Rio Rancho Governing Body Approves Amrep Southwest's 1,430-Unit Vista Alegria Community

The Rio Rancho Governing Body voted 4-2 to grant final approval to Amrep Southwest's Vista Alegria, a 1,430-unit master-planned community that would rank among the largest residential developments in the city's recent history.

The project, which city planning documents identify under the Mountain Hawk West Master Plan designation, covers property legally described as Unit 25, Blocks 28, 149, and 150, and Lots 1-3 of Block 27. Amrep Southwest filed the application through its agent, Tierra West LLC, with City of Rio Rancho Development Services staff contact Brian Babyak listed on the agenda item.

Ownership complexity shadowed the approval process. Amrep Southwest and co-applicant Kim Kemper, who owns a significant contiguous portion of Block 28 at the eastern end of the master plan area, together hold about 71% of the lots within the master-planned boundary. City staff accepted that ownership share as sufficient for the application to proceed, though proposed street and lot layouts submitted in the plan's exhibit covered only parcels owned outright by Amrep Southwest, leaving the remaining lots outside the layout drawings.

Staff recommended that the Planning and Zoning Board forward the Mountain Hawk West Master Plan to the Governing Body with a recommendation for approval, citing three specific findings of fact. The plan was found to comply with the city's Comprehensive Plan, the application narrative met requirements for establishing community character across land use, access, public facilities, amenities, utilities, drainage, and design, and Section 4 Development Guidelines will be updated to reflect the city's Development Process Manual. Staff also confirmed that the applicant held authority to apply for a master plan on the subject property and that adjacent property owners received due process.

A concurrent application on platting and addressing ran alongside the Mountain Hawk West review. City documents noted that a broader objective across Rio Rancho is to resolve challenges tied to antiquated platting through proper platting and addressing procedures. The Mountain Hawk West Master Plan, according to staff analysis, would advance that goal by consolidating and eliminating antiquated platting on the majority of the subject property.

The city agenda carrying the master plan application was dated November 8, 2022, under Legislation Item 22-400-00003. The Governing Body's 4-2 vote representing final approval followed the full procedural path from staff recommendation through the Planning and Zoning Board to the elected body. With that vote, Amrep Southwest cleared the last formal hurdle for a development that would add more than 1,400 homes to Rio Rancho's northwest growth corridor.