Land Use, Zoning and Planning Lawyers in Albuquerque, New Mexico
In Albuquerque, New Mexico, there are laws which determine what can and can't be done on given parcels of land. These laws get pretty involved sometimes, and aren't always very accessible to laypersons. This article should serve as a good overview of these laws.
Localities typically divide their jurisdictions into segments, referred to as "zones," on which particular types of use are permitted. For example, one area of a town might be zoned for residential use, a nearby one for commercial use, and areas on the outskirts zoned for industrial use. This practice is called "zoning."
The purpose of zoning is to preserve property values, and make towns and cities more livable. For example, without zoning laws, a company might be able to buy a vacant lot next to your house and build a noisy, smelly, dirty factory on it.
On the other hand, zoning laws recognize and attempt to accommodate the necessity of factories and other industrial activities. They simply seek to ensure that such activities are conducted in a way that they don't conflict with the rights of adjacent landowners to use and enjoy their property in peace.
What if My Property Violates Albuquerque, New Mexico's Zoning Laws?
You have quite a few options if you find that a planned or current use of your property violates Albuquerque, New Mexico's zoning regulations.
It should be obvious that the first option you should consider is to correct the violation. If doing this wouldn't cost you very much, or pose a major inconvenience, you should obviously do this.
What if, however, you've invested a significant amount of time and money into making an improvement on your property, only to find that it violates your local zoning laws in some minor way? In this case, you can apply for a variance. This is essentially an exception to the zoning rules. If declining to enforce these rules would not harm anyone, and would not do much to advance the purpose of Albuquerque, New Mexico's zoning laws, a variance will usually be granted.
Furthermore, zoning ordinances cannot be applied against you retroactively. For example, suppose you built a 3-story house on your property, and your property was zoned to allow 3-story houses to be built at the time of construction. And then, years later, the area you live in is re-zoned, to only allow 2-story houses. Can the local government force you to remove a whole level of your house? Of course not. Applying a law retroactively is unconstitutional. On the other hand, any future changes you want to make to your property will have to comply with the applicable zoning ordinance as it is currently written.
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How Can a Albuquerque, New Mexico Attorney Help?
If you want to make improvements to your property, apply for a variance, or contest a zoning regulation as being applied to you retroactively, you have a right to do so, including some constitutional protections. However, your chances of prevailing in a zoning dispute will be markedly improved if you hire an experienced Albuquerque, New Mexico real estate attorney to help.
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Life in Albuquerque
Albuquerque is biggest city in the State of New Mexico with over 600,000 residents and 182 square miles. A percentage of the population can be attributed to the University of New Mexico, Kirkland Air Force Base, and a number of other labs and research institutes. Albuquerque is also the seat of the Diocese of the Rio Grande. The Pueblo Revival style of architecture was popularized by an Albuquerque native John Gaw Meem. A number of outstanding examples, including the University of New Mexico, exist in Albuquerque.
Other popular places to visit include Old Town Albuquerque, Sandia Mountain, and the Albuquerque Biological Park. The Petroglyph National Monument is one of the city's most popular. Albuquerque was voted Men's Fitness number one fit city because the city offers outstanding bike lanes, a number of public and private gyms, and a very low obesity and health injury rate. If you're not from Albuquerque, you may remember what it looks like from the movie Sunshine Cleaning and television shows such as Breaking Bad and In Plain Sight. The City of Albuquerque is racially very diverse and threw a festival to represent their diversity and celebrate their history at their Tri-centennial Celebration. Yes, the city has been inhabited since 1706.
