Taos council conditionally accepts street and utility dedication for Salazar South to clear way for 80-unit workforce housing project

The Taos Town Council on May 20 conditionally accepted the dedication of streets and utilities for the Salazar South subdivision, clearing a major procedural step for a proposed 80-unit, owner‑occupied workforce housing development. Deputy Planning Director Daniel Gonzales told the council the request comes from Zatam Urban LLC with Mark Yarovitz identified as the agent for the project.

In a presentation, Yarovitz described the project as workforce housing rather than subsidized affordable housing. He said the project will be owner occupied, built in phases, and that deed restrictions negotiated with the New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority (NMFA) will cap resale eligibility to New Mexico residents under an income limit tied to area median income. "These are owner occupied, not for rent…deed restrictions will be worked out with the NMFA guidelines," Yarovitz said. He said the NMFA requires the town's formal involvement as a condition of the developer's financing and that without the town’s approval the project could revert to a market‑rate development with an HOA.

Yarovitz told council the overall plan is to build 80 homes in phases (starting with 10), each two‑ and three‑bedroom with induction cooktops, heat‑pump mini‑splits for heating and cooling, radon mitigation and one‑car garages. He said the homes will be all‑electric and that project financing will rely on a combination of NMFA programs and other lenders; he also said the Opportunity Enterprise Revolving Fund (OERF) language allowing workforce housing helped enable state financing options. "This is owner occupied, not for rent…No short term rentals," he said.

Council members asked how local residency would be verified and how long deed restrictions would last on resale. Yarovitz said an in‑state driver's license and NMFA income limits would be part of eligibility screening and that NMFA recommended a 10‑year restriction though he personally favored permanent restrictions; council discussion acknowledged tradeoffs between long‑term restrictions and resale equity.

Deputy Planning Director Gonzales clarified the council was being asked only to accept the public infrastructure dedication; the council will review housing construction details in later permitting steps. Council voted to approve resolution 26‑13 conditionally accepting the dedication of streets and utilities for the Salazar South subdivision. The motion passed unanimously.

The developer said the hoped break‑ground date is August, pending financing and final approvals. The approval is conditional and does not authorize construction of the homes themselves; future permitting and inspections will be required before vertical construction begins.