Site plan for rural homes in the south approved by council

The governing body approved the site plan for the townhomes at addresses 700, 704 and 708 Southern Blvd at its regular Oct. 26 governing body meeting.

“I would like to formally request approval of the proposed site plan. I believe this site plan meets all city and overlay codes requirements,” said Matthew Herrera, applicant and owner of X2D.

The proposed townhomes will be three stories with a two-car garage level, a living/dining room level and a bedroom level. X2D plans to provide 42 townhouses. The properties in question were subdivided in 2007 to allow the construction of townhouses.

While no one actually went to the council meeting to speak in public comment against these homes, a few residents about the location of the proposed home wrote to the governing body.

“I oppose the request and approval of townhomes being built in my backyard. I am a single mother with a young daughter who enjoys spending time outside. Spur Road is a busy street with speed bumps, making it unsafe for children to play in the front yard. Our only other option is to Some time in our backyard. “If multi-family buildings are built, I believe it will be an invasion of privacy as the new residents will be able to see my backyard and my windows,” Angela Romero wrote.

She says she also feels that multi-family homes would add to the constant change and volatility of area residents, making her feel unsafe. She added that her property values ​​would be affected by the change.

“I have lived in my home since 1999 and take pride in the neighborhood and city I live in. Please consider the current residents before approving a zoning change. I hate having to vacate my home of almost 25 years because I feel unsafe and violated,” Romero said.

Other people doubled down because of the potential drop in property value.

“It is a fact that our existing home sales appraisals will go down! Who do we homeowners hold responsible for this difference in appraisal? The City of Rio Rancho or the developer? Who will be responsible for paying the difference in the sale value of our homes as of this date October 10, 2023, which is valued at Some for more than $500,000. Compared to the loss in value if townhouses were built on these parcels? “Homeowners are willing to have their realtors estimate the current sale value of our homes,” Susan Babcock wrote.

Babcock also claims that adding townhomes would increase the crime rate in the area.

For some people, it’s more worry about traffic than anything else.

“Traffic congestion has gotten so bad at certain times of the day that you can’t turn left onto Baltic or Pecos. “We were told the road would become 4 lanes years ago and that never happened but construction continued,” Patricia Ferriman wrote.

She also wrote that schools would not benefit from the addition of multifamily housing.

“The two elementary schools serving our district and one middle school are now extremely crowded, holding three times the number of students they were built to accommodate, and adding apartments will only make the situation worse,” continues Fairman.

The townhouses do not have a construction date yet. It is scheduled to be built next to Puesta del Sol Elementary School off Southern Avenue, between 7th Street and 10th Street.