Smart Growth at 10 seems a success in Wisconsin

From the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel:

On the 10th anniversary of the state's Smart Growth law, leaders of the Wisconsin Builders Association and the Wisconsin Realtors Association gave the innovative comprehensive planning initiative a qualified endorsement.

At a conclave sponsored by 1000 Friends of Wisconsin called Smart Growth@10, Jerry Deschane, Builders Association executive vice president, said his organization went into the legislative process "kicking and screaming" a decade ago, but participated in the drafting of the law, which he now regards as "a good planning statute."

The new planning approach helped by making local plans "more data driven" and therefore more effective, he said.

Although implementation of the law is just beginning, Tom Larson, director of regulatory and legislative affairs for the Realtors group, said his organization is "cautiously optimistic" it will yield good results.

The drafting of the comprehensive plans at the local level over the past 10 years benefited greatly from the improved level of public participation and from making planning "more proactive instead of reactive," he said.

Nearly 90% of the counties, cities, villages and towns met the Jan. 1 deadline for completing their comprehensive Smart Growth plans. That's a big advance from 2000, when only one-quarter of local units had any kind of plan and only a small percentage had a comprehensive plan.

Many of those who were there at the creation of the Smart Growth Law convened at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison to evaluate what they had wrought. In general, they were happy with the progress, but each had an agenda for improvements.

Read the rest at   Smart Growth at 10 seems a success - JSOnline.