Future development and planning should respect and strengthen existing communities, enhance their distinctive qualities, and provide more opportunities for residents to satisfy their daily needs. To that end, the City of Albuquerque has 12 City Community Planning Areas (CPAs). They are organized around Albuquerque's rich diversity of communities, each exemplifying a unique set of characteristics, environments, and lifestyles that set them apart as special places.

CPAs were first developed in 1995. People were given maps of the metropolitan region and asked to identify their house, their neighborhood, and their community. The resulting map outlined distinct Community Identity Areas which were adopted into the Comp Plan in 2001. As of 2016, the CPA boundaries have been revised to better match U.S. Census Tracts, allowing the City and County to gather demographic, employment, and commuting data and to track growth and trends over time.