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Do Villagers Still Share Common Goals, Objectives? |
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Written by Jeff Radford
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Friday, 22 December 2006 |
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First in a series
Corrales has embarked on a revision of its comprehensive plan, a
process which will officially confirm or change the community’s basic
goals and policies.
The Village Council agreed December 12 to create a committee to review and revise the 1996 Corrales Comprehensive Plan.
A committee is expected to be named at the January 9 council meeting to
begin the revision process. Mayor Phil Gasteyer asked members of the
council to suggest names of people who might be effective on such a
committee.
Prospects for more economic development here are driving, at least in part, the re-examination of policies in the existing plan.
Two weeks before councillors concluded they needed to begin updating
the Corrales Comprehensive Plan, they sought the advice of a specialist
from the N.M . Department of Economic Development.
The mayor and council had listened to the department’s Kathy McCormick
for nearly an hour just before the council’s regular meeting began
November 28.
To wrap up their work-study session, councillors asked McCormick what
initial steps should be taken to implement a serious economic
development program for Corrales.
When she was told the Village's comprehensive plan (sometimes
referred to as a master plan) was ten years old, McCormick strongly
recommended that it be reviewed and revised.
Later that same evening, councillors asked the mayor to put on the
December 12 council agenda discussion on revising the Comprehensive
Plan.
That was done, and councillors initiated the planning process at the December 12 session.
In doing so, several councillors, and the mayor, made it clear they did
not envision a drastic over-haul of the plan, but rather an update
using the current plan as the foundation. They anticipated that a
series of public hearings would be held on the plan before it is
presented to the council for adoption.
In an interview December 9, Mayor Phil Gasteyer was asked why a revision of the comprehensive plan is taking place now.
“The councillors have gone to training sessions by the N.M. Municipal
League, and [periodic revisions to the comprehensive plan] is one thing
they always recommend.
“A couple of the councillors have expressed interest in going forward with it.”
He said he hopes the new comprehensive plan can be finished by the end of 2007.
Gasteyer said he has been pleased with the 1996 comprehensive plan, and does not see a need for big changes in it.
“I’ve always thought the comprehensive plan was a pretty good over-all
product,” he said. “But it’s now 10 years old, and the Municipal League
and the Council of Government’s people always say that you should
re-visit them more often than every 10 years.”
The mayor pointed out funding is available to hire professional help in
developing a new plan, especially to assemble the data, such as
demographics and transportation flows, to begin the process.
“I personally prefer the appointment of a new committee by the
governing body [to produce the plan] and review by the Planning and
Zoning Commission of their work, as well as the governing body with
public hearings, as the way to re-visit the Corrales Comprehensive Plan.
“The mechanism we used last time [for the 1996 plan] led to a pretty
good product that needs to be updated. It certainly was a good
guideline when I served on the Planning and Zoning Commission,”
Gasteyer said.
“The one criticism of the plan —and I identify it with the late Larry
Vigil who was a Village councillor and Village Engineer for many years—
was that the 1996 Comprehensive Plan did not have precatory language
[expressing a wish, rather than a requirement]. You read through the
parts on residential and commercial development, and every goal is
phrased in terms of something that ‘should’ be done, but there was
nothing compulsory about the standards.
“I don’t know whether that language is customary in other communities,
but that was his criticism. He felt it should have more force. But by
the same token, David Mathews, when he served as Village Attorney, used
to tell us on the P&Z commission that when you encounter a conflict
between the general language of the comprehensive plan and he specific
language of our Zoning Ordinance, you always go with the specific
language.
“To make up an example: people would argue we shouldn’t have two-story
structures on Corrales Road because it interferes with the rural
atmosphere of Corrales. But we on the P&Z commission would say that
specifically in the ordinance it says the developer or owner may build
to a 26-foot height.”
Although the mayor supports the existing plan, he noted that several
parts were left very sketchy when the plan was adopted in 1996. He
pointed out the plan calls for an “alternate use” zone that might allow
developments more dense than one dwelling per acre, but provisions
implementing that type of development were never put forward in the
plan nor in subsequent ordinances.
Similarly, he said, the plan’s provisions for transportation was very
sketchy. “We never really had a long-range street plan which was called
for.
"We did have a ‘scenic byway,’ although that effort has sort of come and gone,” he pointed out.
“I also thought, upon re-reading the plan this morning, that there is
very little attention give to emergency preparedness and disaster
response and those kinds of municipal responsibility.”
The mayor said he was impressed with the accuracy of the forecast in
the 1996 plan about rising property values. “Their discussion of likely
growth, in terms of population and in terms of socio-economic change in
the village, showed they were pretty good forecasters. [They said]
adherence to the density rules would gradually drive residential
housing toward more expensive land and more expensive structures.
“So, one of the challenges to a new comprehensive plan effort would be
to see if there is a way to preserve and make available Corrales
properties for people of more modest means.”
Gasteyer noted the 1996 plan devotes much attention to the need for
historic preservation, but that not much follow-through has resulted.
“A lot of effort hasn’t really reached the finish line, in terms of
implementing ordinance changes on preserving structures that may not be
quite up to the standard of national historic registry, but still
contribute to the appearance and life style of Corrales. So we have a
challenge there, even though I think the directions, goals, objectives
and policies in that section of the plan are pretty good in the 1996
comprehensive plan.”
In general, he said, the existing plan is a good foundation for the
next revision.”The updating of a comprehensive plan is really that…
updating, rather than having to write something from scratch.
“Fortunately we’re building on a good foundation.”
Gasteyer said he anticipates that newer residents here share the community values that were expressed in the 1996 plan.
“I don’t know that it’s appropriate to generalize, but people who buy
into Corrales are looking at Corrales as we see it today, and there is
some appeal to the spaced out housing and the funky commercial area,
and the fact that we have this beautiful little library.
“They may have concerns about water and waste water and things like
that, but I think they enjoy the ambiance of Corrales, or they wouldn’t
have bought here in the first place.
“We’ve all benefited from the efforts to preserve the rural origins of
Corrales. You can see that from the fact that land here has become a
very precious commodity.
“So I’m not afraid of revisiting the comprehensive plan because it will
destroy someone’s birthright. I think the new residents and new voters
are entitled and encouraged to participate in the process.”
He said he is confident that many of the newer residents share the
earlier plan’s goals and “appreciate having the open space, and the
farmlands and views of the mountains, and the outdoor living.
“That, to me, is the reason my wife and I chose to live here. I think
it’s common to lots of other people you talk to here. They like to
opportunity to do things outdoors, like gardening, biking, hiking or
whatever for ten months of the year.”
Among the values that he thinks newer residents share with those who
have lived here longer is the importance of working from home.
The mayor pointed out that home-based businesses are not mentioned at
all in the 1996 comprehensive plan. “When they talked about commercial
development and economic goals, there’s no mention of home occupations.
And yet in the last decade, they’ve become perhaps the
predominant economic tool for people who reside in the village, and
that’s best understood, probably, by new residents.”
The 1996 plan was developed by a committee composed of Ed Boles, Jim
Henrie, Jim Jaramillo, Jess Keegan, Steve Komadina, Ralph Martinez and
Ann Taylor.
They were guided and assisted by then-Planning and Zoning Administrator Cyndie Tidwell, who is once again in that position.
Among the main goals set forth in the 1996 plan were:
• Conservation of Village Character. “Preserve the heritage and rural
character of Corrales, and preserve specific prehistoric and historic
places of significance to the Village and the State of New Mexico.”
• Residential Development. “Manage growth in the Village of Corrales to
assure and maintain low-density and maintain rural character of the
Village.”
• Commercial Development. “Allow for appropriate commercial development within the designated commercial zone.”
• Alternate Land Use. “Encourage economic diversity and provide a
mechanism which may be utilized to preserve large tracts or lots within
the Village of Corrales.”
• Agricultural Land Use Preservation. “Encourage the preservation of
agricultural land uses, such as farming, animal husbandry and features
which contribute to the rural atmosphere in the area.”
• Open Space. “Define and protect open space.”
• Transportation and Circulation. “The Village should have a system of
roads, streets and trails which is environmentally sound and
appropriately scaled to the needs, safety and rural life styles of its
residents.”
• Public Service and Facilities. “The Village should provide services
which enhance the community’s rural lifestyle and character. Facilities
necessary to carry out these services will be built and maintained.”
• Natural Environment; Water and Waste Management. “To protect the environment whenever and wherever possible.”
• Parks and Recreation. “Provide recreational opportunities for
residents of Corrales with an understanding of and respect for the
unique characteristics of the Village.”
• Trails. “Establish a basic Village trail system to serve the entire
Village and to contribute, though the use of the trails, to the
enhancement of Corrales’ unique rural character.”
• Bosque Preserve. “Protect and manage the Corrales Bosque Preserve in
order to preserve its natural character for the use and enjoyment of
the public in such a manner as will leave it unimpaired for future use
and enjoyment in its natural and protected condition.”
The comprehensive plan sets out municipal policies to achieve the goals
above. According to the process, ordinances are then to be adopted to
implement the policies. |
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