Long Range Planning

Sector Plans and other Planning Projects

The long range planning function for Albuquerque resides in the Long Range Planning Division of the City Planning Department. The division is responsible for developing plans, policies and programs designed to guide the physical development of Albuquerque.  Specifically, the division develops, maintains and implements a coordinated, comprehensive general planning program for quality growth and development of the city that balances social, economic, and environmental goals.  That is, work includes a long-range orientation toward improving the quality of life for Albuquerque residents with community participation as a key element. This division works with the community in the formulation and articulation of ideas in developing goals, which are then translated into policy.  Extensive coordination with various government agencies and private sector interests is also a critical element as is on-going public policy analysis to this goal creation process.

The division assembles all the information gathered through contact with various groups and produces documents, usually as a Plan, detailing their interests.   These Plans are “ranked” as follows:

• Rank 1: The General or Comprehensive Plan is a Rank 1 plan.  It is a Citywide plan with broad Goals and Objectives for all areas of the urban environment.
• Rank 2: Area and facility plans are Rank 2 plans.  The area plans cover a major part of the City such as the North Valley or the West Side. The facility plans cover a type of utility or a public facility such as the Plan For Arroyos or the Trails and Bikeways Plan.
• Rank 3: Sector and Corridor plans are the typical Rank 3 plans.  Other Rank 3 plans may be specific to unique areas or an occasional neighborhood plan.  Rank 3 plans address small geographic areas that have common characteristics.  They typically have tighter zoning controls than the City’s Zoning Code and specific design standards for the area covered.

Lower ranking plans should be consistent with higher ranking plans.  In the event of conflict, the provisions of the higher-ranking plan shall govern.  Many of the City’s ranked plans are available on this website under the "Department Publications/Documents" link.  Other work of the Long Range Planning Division includes policy analysis and development, mainly associated with plan implementation tools such as the Zoning Code, the Development Process Manual and Capital Improvements Program.

The sector planning efforts that are on-going in the Long Range Planning division can be viewed from the link at the top of this page.or from here. Sector Plans and other Planning Projects.