Jemez Springs planning commission approves short‑term rental permit, delays building permit over missing floodplain determination

The Village of Jemez Springs Planning & Zoning Commission on July 22 approved a Short Term Occupancy Rental Conditional Use Permit for 343 Mooney Rd, an application submitted by Rebecca and Ian Cook. The action was recorded in the commission’s minutes for the regular meeting held at the Josephine Shephard Memorial Building.

The commission did not approve a building permit application for 17403 Highway 4, filed by Steven Neff and Talia Michelle, because the permit lacked a required floodplain determination. The commission requested that Chair Betsy Daub make a determination on the application once a floodplain finding is received.

Commissioners noted the delay stems in part from Sandoval County’s current absence of a floodplain administrator. The commission discussed the option of engaging a different floodplain administrator to produce the determination; members cautioned that an outside administrator could be substantially more costly. The commission said it will review at its next regular meeting whether any unusual extra costs should be passed on to the applicant.

Also noted in the chair report: a separate building permit for 16677 Highway 4 (owner Susan Pate) was approved by the chair after open space was determined to be approximately 80 percent. The minutes do not record motions, seconds or vote tallies for the permit approvals.

Next steps: the commission will await a floodplain determination for the 17403 Highway 4 application and the chair will make the formal determination when that finding is provided. The commission also plans to consider at its next meeting whether to shift any additional administrative costs to applicants if outside floodplain services are required.