Apartments are rising where parking lots used to be. At the Cerrillos Road mall property, a three-story apartment complex was announced in 2021 and a hotel in 2022, a clear sign that infill housing on land once given over to pavement is now part of the market. We build multifamily and mixed-use projects of that scale: three or four stories, a podium or slab on grade and a ground floor that may hold shops, offices or services.
We come at residential work as an industrial contractor, which has real advantages. Apartment buildings are mostly utilities: water, sewer, power, gas, fire protection and storm drainage, repeated for every unit and tied together underground. We build that infrastructure for a living. That experience helps most in the places where multifamily projects tend to slip: the site package, the fire-water system and the coordination between the underground work and the structure.
We work with owners and architects who already have a program and want a builder that can deliver it quietly. We are not the right firm for a single-family subdivision or for a small duplex, and we say so. For mixed-use and commercial-heavy buildings, however, our experience on retail and shopping center projects and hotels puts us in familiar territory.
What a multifamily project involves
The work starts with the site: clearing, mass grading, utility mains, the fire hydrant and fire-water loop, stormwater detention and the parking field. For a podium building, we then build the ground-level structure in concrete, usually with a post-tensioned or conventionally reinforced slab, and frame the residential floors above in wood or light-gauge steel. A mixed-use building adds commercial spaces with higher ceilings, larger mechanical needs and separate entrances.
Fire protection is a major part of the scope. Residential buildings above a certain size need sprinklers throughout, alarm systems and fire-rated walls between units and between residential and commercial spaces. Our fire water loops and hydrant systems work covers the underground mains that supply those sprinklers, and we coordinate the loop with the fire department's requirements for hydrant spacing and truck access.
Licensing, codes and approvals
A multifamily project in New Mexico sits on a licensing boundary. The residential classification GB-2 is limited to residences and apartment houses of not more than four family units, so a larger apartment building falls under the broader GB-98 General Building classification. A project owner should check that its builder holds the right license for the scope, and we confirm ours against the project at the outset.
The 2021 New Mexico Commercial Building Code, which adopts the 2021 International Building Code as amended, applies to buildings beyond the small residential scale. The City of Santa Fe also lists the 2021 International Fire Code with its amendments among its adopted construction codes. In a historic district, a height beyond the underlying zoning needs an exception from the historic board and then a variance, which is a significant consideration for any apartment building taller than its neighbors.
Where housing and mixed use are heading
The planned communities south of the city show one model. Rancho Viejo is organized as seven villages, each with a central plaza, and reserves 15% of homes as affordable housing, with a projected 8,000 to 10,000 homes over the next 50 years. That scale of planning means roads, utilities and plazas are built in stages, with mixed-use buildings at the village centers.
In the city, the Railyard District is a 50-acre arts district around a rail station, and the mall corridor is changing as housing arrives. Those two settings are quite different: one is a dense, historic and pedestrian place, the other is a car-oriented corridor being retrofitted. We help owners understand which approvals and costs belong to each, and both the Railyard District and Rancho Viejo show how different the result can be.
Services that make a housing project work
Housing leans on the same services that owners in advanced manufacturing buy. Preconstruction services settle the number of units, the structure and the phasing before design is final. Site clearing and mass grading shape the pad, and utility packages bring everything into the building. We provide these as parts of a single contract, so the underground work, the grading and the foundations are sequenced by one team, and a late utility connection does not stall the framing crews.
Parking is the other recurring piece. Surface parking is cheaper but eats land, while structured parking saves land at a high price per space. Our work on stabilized parking lots covers the surface option, and we are glad to compare it with a structure when the numbers make that useful.
What moves a multifamily budget
Cost per unit is shaped by the floor plate, the unit count and the repetition. A compact building with stacked plumbing and a regular grid is cheaper than one with offsets and setbacks. Podium construction adds cost but allows more units on a small site. Sound separation, fire ratings and energy code requirements add cost to every wall and floor, and we price them in the first estimate and not in later change orders.
The site is the wild card. Rocky ground, a high water table, long utility extensions and off-site road improvements can add substantial amounts that no one expected. Affordable housing components may bring their own financing conditions and reporting. We encourage owners to take a site investigation seriously before buying land, and we can recommend geotechnical and survey work that answers the biggest questions first.
Considering apartments or a mixed-use building?
Send us the parcel, the number of homes you hope to build and what you imagine on the ground floor. We will come back with a plain note on the site, the utilities, the review path and the likely structure, and we will say where we think a different mix would work better. If a retail center already stands on the land, tell us how it is used today.
Common Questions
Can you build residential and commercial space in one building?
Yes. The usual form is commercial space at ground level with apartments above, separated by rated floors and walls. The commercial space needs more ceiling height, grease or exhaust provisions for restaurants and its own entrance. We plan those pieces with the architect before the structure is set.
Which license applies to a larger apartment building?
The GB-2 classification is limited to residences and apartment houses of not more than four family units. Larger buildings require a broader classification such as GB-98. Owners should confirm the contractor's license matches the scope, and we are happy to show ours.
How much of an apartment project is site work?
On many projects it is a larger share than owners expect, because water, sewer, power, gas, fire protection, drainage and parking all have to be built before the building works. A restricted or sloped site adds further. We price the site package separately so the numbers are visible.
Do affordable housing requirements change construction?
They can change financing, reporting, unit mix and sometimes finish levels. Rancho Viejo, for example, reserves 15% of its homes as affordable. We coordinate with the owner and the lender on documentation and inspections, and we keep the building quality consistent across the units.