Los Alamos Reporter

Los Alamos And White Rock Downtown Master Plans Set For Discussion At Tuesday’s County Council Work Session

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BY MAIRE O’NEILL
maire@losalamosreporter.com

The virtual Los Alamos County Council work session slated for 6 p.m. Tuesday will include a presentation by the consulting firm of Dekker, Perich, Sabatini on the status of the Los Alamos and White Rock Downtown Master Plans and Development Code Update project.

According to the Council agenda package, the presentation will focus on initial existing conditions findings, site analysis, and the Chapter 16 Code diagnosis.  There will be an opportunity for discussion and feedback on the project from Council members and the project schedule, public outreach plan and next steps are expected to be presented.

Dekker, Perich, Sabatini is the same firm that is working with Council on the North Mesa Housing Project.

  • Promote increased density downtown and provide housing for seniors, students and the workforce.
  • Protect existing neighborhoods from incompatible development.
  • Create a variant mixed use and pedestrian-friendly downtown while maintaining a small town character.
  • Promote infill and eliminate blight.
  • Promote Los Alamos County as an “Outdoor Community” and build on the existing strengths of the community: technology, innovation and information.
  • Revitalize downtown with a focus on quality tourism-related businesses and a diversification of the economic base and businesses that support and retain the Los Alamos National Laboratory workforce.
  • Create a vibrant, pedestrian-friendly environment with access to open space areas and recreational facilities.
  • Create a user-friendly, efficient, multi-modal system connects housing and employment centers,
  • Maintain and improve pedestrian and cyclist infrastructure.
  • Develop flexible regulations that support business.

Phase 1 of the project will involve an existing conditions assessment in July and early August to be followed by work on drafts and concepts until December when the final master plan will be presented and the approval process will be initiated.

The update to Chapter 16 of the Los Alamos County Code, also known as the Development Code, is slated to begin in September with the final code diagnosis to run from January 2021 to October 2021 when the final code update will go through the approval process. The provisions of the Development Code apply to all development of buildings, structures, improvements, and uses of land throughout the County.

To review the PowerPoint presentation on the Downtowns, click here.

Due to COVID-19 concerns, meeting will be conducted remotely. The public can view proceedings at http://losalamos.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx, via Zoom at https://zoom.us/j/95581200413 or locally on cable channel 8.