Owens Vs Smart Growth Planning

Repeal of 'Smart Growth' law sought -- Land-use plans cost too much, opponents say
By LISA SINKlsink@journalsentinel.com Posted: July 28, 2003

A group of Republican state lawmakers is trying to repeal the "Smart Growth" law that requires all communities to develop comprehensive land-use plans by 2010.

In legislation introduced last week, the lawmakers - many representing towns in rural areas - say the entire idea should be scrapped.

Only 94 of Wisconsin's 1,600 local towns, villages, cities and counties have completed required plans, including just five in the Milwaukee metropolitan area. About 600 governments are working on plans, said Sarah Kemp of the state's Office of Land Information Services, which collects the plans.

Critics say they are worried about local control and property rights erosion.

State Rep. Carol Owens (R-Oshkosh), who is backing the repeal bill, said a one-size-fits-all mandate hurts towns that are not under development pressure and can't afford to hire planners to do the work. "This is not cheap," she said.

But the chairman of the Assembly Committee on Property Rights and Land Management said she backs the planning law and blocked the repeal bill from going to her committee.

"I've come to believe that there's some people who would like to do away with zoning, too, and if you do away with planning, you'll get rid of zoning and it just ain't so," said state Rep. Sheryl Albers (R-Reedsburg). "Planning is a good thing."

But costly.

In the Town of Nekimi where Owens lives, officials in the community of about 1,400 residents spent $10,000 to $20,000 to hire a consultant to develop the comprehensive land-use plan, she said.


Protecting autonomy

Owens said she was concerned that state and county officials would try to impose their planning ideas on towns.

"When this is all in place and they (county and town plans) do not match up, somebody's going to have to change their plan," she said. "Towns' plans may be altered to fit everyone else's plan."

That is not true, said proponents of Smart Growth and comprehensive planning.

The law requires every town, village, city and county to draft a plan by 2010 that deals with issues related to housing stock, transportation, utilities and other planning aspects.

But the state does not require local officials to follow any specific planning concept.

"If you want to do a plan for sprawl, that's your prerogative," Cohen said.

"The law is in no way designed to block development or to take away property rights."

Convincing critics, however, has been difficult.

Ever since the Smart Growth law was passed as part of the 1999 state budget bill, opponents have grumbled about the requirement, with some sounding themes of Big Brother conspiracies.
Bob Bowman, a town supervisor in Cross Plains in Dane County, said that the planning mandate is "basically a blueprint for socialism. This is the Soviet system."

Bowman, who supports a repeal of the law, said government should not interfere with the free-market economy by legislating where homes, businesses, factories or office parks should be built.


Officials misinformed

Tom Larson of the Wisconsin Realtors Association, which backs Smart Growth, said there is considerable confusion about the law.

In north central Wisconsin, some communities in Rusk, Price, Taylor and Clark counties have balked at the law. Some towns have returned state grants. Others have called for the law's demise.

Larson said some residents there "blame the law as being the cause for just about everything bad that's happened to anyone north of Highway 29."

Complaints about shoreline preservation, land stewardship and agricultural preservation are blamed on Smart Growth, Larson said.

"It's misdirected at comprehensive planning," he said.

In southeastern Wisconsin, Ozaukee County Board supervisors griped about the rules and talked of repeal. But they backed off, saying they were afraid rewriting the law would cause even more problems.

Larson and Cohen, whose groups backed the planning, say they would favor making exceptions for some rural areas that are not in the fast-growing areas and that are concerned about costs.
"We're working on ways to ease that burden," Cohen said.

That would please Rep. Jeff Wood (R-Chippewa Falls), who has heard many complaints from constituents.

"I understand there is a compelling need for long-term comprehensive planning," Wood said. "However, I feel current law needs to be amended to straighten out ambiguities and to prevent future litigation."