The Ranchos de Taos Neighborhood Association hosted this teach-in on May 13, 2026 at 7K Studios in Ranchos de Taos as the first in a planned series of community meetings on Taos County's proposed Unified Development Code (UDC). RdTNA President Cynthia Patterson opened by questioning the very premise of the UDC, pointing out that the original 2020 contractor agreement called only to "revise and update" existing land use and subdivision regulations — not to create an entirely new unified development code. She also objected to the word "development" itself, noting that Santa Fe County uses the more fitting term "Sustainable Land Use Regulations," and invoked territorial Governor Lew Wallace's famous quote — "All calculations based on our experiences elsewhere fail in New Mexico" — as a framework for the evening's discussion.

Key Points:

• Original contractor agreement (RFP 2024-A04, April 16, 2024) was scoped to revise and update existing regulations, not create a new UDC

• RdTNA objects to the "development" framing — Santa Fe County's "Sustainable Land Development Code" was cited as a better model

• The teach-in was the first in a series; a follow-up was scheduled for May 26th at the same location

RdTNA Secretary Hank Saxe provided a detailed overview of what the UDC would actually change. Currently, virtually all private land in Taos County outside of municipalities falls under a single "Rural Agricultural" (RA) zoning designation, with development proposals handled through special-use permits and quasi-judicial Planning Commission hearings — a process that has worked for decades and gives neighborhood associations a meaningful advisory role. The UDC would replace this with 17 distinct zoning designations plus multiple overlay types, creating a far more complex regulatory framework. Saxe noted that AI tools have been used to help analyze the 400-page document, and raised serious concerns about whether Taos County's small planning department could administratively manage the obligations such a massive code would create.

Key Points:

• Current system: single RA zoning designation, with development handled via special-use permits and Planning Commission hearings

• UDC would introduce 17 zoning designations plus multiple overlays — a dramatic increase in complexity

• RdTNA has used AI tools to analyze the 400-page document

• No finalized zoning map exists — making meaningful community discussion nearly impossible at this stage

• Concern that Taos County's understaffed planning department cannot administer such a sweeping code

A link to a recording of the full Teach-In can be found here at the KCEI website: Click Here