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Board approves 'Tierra Pintala' subdivision; developers to use transfer‑of‑development‑rights and set aside affordable lots
Summary
The BCC approved preliminary plats for 138‑lot Tierra Pintala (Doctor Horton) on about 32 acres in the Mixed‑Use district, using transfer‑of‑development‑rights (TDRs) to reach the proposed density and reserving 11 affordable homes in phase 1.
The Board approved preliminary plat (phases 1 and 2) and the phase‑1 final plat for Tierra Pintala (filed by Doctor Horton / NN Land Solutions) on Jan. 28. The mixed‑use project covers 32.143 acres off New Mexico 14 and will be built in two phases totaling 138 residential lots and roughly 1.5 acres of nonresidential land. The applicant will use transfer‑of‑development‑rights (TDRs) to exceed the base district density and to reduce the nonresidential requirement to 5 percent.
The developer told the commission the project will provide 11 affordable lots in phase 1 (and 10 in phase 2) to be sold to income‑qualified buyers under the county’s affordable‑housing process. Applicants said they are finalizing the TDR purchases and will complete those transfers prior to plat recordation.
Commissioners focused on connectivity and neighborhood access. Commissioner Justin Green requested a pedestrian connection to link the subdivision to adjacent neighborhoods and to provide a path to the commercial parcel and Highway 14; the project civil team said the development will provide a trail along the southern edge and a connection along the west, and noted one southeastern connection faces a DOT access‑control area and site topography that must be engineered. The developer agreed to add a plat note and a condition requiring a pedestrian connection to the south, conditioned on DOT approval where access crosses state right‑of‑way, and to pursue feasible connections to neighboring Valle Vista and Pueblo Garcia neighborhoods as engineering and jurisdictional approvals allow.
Why it matters: The project is a practical example of the county’s TDR program in action — preserving agricultural land (TDR send sites) by shifting density to a mixed‑use growth area. Commissioners and members of the public who spoke in favor cited potential farmland preservation and the county’s use of TDRs as policy successes.
Votes and next steps: The BCC voted to approve the preliminary plats for phases 1 and 2 and the final plat for phase 1, with the pedestrian‑connectivity condition discussed on the record. Staff will confirm the TDR transfers, finalize plat notes and track engineering approval of pedestrian connections. The board will receive recordation documents once the plat, utilities and TDR paperwork are complete.
Ending: Neighbors and farmland owners who testified said they supported the project as a model for pairing growth with farmland preservation; commissioners requested staff follow‑up on DOT coordination and the timing of TDR recordation.
