BOSQUE FARMS — The county’s northern most municipality is continuing work to update its comprehensive plan.
At the March 16 Bosque Farms Village Council meeting, community planner Danielle Wilson, with Sites Southwest, the Albuquerque firm the village is contracting with to update its plan, gave the governing body a brief update on the project.
Wilson also invited members of the council and public to attend the next public input meeting.
After an initial public input meeting in November, the company put out a community survey in the village in both digital and paper formats, asking residents for feedback about what should be included in the update.
A comprehensive plan — sometimes called a master plan — is a guide for current and future decision making by the governing body, and identifies needs that support the village’s capital funding requests from the state.
A plan can also make grant applications by the village more competitive and documents the purpose and need for village policies. The village last updated its plan in 2013.
Wilson said there were 412 responses to the survey, a response rate she described as “really good” for a village the size of Bosque Farms.
Of the responses to the survey, which was open from Jan. 6 through Feb. 20, 150 were submitted via the paper forms, she said.
“The take away from that is paper is still very valuable,” Wilson said.
The second public input meeting will be at 6:30 p.m., Thursday, March 30, at the Bosque Farms Community Center, 950 N. Bosque Loop.
During the meeting, Wilson will present the key priorities indicated by the survey results, as well as those of the governing body and village staff.
Photo from Realtor.com
An aerial view of the main building on the property the Bosque Farms Village Council recently approved for purchase.
“We will be reviewing the draft priorities and looking at the four acres the village recently purchased, doing some very conceptual design and land use visioning,” she said. “We want to invite everyone in the community to this meeting.”
In the survey, respondents were asked to rate several topics and concerns on a five-point scale, with 5 indicating they strongly agree and 1 as strongly disagree.
Protecting the rural and agricultural lifestyle of the village was the highest-ranked topic, as well as the desire for the village to collaborate with regional agencies on initiatives to protect the Rio Grande and making regular web updates and communication with residents a priority.
Top ranking future priorities include a recycling program or drop-off location in the village, recreation center updates, youth development programs and facilities, and transportation services to Albuquerque for Bosque Farms seniors.
Survey respondents indicate they would like to see more food and drink businesses in the village, as well as a grocery store and more general retail.
A swimming pool and sporting fields and facilities topped the list of park and recreational facility priorities, along with parks, playgrounds, trails and open space.
In regards to the four acres to the north of the current village complex that was recently purchased by the municipality, 160 respondents indicated they would like to see it used for recreation, with 75 people showing a desire for it to be used by public/civic institutions.
Julia M. Dendinger began working at the VCNB in 2006. She covers Valencia County government, Belen Consolidated Schools and the village of Bosque Farms. She is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists Rio Grande chapter’s board of directors.
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April 18, 2024
