Required lot size cut

The Taos County Board of Commissioners voted to change the definitions of a subdivision during Tuesday’s (July 21) regular online meeting.

The commission unanimously approved a change to the Taos County Subdivision Regulation, allowing a reduction in the minimum lot size to 1 acre of land instead of 2.

Commissioners discussed concerns that a decrease of minimum lot size could increase the density of population in Taos County.

Commissioner Jim Fambro was mainly concerned with the water usage and septic systems on the smaller sections of land.

“I was concerned if this was going to create more water usage or not,” Fambro said in an interview after the meeting.

Fambro said his concerns over the water usage were answered by Taos County planning director Edward Vigil when Vigil discussed a cap on the amount of acre-feet each household will be able to use.

In addition the change also altered land transfers to immediate families by adding a new sentence requiring five years before the lot or parcel of land can be further subdivided.

“What you’re seeing as a result of the family transfers, you’re seeing the sprawl (of mobile and manufactured homes) throughout the county,” Vigil said. “We want people to do subdivisions.”

Vigil said the document is constantly evolving and changes could be made in the future to best fit the law and Taos County.

The change is only applicable to land with a ground slant of less than 10 percent.