Rio Rancho City Council votes on STRs again... twice

RIO RANCHO — The Feb. 13 meeting of the Rio Rancho City Council Governing Body began with a particularly important proclamation.

Mayor Gregg Hull opened with an official proclamation from the city of Rio Rancho acknowledging February as Black History Month.

“Whereas Black History Month, also known as African American History Month, is a celebration of African-Americans’ achievements in our economic and cultural development and contributions to our history and in society,” Hull said. “We observe Black History Month in Rio Rancho.”

Hull concluded with a personal expression of gratitude to Councilor Karissa Culbreath, who is Black.

After the opening proclamation, the council moved on to public comment.

There were two public comments signed up, but only one elected to utilize their assigned time.

David Starr, a Rio Rancho resident, made a plea to the council to take action to fight climate change, even offering a plan he’d developed himself.

With opening business out of the way, the RRCC moved on to the main issues of the evening.

First up was a vote on the approval of new rules concerning short-term rental properties (STRs).

STRs have been a main point of discussion for the council since late last year, when it was decided that the city of Rio Rancho needed to have some sort of regulation in the books concerning STRs. Prior to that, the city charter made no acknowledgment of STRs, like AirBnb or Vrbo, which made them, by default, illegal.

Since then, the council has done research into the best policy for Rio Rancho: taking public comment; visiting other, similar cities; and reviewing zoning restrictions. The guidelines for STRs have gone back and forth between the planning stages and the voting stages for months now as councilors try to home in on the best policy for everyone involved.

According to the council, the goal is a policy that would not hinder STR owners from supplementing their incomes but would also keep the neighbors in mind.

The main sticking point in negotiations concerns the number of rentals allowed per month. Originally, the council set the number at one rental per seven-day-period.

That number was then raised to seven rentals per month, with exemptions for October due to Balloon Fiesta.

That’s where the debate began at Thursday’s meeting.

Hope Garcia, a Rio Rancho resident, spoke first, opposing the number of rentals allowed per month.

“This is more than double what it was from the first reading,” said Garcia. “It could double the traffic, double the noise, double the litter, et cetera. I just think seven a month is excessive.”

A familiar face spoke next. Longtime STR proponent George Wilson addressed the governing body, thanking them for the new ordinance and explaining the financial impact of limitations on the number of rentals allowed per month.

Though he rarely exceeds five rentals per month, Wilson said the impact of a rental restriction could be substantial.

The council members were likewise divided, though they were in agreement about the basic ordinance.

Council members Bob Tyler and Nicole List wanted the number taken down to five.

“I want to be supportive of short-term rentals,” said List. “But my role here is to represent residents who live in the community and buy homes ... when those foreign entities are coming [into an STR], the homeowner has zero control over what is happening in their proximity, and I think we need to have a little more protection for that.”

Culbreath and the other councilors acknowledged that seven might be too high and agreed to vote on making the number six.

The council voted 4-2 to change the number of rentals allowed per month to six. Afterward, Tyler proposed another vote to take the number down to five.

That measure was defeated 2-4, with Tyler and List being the two yes votes.

Finally, the council took one final vote to pass the measure. The STR ordinance (aka O1) passed 4-2 with List and Tyler being the dissenting votes, and the number of rentals allowed per month landed on six.

The ordinance will be reviewed for efficacy in the coming months.

The other main point of order of the evening was O3 (Ordinance Amending Chapter 96 Use of Public Right-of-Way). City Manager Matt Geisel gave the report to the council.

O3 concerns permitting for companies to install infrastructure in Rio Rancho. Essentially, it is designed to hold companies accountable for things such as destroying sidewalks, streets or powerlines while installing items like fiberoptic cable.

One stipulation of O3 involves putting the financial burden on the companies, or “applicants,” for any damage incurred.

“Any damage to existing infrastructure, landscape or structures within the right-of-way or properties adjoining the work shall be repaired to city standards by the applicant,” O3 states. “This includes pavement damaged by dumpsters or construction drop boxes.”

The council members had plenty of questions, especially Tyler, who had concerns about “potholing.”

Potholing is not filling divots in the asphalt left by normal wear and tear. In this instance, “potholing” refers to “a vertical excavation for the intent of verifying the location of underground infrastructure.”

O3 does address these concerns.

This was a first reading of O3. The ordinance will be revised per the council’s recommendations, and the second reading will take place at a future council meeting.

In other business...• D13: Site Plan Approval for a Medical Office Building at the Property

Planning & Zoning Division Manager Brian Babyak presented the board with a plan for the construction of a new office park at The Village.

The measure was approved 6-0.

• D14: Order pursuant to judges’ salaries

According to municipal code, the council must vote on judges’ salaries one year prior to the next election, which will be held in 2026, in order for the changes to take effect for the next term.

Currently, municipal judges make $70,000 per year. The staff recommended a 15% increase in pay, bringing the salary to $80,500. For comparison, Santa Fe judges make $188,000 per year but are also required to be licensed lawyers.

The last raise in judges’ pay was in 2018.

This was a discussion, and not a reading, so a vote was not taken. The staff was simply solicitating the council’s advice. The first reading of D14 will take place at the RRCC Governing Body meeting on March 13.

• O2: Amending the Code of Ordinances for use of Boarding Houses

This measure simply moves “Boarding and Lodging Houses” from the R-3: Mixed-Residential and R-6: Multi-Family Residential Districts and adds “Boarding House (Boarding, Lodging House, or Bed and Breakfast)” to the SU: Special Use District.

The next Rio Rancho City Council Governing Body meeting takes place at 6 p.m. Feb. 27.