Santa Fe staff outline Land Development Code phase 1 changes and next steps

Daniel Alvarado, senior planner, briefed the Planning Commission on April 17 about the Land Development Code update (Phase 1), summarizing substantive changes in the draft, recent additions since October and the next steps toward introduction to the governing body.

Alvarado said the Phase 1 work focused on code cleanup and reformatting, while preserving existing permitted uses; substantive changes highlighted in the disposition report include a two‑foot height increase across districts to accommodate modern building practices, added parking flexibility tied to context, strengthened bicycle parking standards, changes to overlay district handling, and new telecom provisions to align with federal shot‑clock requirements.

Why it matters: the LDC rewrite affects zoning rules, development standards, affordable housing incentives and administrative processes that steer how Santa Fe grows and how projects are reviewed. The update will go through additional advisory board reviews and governing body introduction before any final adoption.

Substantive items covered Alvarado told commissioners the code cleanup converts dense text into a more usable document, consolidates and clarifies zoning tables, removes seldom‑used overlay districts and introduces an enhanced affordability incentive program to supplement the existing Santa Fe Homes program. He said staff added two feet of allowable height across residential districts and removed an extra development‑plan requirement previously needed to reach higher density in some zones.

Telecoms, historic review and archaeology Staff said they devoted substantial attention to telecommunications rules because of ongoing litigation and federal timing requirements for telecom permit decisions (the so‑called shot clock). Alvarado also said recent work on the historic district rules focuses subdistrict regulations on measurable qualities — materials, massing and architecture — rather than stylistic prescriptions.

On archaeology, staff reported changes to the distances that trigger an archeological review when installing utility mains; as described by staff, the triggers vary by subdistrict: in the historic downtown the threshold was changed from 60 to 50 feet, Rivers & Trails to 50–100 feet, and suburban to 50–200 feet, depending on the archaeological overlay subdistrict.

Process and next steps Alvarado explained the procedural path: staff will complete a bill‑format draft and an accompanying memo and disposition report; the governing body will receive an introduction (no public comment at that step), then the draft will return for public hearings and advisory board recommendations (including historic and archaeological boards), then to standing committees and finally to the governing body for adoption. He said the city attorney’s office has conducted detailed legal review and that staff expect to publish the next draft in the coming weeks.

Commissioner questions and staff answers Commissioners asked whether the Planning Commission votes directly on historic‑district standards; staff explained the Historic Districts Review Board will make recommendations on historic rules and the Planning Commission will consider those recommendations. Commissioners also asked about the rationale for changing archaeological review distances; staff said the Archaeological Review Committee recommended changes after several recent discoveries associated with utility extensions and that thresholds were revised to reduce the risk of late discoveries when excavating streets.

Personnel note Alvarado said he will leave the city effective May 2 and that Heather and Maggie will manage the project in the interim; he said staff will continue toward adoption and thanked the commission for its past engagement.