Albuquerque, NM Historic Preservation: Historic-Cultural Monuments (2026)

The IDO's Historic Protection Overlay (HPO) chapter states its purpose is to preserve, protect, enhance, perpetuate, and promote the use of structures and areas of historical, cultural, architectural, engineering, archeological, or geographic significance in the city, strengthen the tourism-based economy, and prohibit the unnecessary destruction or defacement of the city's cultural assets. City landmark sites or structures, along with HPO zones, are designated by the City Council, following the adoption or amendment procedure in § 14-16-6-7(C). Once a City landmark is designated, its protection is broader than an ordinary HPO property: the appearance of any structure, including interior and exterior elements, landscaping, and signs, cannot be altered, no new structure can be built, and no existing structure can be demolished, until a Certificate of Appropriateness is approved.

A minor Certificate of Appropriateness is reviewed under one section of the IDO's administrative chapter, and a major one, which covers demolition, under another, with the Landmarks Commission holding the authority to approve project-specific deviations. Designated City landmarks are shown on the Official Zoning Map, and the standards and guidelines that apply to each individual landmark are published online by the Planning Department, separately from the IDO text itself. Maintenance requirements for landmark properties are set out elsewhere in the IDO's development standards chapter. New development on a lot within an HPO zone, landmark or not, must also follow the same contextual lot-size and setback rules that apply to infill construction in established residential areas, unless the Landmarks Commission approves a different standard.