The guide outlines zoning reforms that can encourage affordable housing construction and increase density and walkability.
A new toolkit from the League of Wisconsin Municipalities (LWM), the Congress of New Urbanism, and several other Wisconsin organizations "offers a list of zoning reforms, with suggestions such as allowing narrower lots, reduced setbacks and a mix of housing types to reduce development costs" that can improve housing affordability in the state. As Roberta Baumann reports, the document is aimed at guiding communities in increasing 'missing middle housing' and other more affordable housing types.
While the guide, titled "Enabling Better Places: A User’s Guide to Wisconsin Neighborhood Affordability," does not mandate any zoning changes, notes Baumann, local governments are encouraged to use the tools it provides when the opportunity comes up.
One community, Waunakee, will evaluate parking reform regulations at an upcoming public meeting, "mainly because recent developments have been approved with parking exemptions." According to Waunakee community development director Tim Semmann, "[c]hanging patterns in shopping trends have rendered some regulations as outdated." The village's Community Development Authority (CDA) is also "creating policies for using Housing Betterment Fund dollars derived from Tax Incremental Finance (TIF) district extensions for affordable housing."
Read the full story: Wisconsin housing affordability at the heart of zoning reform project
‘Montana Miracle:’ The State Actually Succeeding at Housing Reform
A series of ambitious zoning reforms is having a significant impact on the state’s housing supply.
San Diego wants to limit upzoning law to just 16% of transit-adjacent parcels
The city's planning director says some areas are unfit for immediate upzoning due to a lack of resources or hazards such as wildfire risk.
San Francisco Mayor’s ‘Family Zoning’ Plan Faces Pushback, Displacement Concerns
Newly proposed legislation aims to protect long-term tenants from displacement caused by Mayor Lurie’s proposed zoning reform plan, which would allow for more housing construction in parts of the city.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
Mamdani’s pied-à-terre tax survives legal challenge
A panel of judges found that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate injury as a result of New York City's implementation of the tax.
Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity
Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.
Seattle passes record-breaking transit services expansion
Proposition 1 will double the city’s transit tax to add 95,000 more bus trips and preserve 180,000 bus trips annually.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority