Commercial Building Permit (Zoning Review Application — Commercial, Industrial & Large-Scale Residential; includes Tenant Improvements/Alterations) in Town of Taos, New Mexico

Town of Taos requires a commercial building permit (zoning review application — commercial, industrial & large-scale residential; includes tenant improvements/alterations) for: Zoning Review Application (For Building Permit) completed by a licensed New Mexico contractor — 'For a commercial project, a licensed contractor MUST complete this section' (Zoning Review Application Packet, updated 3/25/2025, fetched 2026-08-01); Owner's Affidavit if an agent applies; All commercial, industrial and large-scale residential plans must be stamped by a licensed engineer and/or architect as defined by the state board of examiners for architects and/or engineers — § 16.12.070.3(E); Site development plan containing the elements of § 16.20.080, plus documentation satisfying all performance-standards requirements of Chapter 16.20 — § 16.12.070.3(A)-(B); Completed and approved building plan review from the Town of Taos Public Works Department (575-751-2047) AND from the Town of Taos Fire Marshal (575-758-3386), both required for commercial and multiple-residential (2+ dwellings) projects before zoning review — Zoning Review Application Packet submittal checklist; State of New Mexico (CID) Multi-Purpose State Building Application — required attachment for commercial and multiple-residential-dwelling projects per the Town's own submittal checklist; the applicant must additionally obtain all required state (CID) permits for mechanical and electrical services per § 16.12.070.3(H), since the Town does not self-administer those trades; Completed Construction Mitigation Checklist per § 16.12.070.6 (no building permit issued without it), Site Threshold Assessment (STH) Form, Land Use Preliminary Information Application, Fire Inspection Request Form, E-911 Addressing Application, and Floodplain Determination Form; Legal description of property, copy of most recent registered warranty deed or Taos County Assessor Notice of Valuation, vicinity map, and one complete set of plans in the packet's required order (Site Plan, Grading & Drainage Plan, Landscape Plan, Foundation Plan, Elevations); Grading and Drainage Plan with a Registered Licensed NM Engineer's certification and signed/dated seal (Chapter 15.24 Storm Drainage), landscaping plan complying with Chapter 15.12, and compliance with the Outdoor Lighting (15.28), Sign Code (15.08), Solar Rights (15.16) chapters and the Public Works Standards Manual — per the packet's 'Additional Requirements for all Commercial, Industrial and Large-Scale Residential Projects' section; Traffic impact study by a registered licensed NM professional if required by the Site Threshold Assessment; NMDOT Driveway Permit for projects with access to a state highway; Drainage Plan sealed by a Registered Licensed NM Engineer for any construction within 150 feet of the centerline of an established arroyo; ARCHITECTURAL STYLE (outside the Historic Overlay Zone): per § 16.12.070.3(F), plans must comply with § 16.20.030 — 'Taos Style' design is mandatory for all new construction (including additions) in the C-1, C-2, CBD or HCPD zones regardless of size, and for any construction requiring a provisional permit, using either the Pueblo/Spanish Revival Style (PSRS) or Territorial Revival Style (TRS); buildings capped at 2 stories (except as provided in § 16.16.205); additions/modifications to a structure in another architectural style may keep that style only if their valuation stays at or below 50% of the property's total assessed value — above 50%, the ENTIRE structure must be brought into Taos Style conformance (§ 16.20.030.1(D)); HISTORIC OVERLAY ZONE (La Loma Plaza and Taos Downtown Historic Districts): any act changing an exterior architectural feature requires either an administrative permit (minor like-for-like work, or facade/footprint changes under 10% on noncontributing properties) or a Certificate of Appropriateness ($200.00 fee, case prefix 'HPC20__-__') approved at a public hearing of the Planning, Zoning and Historic Preservation Commission after a preliminary Development Review Committee hearing, BEFORE work commences — § 16.16.220.12; demolition of a contributing property is not permitted at all (§ 16.16.220.11); LARGE-SCALE THRESHOLD: any individual building exceeding 30,000 sq ft GFA (10,000 sq ft in the C-1 zone) requires discretionary approval of a Provisional Permit (§§ 16.20.020.1-16.20.020.2); absolute per-building caps with a provisional permit are 80,000 sq ft in C-2/CPD[HCPD]/CBD/M-1, 30,000 in C-1, 50,000 in R-6/R-14, and 10,000 (no provisional option) in all other zones; construction over 30,000 sq ft must be massed as two or more blocks of ≤30,000 sq ft each (§ 16.20.030.1(E)); High Performance Building Program (§ 15.04.040.1, as documented in this file's localAmendments): commercial structures must achieve a LEED rating of 'certified' or better, including at least 3 water-conservation-credit points, as a condition of both the building permit and the certificate of occupancy; Construction must begin within 180 days of permit issuance or the permit becomes void and a new application is required (§ 16.12.070.3(I)); separately, final approval is automatically withdrawn if a building permit is not obtained or substantial activity not commenced within one year (§ 16.12.070.5); Construction activity limited to 7:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. Monday-Saturday for commercial projects (8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. if in a residential zone) unless the DRC authorizes otherwise — Construction Mitigation Checklist. If your project isn't listed, confirm with Town of Taos Planning, Community and Economic Development Department (handles zoning review for building permits; the former standalone 'Building Safety Division' name appears on some older documents but current applications and the department's own letterhead identify it as the Planning, Community and Economic Development Department) at 575-751-2016 before starting work.

The Commercial Zoning Review Fee is $500.00, plus the Fire Marshal's commercial plan-review fee of $0.035 per square foot (Zoning Review Application Packet, updated 3/25/2025). Projects in the Historic Overlay Zone add a $200.00 Certificate of Appropriateness fee, and state CID trade permits for electrical/plumbing/mechanical carry their own separate fees.

The Town publishes no numeric review timeline for commercial projects — the ordinance's 15-business-day plan-review SLA applies only to dwellings (§ 16.12.070.2(C)); the commercial track at § 16.12.070.3(G) requires the same code-compliance review but states no deadline. Historic Overlay Zone projects add a DRC preliminary hearing plus a monthly-cycle Planning, Zoning and Historic Preservation Commission hearing. Confirm current turnaround with the Planning Department at 575-751-2016.

You'll need: Zoning Review Application (For Building Permit) — Commercial; Stamped Plan Set; State of New Mexico Multi-Purpose State Building Application; Public Works Department Approval Letter; Fire Department Approval Letter + Fire Inspection Request Application; Construction Mitigation Checklist; Site Threshold Assessment (STH) Form; Land Use Preliminary Information Application, E-911 Addressing Application, Floodplain Determination Form; Warranty Deed or Notice of Valuation + Legal Description + Vicinity Map. Depending on your project, Town of Taos may also ask for: Certificate of Appropriateness Application. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

Apply through Town of Taos Planning, Community and Economic Development Department (handles zoning review for building permits; the former standalone 'Building Safety Division' name appears on some older documents but current applications and the department's own letterhead identify it as the Planning, Community and Economic Development Department) at 400 Camino de la Placita, Taos, NM 87571. Phone: 575-751-2016, email: planning@taosnm.gov. Office hours: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday: walk-ins welcome (appointments prioritized); Tuesday, Friday: by appointment only; no same-day appointments (per Town of Taos Planning Division office-hours notice, effective June 9, 2025). Official information: https://www.taosnm.gov/203/Planning-Community-Economic-Development.

The Town of Taos issues its own commercial building permits through the Planning, Community and Economic Development Department under Town of Taos Code of Ordinances § 15.04.010 — it is a self-administering jurisdiction, not a CID-administered one. Only the Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical/HVAC trade permits are routed to the state Construction Industries Division (§ 16.12.070.3(H)); the state Multi-Purpose Building Application is a required attachment in the Town's commercial packet.

No. Commercial alterations/remodels/TIs use the same Zoning Review Application (project type 'Alteration') and the same § 16.12.070.3 review track as new commercial construction, completed by a licensed contractor. A TI that changes the occupancy or use also requires a new Certificate of Occupancy under § 16.12.070.4, and TI work affecting the exterior of a building in the Historic Overlay Zone needs an administrative permit or Certificate of Appropriateness first.

Outside the Historic Overlay Zone, all new commercial construction in the C-1, C-2, CBD or HCPD zones (any size) must be in 'Taos Style' — either Pueblo/Spanish Revival or Territorial Revival — with prescribed facade elements, wall-dominated massing and a two-story cap (§ 16.20.030.1). Inside the Historic Overlay Zone (La Loma Plaza and Taos Downtown Historic Districts), exterior work instead goes through the administrative-permit/Certificate of Appropriateness process before the Planning, Zoning and Historic Preservation Commission (§ 16.16.220.12), and demolition of a contributing property is prohibited outright.