Background/History
When the City of Santa Fe implemented its approved master plan for Tierra Contenta, a new community on the southwest side of town, planners had in mind more than just another subdivision. The challenge would be to create a mixed use, mixed income development that fostered a sense of community and didn’t exclude the average homebuyer.
The solution lay within some very old concepts, many of which are already familiar to New Mexicans. Native American pueblos and the small, plaza centered cities of Santa Fe, Taos and Old Town Albuquerque served as inspiration for the type of neighborhoods Tierra Contenta designers wanted to emulate. In addition, designers incorporated some concepts of New Urbanism, an anti-sprawl development philosophy that advocates small scale, pedestrian oriented neighborhoods with schools, stores, parks and open space.
With these ideas in mind, Tierra Contenta’s designers created an attractive, pedestrian scale, and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional suburban development where garage doors dominate the streetscape.
In 1993 the City of Santa Fe formed the non-profit Tierra Contenta Corporation to implement the new master plan. The Corporation’s goals remain the same today: provide builder ready tracts of land for housing, schools, business centers, and common areas to create a community oriented development that addresses a variety of local and global concerns. The entire concept, innovative yet practical, won Tierra Contenta the 1999 Outstanding Planning Award for Implementation from the American Planning Association.
Because New Mexicans treasure their natural environment, Tierra Contenta is designed to be both efficient and eco-friendly. Developers work with the natural lay of the land, preserving its essential character so that residents may enjoy large areas of open space and multi-use trails. In certain neighborhoods houses are situated Old World-style around central courtyards, a method that makes the most use out of the least amount of space.
The layout of Tierra Contenta greatly reduces the noise and pollution from automobile traffic. Wide sidewalks and narrow streets are pedestrian friendly and require that cars move along at a slow pace. Additionally, each neighborhood is served by one of three neighborhood centers containing schools, apartments, retail stores, parks, and public plazas. These centers are all within easy walking distance, which further reduces the need for an automobile.
With a range of builders to choose from—including a few specializing in green building—buyers are able to select homes that are both attractive and energy efficient. Architectural standards exist to insure conceptual uniformity, not to limit creativity. In addition, the entire development is designed to conserve water, a major concern to those living in the desert southwest.
Tierra Contenta is about more than just building houses. It’s about creating solutions to the problems of modern urban development. Tierra Contenta offers its residents a welcome alternative to unchecked sprawl, cookie cutter housing, and isolated neighborhoods. Here, people come together in a more traditional way of life, one based on community pride, respect for one’s neighbors, and a reverence for the natural environment.