning), complete neighborhood community plans (Labajad a plan was cited as nearing completion) and implement a full online permitting system with an integrated code-enforcement module. “A code is only as good as its implementation,” Ladd said when describing the department’s plan to add a code-enforcement officer to support recently adopted nuisance-abatement and short-term-rental ordinances.
GIS Manager Len Bundra explained that the county’s lidar/topographic data are roughly 11–14 years old and that an updated lidar flight would provide survey-grade ground-elevation data useful for slope, flood-path and stormwater analysis; he distinguished lidar needs from the assessor’s aerial-oblique imagery, saying the two products serve different technical purposes.
Ladd said the county is also studying additional impact fees (starting with an update to fire impact fees) and exploring in-house building-permitting options to reduce public confusion and duplicate reviews between county and state permitting systems. She emphasized the department’s commitment to front-line customer service and to maintaining staff support for residents who cannot use online portals.
Why this matters: Improved permitting, better GIS base data and a stronger enforcement presence can reduce project delays, improve public transparency and make code amendments meaningful by improving compliance and implementation. Commissioners asked staff to return with timelines and to ensure regional coordination with the city’s planning process.
