SANTA FE, August 22, 2022 — The Midtown Site development project marks a major milestone as it officially moves from the planning to the approval stage. Today the Midtown Moving Forward team, under the direction of the Office of Economic Development, is submitting applications related to the Land Development Plan to the Planning and Land Use Department, initiating a series of reviews by various bodies that are expected to culminate in a vote on the Midtown Redevelopment Plans by the Governing Body on November 9.

Mayor Alan Webber says: “Midtown is moving forward! We’re seeing important progress with both the zone change and the master plan. Community voices continue to play a key role in defining what will happen on the site and we’re hearing from interested developers who recognize Midtown as the new center of Santa Fe. I’m excited to see all of the work of preparation with the community and planners now turn into action.”

The Midtown Redevelopment Plans consist of two interdependent documents, preliminary drafts of which are now previewed on MidtownDistrictSantaFe.com:

• The Land Development Plan establishes the regulatory land uses and master plan for potential developments on the site.
• The Community Development Plan provides guidelines for achieving public policy objectives (details below).

Taken together, they bring into focus a vision of the possibilities for creating a vibrant new city center for living, learning, playing, and working at the 64-acre site in the heart of Santa Fe. The plans represent the culmination of several years of planning with the public, city staff, consultants, developers, and elected officials. They are based on objectives expressed by residents of Santa Fe for a multi-use civic district that’s environmentally sustainable, socially equitable, affordable, economically robust, and continually responsive to public wishes for its evolution.

The Land Development Plan is driven by legal regulations that define what can be built on the land, uses, design standards, site plans, streets, etc. Public input over the years has helped define these physical plans. The plan includes mixed-use zoning, urban design guidelines and requirements, density patterns, infrastructure requirements, transportation within and surrounding the site, and open-space allocations. It will also serve as a guide for green building and site resiliency strategies, zoning for housing affordability, and other public policy benefits.

The Community Development Plan is community- and policy-driven and provides guidance and requirements for how development will benefit communities and achieve public goals like employment, housing, culture, etc. Through the public engagement effort, people envisioned more than land use goals and design standards for the redevelopment of Midtown and voiced community and public objectives related to equity, the economy, environment, and culture. It is intended to be easily revised and updated in the future to address new issues and agendas that arise. This plan was informed by public engagement planning events and will be available for public input.