The Raton Comprehensive Plan, completed in 2021, was an update to the previous Comprehensive Plan also completed by Consensus Planning. The Comprehensive Plan is the key policy document expressing the community’s values and vision for the City’s physical growth and development, as well as certain aspects of its social and economic character, over the next 20 years. The Comprehensive Plan provides guidance for decision making to ensure measured and steady progress toward the community’s vision. Goals, objectives, strategies, and a Future Land Use Scenario provide the words and graphic image to describe how Raton intends to grow in the next 20 years through infill and annexation. Major plan elements include Land Use, Community Character and Historic Preservation, Economic Development, Housing and Neighborhoods, Community Services and Facilities, Transportation, Infrastructure, and Hazard Mitigation. The Implementation chapter provides a time frame and responsible entity for accomplishing each of the strategic actions identified through the planning and public engagement process.

The intent of the Comprehensive Plan is to:

• Highlight key aspirations, challenges, and opportunities that will define Raton in the future;
• Identify priorities about where the City of Raton should devote its time, attention, and investment;
• Help guide decision making regarding ongoing challenges and opportunities that foster a livable and affordable built environment, growing a resilient economy, and ensuring a healthy community;
• Express specific goals, objectives, and strategies addressing each of these challenges and opportunities;
• Develop a methodology that measures progress towards achieving the community vision through completion of strategies and actions;
• Embrace the community’s willingness to participate in an open, flexible, and responsible planning process where all opinions matter; and
• Foster partnerships between local and regional governmental entities to advance the public good.

Key planning themes that run throughout the Comprehensive Plan include:

• Grow the community.
• Continue to invest in Downtown.
• Work to diversify the economy.
• Diversify and improve the City’s housing stock.
• Plan for and implement improvements to City services.
• Emphasize the importance of workforce training and education.
• Support Raton becoming a retirement community.