(A) Title. This section may be cited and referred to as the Valencia County Historic Overlay Zone District (HOD).
(B) Purpose. To promote the economic, cultural, and general welfare of the people of the County and to ensure the harmonious, orderly and efficient growth and the development of the County, it is deemed essential by the Board of County Commissioners that the qualities relating to the history of Individual communities within Valencia County, and a harmonious outward appearance, which preserve property values and attract tourists and residents alike, be preserved, some of these qualities being:
(1) The continued existence and preservation of historical areas and buildings;
(2) The continued construction of buildings in the historic styles; and
(3) A general harmony as to style, form, color, height, proportion, texture and material between, buildings of historic design and those of mote modem design.
(C) Scope and relationship to General Use Zoning Districts. The HOD is intended to apply in combination with the underlying zoning districts of §§ 154.105 through 154.137 to impose design regulations and standards in addition to those required by the underlying districts. When the requirements of HOD is in conflict with those of the underlying district or those of another overlay district, the more restrictive limitation or requirement controls.
(D) Criteria for Designation of Historic District. A District may be designated if it constitutes a distinct section of the County and contains properties and are environmental settings which meetings two or more of the following criteria:
(1) Possesses significance in history, architecture, archeology, and culture;
(2) Is associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of local, regional, state, or national history;
(3) Is associated with events that have made a significant impact in our past;
(4) Represents the work of a master designer, builder, or craftsman;
(5) Embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction; or
(6) Represents an established and familiar visual feature of the County.
(E) Procedure. The procedure for establishing or amending a Historic Overlay District may be initiated by at least 75% of the landowners of the proposed District. An application shall be made on forms as prescribed by the County and shall be filed with the Planning and Zoning Director ("Director"), along with the fee set forth in § 154.077.
(1) Application. The application shall contain:
(a) Name, address, and telephone numbers of applicant, a signed petition of at least 75%of the landowners and a detailed description of the stakeholder groups and planning team involved in the process:
(i) Stakeholder participation. The process of adopting a plan shall involve key stakeholders including residents, neighborhood associations, community organizations, non-profits, urea institutions, universities, school districts, chambers of commerce, property owners, major employers, and businesses. Stakeholders shall form a planning team lit assist with plan development. Plans will undergo continuing county departmental review to clarify and identify any program or policy inconsistencies.
(ii) Planning team. The planning team shall include, to the extent practicable, a cross section of the land area to be included in the plan including hut not limited to residents (both renters und owners), business persons (both renters and owners), property owners of developed and unimproved properties, and institutional organizations such as school districts and churches. It is recognized that the composition of the planning team shall vary among the neighborhoods according to the land use and development character or each planning area.
(b) Map indicating the geographic boundaries of the proposed area showing all affected buildings and/or structures;
(c) Detailed historic description and background on the property or area;
(d) Current photographs of the area, along with any historical photographs, if available.
(e) A proposed community development plan, which will include, at minimum;
(i) Height and are regulations. The Community Development Plan shall specify height and area regulations for uses within the plan area, or shall reference regulations established elsewhere in this section;
(ii) Landscape and buffer landscaping. The Community Development Plan shall specify landscape and buffet landscaping regulations for uses within the plan area, or shall reference regulations established elsewhere in this section.
(iii) Parking. The Community Development Plan shall specify parking regulations for uses within the plan area, or shall reference regulations established elsewhere in this section.
(iv) Signage. The Community Development Plan shall specify signage regulations for uses within the plnn area, or shall reference regulations established elsewhere in this section.
(v) Lighting. The Community Development Plan shall specify lighting regulations for uses within the plan area, or shall reference regulations established elsewhere in this section.
(vi) Walls and fences. The Community Development Plan shall specify walls and fences regulations for uses within the plan area, or shall reference regulations established elsewhere in this section.
(vii) Building design. The Community Development Plan shall specify building design regulations for uses within the plan area, or shall reference regulations established elsewhere in this section.
(f) Any other information which the Planning and Zoning Director may deem necessary.
(2) Notice of hearing. Upon receipt of a completed application, the Director shall schedule a hearing at the next available regularly scheduled Planning and Zoning Commission meeting. The Department shall provide individualized notice of the public hearing, of a summary of the substance of the application, and of an adequate description of the area to be included within the HOD, to those affected by the application as provided by NMSA 1978, §3-21-6(B), as the same may be from time to time amended., a minimum of 15 days prior to the scheduled hearing. For these purposes, the last known name and address of the owner shown in the record of the Valencia County Assessor shall be used. A published notice of the scheduled hearing shall also be made in accordance with the New Mexico Open Meeting Act.
(3) An area that is under renew by the County for designation as a Historic District shall be
protected by and subject to all of the provisions of this article governing construction and penalties until a final decision by the Board of County Commissioners becomes effective.
(4) Conduct of public hearing before the P and Z. The P and Z shall conduct its public hearing according to a resolution it may adopt for that purpose. At the hearing, the applicant shall have an opportunity to present testimony and evidence to demonstrate the historical significance or insignificance of the area. Other interested parties and technical experts may also present testimony or documentary evidence which will become part of a record. The burden of proof shall be upon the applicant Whenever a change in the underlying zoning is proposed, the application shall be subject to the same quasi-judicial zone change procedures pursuant to § 154.061. The provisions for ex parte contact, continuation of a hearing, and testimony and evidence provided for in § 154.077 shall apply to P and Z hearings in this Type C application procedure.
(5) Deadline for hearing and recommendation. Within 60 days of receipt of a completed application, or a longer period mutually agreed to by both the Department and the applicant, the P and Z shall have held its hearing and recommend the application be approved or denied by the Commission based on an evaluation of the proposal and applicable criteria as set forth in this chapter.
(6) Written recommendation of decision. Upon issuing a final recommendation of decision to the Commission, the P and Z shall promptly prepare a written recommendation that includes an order recommending grant or denial of the requested relief and a statement of the factual and legal basis for the recommendation, shall file the written decision with the official public records of the P and Z, and serve upon alt with standing a document that includes a copy of the written recommendation and the procedure to follow before the Commission.
(7) Schedule public hearing before Commission. Promptly after service of the P and Z's written communication, the Department shall schedule a public hearing before the Commission, or hearing officer as may be requested by the Commission. The record and recommendation from the P and Z on the matter shall be transmitted to the Commission at or prior to the Commission's public hearing, and shall be made a part of the Commission’s record on the matter.
(8) Notice of public hearing before commission or hearing officer. The Department shall provide individualized notice of the public hearing, of a summary of the substance of the application, and of an adequate description of the property at issue, to those affected by the application as provided by NMSA § 3-21-6(B), as the same may be from time to time amended.
(9) Conduct of public hearing before Commission.
(a) Generally. The Commission shall conduct its public hearing according to a resolution it may adopt for that purpose. At the public hearing the county staff, the applicant, and other interested parties may present information relevant to the proposal, and may give reasons why the application should or should not be recommended for approval.
(b) Continuance of hearing. A public hearing may be continued as is necessary to gather additional information on the application or for other good reason and no additional notice need be given if the hearing is adjourned to a time and a date certain, unless otherwise ordered by the Commission.
(c) Ex parte contact.
(i) In any land use application subject to a quasi-judicial hearing process, applicants, their agents or representatives, interested parties and the general public shall limit their contact with the Commission or any member of the Commission to relevant matters before me Commission.
(ii) The Commission or any member of the Commission in which the contact has been made, shall refrain from any decision under this chapter until the matter is presented to the full Commission at a public hearing in which all patties have the opportunity to be heard;
(iii) Staff memoranda, reports and other materials prepared by county staff in connection with the particular matter shall be provided to all parties within a reasonable time before any public meeting on the matter.
(d) Testimony and evidence.
(i) Testimony and evidence presented at hearings shall be pertinent and based upon sound reasoning, and shall be incorporated into the record unless the chair rules the information to be excluded from the record as immaterial, or of questionable fact, intent or merit, based upon objection raised by the Commission members or other patties having standing in the hearing.
(ii) All testimony and evidence not excluded shall become a part of the hearing record, and in addition to verbal testimony, may be presented in written form or incorporated by reference.
(iii) In ascertaining whether or not the party providing testimony or evidence has standing, the chair may ask that the party identify and/or document the basis of standing, or may question the source of the information, or the interest or qualifications of the party submitting testimony or evidence, or question how the party giving testimony might be beneficially or adversely affected by the action under consideration.
(iv) In the event that it is determined that a party does not have standing because the party will not be beneficially or adversely affected by the action under consideration, the chair may direct that any prior testimony or evidence by that party be stricken from the record, and that further testimony from the party be prohibited.
(v) The chair may set reasonable and fair time limits for oral presentation of testimony and evidence.
(vi) Minutes of the meeting shall be accepted as the official hearing record.
(vii) A verbatim transcript is not required.
(viii) The rules of evidence shall not apply.
(e) Written decision. Upon issuing a final decision, the Commission shall promptly prepare a written decision that includes an order granting or denying the application and a statement of the factual and legal basis for the order, file the written decision with the County Clerk, and serve a document that includes a copy of the written decision and the requirements for filing an appeal of the final decision on all those with standing and those who have requested the service, in accordance with NMSA §39-3-1.1(B), as the same may be from time to time amended. Upon designation of a HOD, the designation shall be recorded by legal description on the County's official zoning maps.
(f) Effective date of decision. The effective date of decision is the date of recording of the final order or, if the decision is that no order is to be filed, the effective date of decision is the date of the letter notifying the applicant of the decision.
(g) Re-application. If an application under the Type C process is denied, and upon an exhaustion of remedies, no new application for the same or substantially similar action shall be filed for at least one year from the effective date of decision.
(h) Judicial review and/or appeals of commission decisions. A person with standing aggrieved by n decision of the Commission may appeal its decision pursuant to NMSA § 3-21-9, as the same may be from time to time amended, or seek judicial review pursuant to NMSA, § 3-21-25, as the same may be from time to time amended; provided, that the person file these petitions for review or appeal within 30 days after the effective date of the decision from which appeal or petition for review is taken.
(Ord. 2016-02, passed 4-20-2016)