The Santa Fe County Planning Commission voted Nov. 20 to recommend that the Board of County Commissioners adopt the 2025 La Cienega and La Cieneguilla communities plan.

Senior community planner Nate Krayl presented the nearly 160‑page update, saying it carries forward much of the 2015 plan while reorganizing content, sharpening a community vision that treats the area as multiple subcommunities, and adding photos and community‑sourced maps. Krayl said the implementation element was intentionally written to be actionable and lists partner organizations and multi‑year timeframes for projects.

Krayl told commissioners that the community prioritized extending county water lines and remediation planning for PFAS and other contaminants among the plan’s top six projects, and that those items informed the implementation matrix. "Extending the water lines is a top priority for the communities," Krayl said, adding that some projects could take a decade or longer and will require outside partners such as the La Cienega Valley Association, Santa Fe County and the New Mexico Environment Department.

Commissioners largely praised the draft but pressed staff on details. One commissioner noted apparent arithmetic errors in Table 3 (page 22) and urged staff to check the numbers so readers are not led to question the plan’s credibility. Commissioner Bruegger asked how the plan should guide quasi‑judicial decisions such as family transfers and variances and whether the plan signals a general intent to alter setbacks, heights or density. Krayl said some communities favor reducing setbacks and that specific overlay amendments will be developed and vetted in upcoming neighborhood discussions.

Members of the La Cienega community spoke in support of the update. JJ Gonzales, a planning committee member, thanked county staff and local volunteers who worked on the project; Carl Dickens, former president of the La Cienega Valley Association, praised the plan’s efficiency and outreach. "This plan had not been updated since 2015," Gonzales said, and the committee’s participation helped align the document with county policy.

The commission’s motion to recommend approval to the Board of County Commissioners carried by voice vote. If the BCC follows the commission’s recommendation, a final public hearing before the Board is expected in December. The plan as recommended will be followed by proposed amendments to the county’s Sustainable Land Development Code (an overlay in SLDC §9.8) to implement changes such as setback and height adjustments; staff said those overlay changes will return to the commission after further community meetings.

Next steps: the plan goes to the Board of County Commissioners for final action; staff also plans a follow‑up community outreach process next spring for overlay discussions.