Bernalillo County defers Valle Del Sol sector plan amendment as water authority works on serviceability letter

The Bernalillo County Board of Commissioners on Feb. 11 voted to defer action on an amendment to the Valle Del Sol sector development plan, which covers a roughly 540-acre site east of Interstate 25, after the developer said it needed more time to receive a draft serviceability letter from the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Authority.

Carrie Barkhurst, lead planner for Bernalillo County, told commissioners the application by Tierra West LLC as agent for Horn Stewart LLC would amend the sector plan to reflect a private water and wastewater system, update the drainage design to match existing site grading and clarify permitted uses in the light-industrial (SDV M-1) area. "The scope is to amend the sector plan to reflect a private water and wastewater system that is separate from the water authority system," Barkhurst said.

The amendment would also make explicit that commercial, office, light-industrial uses and storage of shipping containers are allowed in the M-1 area; Barkhurst said the county planning commission unanimously recommended approval at its Sept. 9, 2024 hearing.

The developer's agent, Ron Bohannon, told the commission that the applicant has met with the water authority and reached a "verbal agreement" but had not yet received the written serviceability letter. Bohannon asked the board for a 30-day deferral so the parties could produce a draft in writing: "We just need it in black and white," he said.

Chris Cadena of the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Authority said the authority is able in concept to provide both the necessary fire flow and domestic demand for the Terra/Valle Del Sol area but that internal hydraulic modeling is still under way. Cadena described the serviceability process as two-part: an upsizing of a trunk line and a facility fee representing the development's proportional share of regional infrastructure. "That serviceability once written will go and get stapled behind a development agreement which will be presented to the water authority board for a vote," Cadena said.

On infrastructure, Bohannon and Cadena described a likely upsizing of roughly 1,100 feet of pipe from 14 inches to 24 inches. Bohannon said the developer's proportional share of upsizing and related costs would be between approximately $3.5 million and $4 million; he also referred to the overall development estimate as between $100 million and $120 million. The county did not adopt those figures as findings; they were presented by the applicant's representatives during the hearing.

Commissioners raised drainage and open-space concerns linked to Tijeras Arroyo, which runs near the site. County staff said the sector plan as adopted currently locates major public open space and trail connections south of the arroyo and that the applicant was not requesting a reallocation of open-space zoning in this amendment. A county staff member noted that Tijeras Arroyo must carry very large flows and that some channelization is technically necessary: "The arroyo carries 30,000 CFS," a staff speaker said, comparing that to a cited 100-year Rio Grande flow of about 20,000 CFS.

Commissioner Barbara Baca asked staff and the applicant to use the deferral period to review drainage solutions that preserve a naturalized corridor and trail connections. "Some sort of recognition of the major public open space connection along this arroyo is extremely important," Baca said.

After discussion, a commissioner moved to defer the item to the March 25 zoning hearing; the motion was seconded and passed 4-0. County staff noted the regular zoning meeting schedule (March 11 and April 8) and said departments could be ready for either March 11 or March 25, but the board adopted March 25 as the return date for this item.

The meeting record shows the board approved a separate procedural item earlier in the hearing—the Dec. 10, 2024 special zoning meeting minutes—by a 3-0 vote (one commissioner was recorded as excused for that vote).