City of Albuquerque, Rio Rancho and Albuquerque Housing Authority Assessment of Fair Housing
Sites Southwest prepared a regional Assessment of Fair Housing for the City of Albuquerque, the City of Rio Rancho, and the Albuquerque Housing Authority in collaboration with Consensus Builders. As one of only a few Assessments of Fair Housing approved by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, this effort included extensive data collection, mapping, and analysis, which was supplemented by information gathered from community stakeholders. The outreach efforts were successful in reaching out to marginalized populations who do not normally participate in community planning efforts. Trusted organizations with connections to affordable housing consumers conducted outreach. Their personal stories and experiences provided context for policy change. The AFH's goal was to identify housing barriers and expand opportunities for these groups to secure housing in high-opportunity neighborhoods—neighborhoods near employment, transportation, services, and good schools.
City of Albuquerque
Brown Property Charrette
The project's goal is to reclaim land that was previously used for heavy commercial and industrial uses for neighborhood retail and residential uses, stimulating economic development, adding housing, and bringing energy and life to this stretch of North Fourth Street in Albuquerque. The City hired Sites Southwest and a local architect to facilitate community engagement, identify community goals for the project site, and prioritize the criteria for the future developer chosen for the redevelopment project that would meet community goals. The team met with city staff and the Working Group to discuss development ideas, confirm development programs, create scenarios, create site plan concepts, and structure an interactive planning game that would allow residents and other stakeholders to imagine how development could cluster on the site. Concerns about building heights, density, traffic, parking, and housing ownership vs. rental housing were identified during the planning game and discussions with the Working Group and game participants. The charrette process produced site plans and development requirements that addressed the majority of community concerns while allowing for a financially viable development.
Santa Fe Parks, Recreation, Trails & Open Space Plan
Sites Southwest created a master plan to serve as a roadmap for the City of Santa Fe for the city’s parks, open space areas, trails, and recreation capital improvements over the next ten years. Sites Southwest assessed each park and recreational facility in the City and provided a prioritized list of improvements that were aligned with the Capital Improvement Plan. A robust engagement process involved staff, elected leaders, park users, and the general public to identify issues and needs. The master plan updated the City’s goals for parks and recreation facilities to help guide future improvements, based on the assessment, public and staff input, and existing plans.
City of Socorro Bikeway and Trail Master Plan
In 2017, Sites Southwest successfully completed the City of Socorro Bikeways and Trail Master Plan. Prior to the creation of this document, local organizations provided education, advocacy, and meetings about the El Camino Real National Historic Trail and the Rio Grande Trail corridor, but there was no overarching vision. This was the first plan to map out the entire City's bike path and trail network, identify opportunities to improve connectivity throughout town, and propose a capital improvement program to complete the system.
Sites Southwest collaborated with the New Mexico Department of Transportation, the South Central Rural Transportation Planning Organization, Healthy Kids Socorro, Healthy Kids New Mexico, New Mexico Tech, and Socorro Striders and Riders to gather data on existing bicycle facilities, heavily traveled routes, network gaps, and other information about the needs of bicycle commuters and recreational riders. We identified maintenance and safety issues, as well as data from pedestrian and bicycle accidents. We identified streets with sufficient right-of-way for on-street facilities and made recommendations for facility types as well as design guidelines. The plan includes a prioritized list of projects with associated responsibilities, costs, and funding sources, as well as policies and program recommendations.
Santa Fe MPO Pre-Teen and Teen Independent Transit & Mobility Plan
Transportation trends are changing across the United States, and many of these changes are being driven by youth. According to emerging trends, the number of transit, bicycling, and walking trips is steadily increasing. According to national data, this trend away from vehicular travel is being led by young people, who have different preferences, habits, and options than previous generations. Sites Southwest collaborated with the Santa Fe MPO to develop a Teen Mobility Independence Plan in 2016 to analyze the overall mobility and travel behavior of youths aged 10 to 17. The plan's goal was to find ways to improve youth mobility while also assisting decision-makers in prioritizing investment in transportation projects.
This plan was unique in that it specifically addressed the needs of teenagers and pre-teens, who, like seniors, are disproportionately affected by a lack of mobility options if they are unable to drive to desired destinations. The plan was also unique in that it included an extensive outreach process to teens and their parents to gather input on key issues such as missing connections in bicycle and pedestrian networks, dangerous intersections, safety concerns, and issues with parent permissions and safety perceptions. The project team developed recommendations to address these issues over a realistic planning horizon using focus groups, an online survey, and GIS analysis.
Sites Southwest collaborated with New Mexico State Parks, the Economic Development Department's Outdoor Recreation Division, and the National Park Service to better understand outdoor recreation resources and trends, as well as to compile a trail inventory for the entire state of New Mexico. The State Parks Division of the New Mexico Energy, Minerals, and Natural Resources Department (EMNRD) initiated the 2021-2026 update of the Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (SCORP).
Sites Southwest was hired to lead the planning process and was responsible for: • Analyzing national and state outdoor recreation trends • Summarizing the economic impact of outdoor recreation in New Mexico • Creating an outdoor recreation resource inventory and associated maps • Understanding environmental opportunities and threats • Connecting outdoor education to overall goals
An extensive engagement process was used to develop the plan update, which included leaders, agencies, non-profits, residents, and recreationalists from across the state. The end result is a set of long-term outdoor recreation planning recommendations, including the needs and opportunities for establishing recreation and historic trails in all regions of New Mexico.
