Since 2018, Alamosa Planning Staff has been keeping an inventory of zoning discrepancies throughout the city. Some of these discrepancies occurred with the map that was adopted at the end of 2017 with the adoption of the UDC through the legislative authority of City Council. In other words, zoning adopted through adoption of the UDC (which in some cases changed pre-existing zoning) were not zone changes applied for by citizens, but as a larger process when the City updated its development code.

In the intervening time since, the City has completed and adopted a number of long-range planning documents to further the City's goals as identified in the Comprehensive Plan, such as the Downtown Design Plan, Ranch Master Plan, and the Housing Action Plan. These plans identify or suggest different zones that are more appropriate than the existing ones. Attached are various excerpts of the City's long-range plans that discuss rezonings.

Using these plans as a guide, and being mindful of the statutes and best practices surrounding rezoning (i.e. avoiding "spot" zoning), staff prepared an initial proposal to bring forward to a joint Council-Planning Commission work session on January 12, 2022. Following that, staff began a public outreach process to solicit feedback and address questions or concerns about the proposed rezones. Outreach included PSA blitzes, a utility bill stuffer, individual letters to every affected property owner, an appearance on the "Valley Pod" podcast, and a public workshop/open house on March 15th. The most common question received was if a zoning change would affect property taxes. Zoning does not affect property taxes; the County Assessor's office assesses property based on the actual use of the property with no concern for the zone district. Five properties were removed from the proposal based on public feedback: the narrow strip of land behind Safeway and two small lots behind Walgreens. The other two properties removed were a zone boundary clean up that would have expanded an industrial zone towards established residential neighborhoods off of La Due. 

The attached proposal incorporates all of this feedback, in addition to the revisions and comments received in the initial January work session. This version was recommended for approval by Planning Commission unanimously at their regular meeting on March 23, 2022.

The proposed zoning changes affect 455 properties within Alamosa. The vast majority (97%) either bring certain historic uses into land use compliance (such as historic residential uses that are currently within Commercial Business zones) or do not effect the existing status (such as rezoning the McClain Fink residential neighborhood from the Established Neighborhood zone to the Residential Medium zone). Some of the rezone changes result in a more appropriate zone than the ones existing. For example, Cattails Golf Course is currently zoned Residential Low, and the proposed zone is Agricultural. Similarly, the various Alamosa School District properties have an array of zoning designations. This would rezone all ASD properties to Campus.

Additionally, some rezones are proposed to incentivize development in areas where infrastructure or other physical limitations have made development stagnate, such as some of the large vacant commercial properties south of West First Street along Craft Drive. The intent in this case is to allow a wider array of land use options for developers in order to increase development opportunities.

A small fraction (about 3%) of properties change from a land use status of conforming to lawfully nonconforming. Pursuant to §21-7-201 of the UDC, nonconforming uses are allowed to be continued and maintained, but may not be expanded or altered.