e-newsletter

Issue 2	www.uwsp.edu/cnr/landcenter/		December, 2005

From the Center The Land Use Guide is available on the Center web site in portable document format (.pdf). The guide is also available in paper copy. E-mail Cheryl Wagner of DOA to request a copy. Update of the Zoning Board Handbook continues. Workshops Zoning Board of Adjustment/Appeals - Beginning thru Advanced Dec 8, Stoughton, 8:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Marshfield (postponed until January 2006) More information will be posted to the workshops webpage as it becomes available. Conferences/Events December 14, 2005 "The Role Of Subdivision Regulation" Cooperative Extension�s Local Government Center-Local Land Use Planning and Zoning WisLine Series. The regulation of subdivisions and land divisions is an important, though often misunderstood, implementation tool in land use planning. This session will address the statutory authority for subdivision review in Wisconsin, highlighting the various jurisdictional roles of counties, cities, villages, towns, and the state. The session will also cover the basic components of a subdivision ordinance and recent case law related to these ordinances. Finally, the session will explore issues related to condominium plats and techniques for innovation such as conservation subdivisions. Available at any WisLine site 10:30-11:50 a.m. Fee: $12 per session. Contact Local Government Center, (608) 262-9961. Save this Date: April 6-7, 2006 Wisconsin Chapter of the American Planning Association Conference, Chula Vista Resort and Conference Center, Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin. Visit the WAPA website for more information. News From Around the State Wisconsin State Journal - Madison Group backs repeal of city housing law Highway 12 becomes an open road Holmen Courier - Holmen (La Crosse County) Public input sought for county plan		Financial viability of school districts depends on land use decisions While most Wisconsin school districts are financially sound, there are key indicators that may signal developing financial problems in other school districts. One of these indicators is the number of students per square mile. Decreasing numbers of students per square mile generally result in increasing transportation costs per student. District Density The average K-12 district in Wisconsin has 15.3 students per square mile; the median (half lower, half higher) is 8.5. Twenty-nine districts had fewer than two students per square mile. Of these, five had fewer than one student per square mile: Butternut, Drummond, Glidden, South Shore and Winter. In one district, one administrator noted that the first student pickup is at 6:15 a.m. for an 8:10 a.m. school start. Thus, some buses are on the road nearly four hours per day. The chart below shows how transportation costs are affected by district density. In 2004-05, average transportation costs for K-12 (excluding Milwaukee) districts were $383 per student. For districts with fewer than one student per square mile, the average was $935, or nearly 2.5 times more. As districts become less dense, per student transportation costs generally rise. Excerpt from At Risk School Districts, The Wisconsin Taxpayer, August 2005, Vol. 73 No. 8. A free copy of this issue can be requested from the Wisconsin Taxpayer Alliance.
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Copyright 2005, Center for Land Use Education, a joint venture of the University of Wisconsin-Extension Cooperative Extension and the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point