By Tom Larson, J.D., Director of Land Use and Environmental Affairs

Over the last several months, Wisconsin�s comprehensive planning law (a.k.a �Smart Growth�) has received a significant amount of criticism, especially in the central and northern parts of the state. Critics have claimed that Smart Growth, among other things, will destroy private property rights and local control. Others have maintained that Smart Growth was developed by the United Nations or that it represents a �one size fits all� approach to planning.

To address these claims and provide REALTORS� with accurate information about the law, we have compiled a list of the ten most common myths and related facts about Smart Growth. This piece is not intended to discredit the legitimate concerns people have about the planning process, or the fears related to the policies that may be included in a local comprehensive plan. Rather, this is simply an effort to distinguish the facts from the fiction related to the law.

Myth -- Smart Growth is just another law created by the government to take away private property rights.
Fact � One of the primary objectives of Wisconsin�s Smart Growth law is to protect private property rights by making the planning process more accessible to property owners and other members of the public. For years, local plans were created behind close doors by professional planners and select members of the public. No public notice or hearings were required, and the public was often unaware of the plan�s contents or how it affected them. Also, property owners were often subject to arbitrary decision-making because the development regulations were not clearly established or administered consistently. Smart Growth attempts to change this by:

� Improving the public participation requirements � Under the law, the first step in the planning process is to create a public participation plan/strategy to figure out how to get the public actively involved. Communities must hold at least one public hearing (after giving proper public notice) before adopting or amending the plan. Under prior law, no public notice or public hearings were required.
� Providing property owners with greater certainty about what they can do with their property. � The law requires all local land use regulations to be consistent with the local comprehensive plan after January 1, 2010. This will help prevent local communities from having inconsistent regulations and from making arbitrary regulatory decisions.
� Making local, public officials more accountable for the plan contents � The law requires local, elected officials to adopt the plan and any change by ordinance. Under prior law, the plan commission (made up of primarily un-elected community members) was allowed to create, adopt, and amend a local plan.
� Requiring plans to be more balanced � The law requires communities to consider at least 9 different issues in their comprehensive plan, including housing, transportation, and economic development. In the past, local plans often focused on only a few issues (usually, protection of open space or natural resources), while ignoring the other important issues that are equally important in our quality of life.
� Making private property rights one of the state and local planning goals � The law requires communities to identify how they plan to �balance individual property rights with community interests� (as one of 14 local, comprehensive planning goals) if a community wants to receive funding from the state to help create their comprehensive plan.

Comments -- Despite these improvements, this law, nor any other, will not guarantee that every land use decision made by a local community is a good one. REALTORS� and private property owners must continue to be active in the planning process to insure their interests and rights are adequately protected. If not, others may manipulate the planning process to push their agenda. Because the law allows communities to adopt whatever policies they want, many threats and opportunities exist.

Myth -- Smart Growth gives the state the authority to control the content of local comprehensive plans.
Fact � The state does not have the authority to write, edit, or �police� local comprehensive plans. Local communities can include whatever policies they want in their comprehensive plan. The state�s involvement is limited to administering the comprehensive planning grant program (i.e., providing money through a competitive grant program and making sure the grant applicants promise what they said they would do as part of their grant application).

Myth -- Smart Growth is designed to stop growth and development in rural areas and direct it to urban areas.
Fact -- Wisconsin�s �Smart Growth� law does not dictate where growth can and cannot occur. Under the law, communities can grow (or not grow) any way they wish.

Myth -- Smart Growth is an unfunded mandate.
Fact -- First, Wisconsin�s law does not require every community to have a comprehensive plan. A comprehensive plan is required after January 1, 2010 only if a community wants to regulate (or make other decisions that impact) land use. If a community does not want to regulate land use after January 1, 2010 (like many towns have chosen to do), then they are not required to have a comprehensive plan. Second, the state currently provides funding to assist local communities with their planning efforts. During 1999-2001, $3.5 million was available to local communities in the form of comprehensive planning grants. The funding was increased to $6 million during 2001-2003.

Myth -- Smart Growth was created by the United Nations, Tri-Lateral Commission, or DNR.
Fact -- Wisconsin�s Smart Growth law was developed and supported by an extremely broad coalition of major stakeholders in community planning, including the Wisconsin REALTORS� Association, Wisconsin Builders Association, Wisconsin Towns Association, League of Wisconsin Municipalities, Wisconsin Alliance of Cities, Wisconsin Counties Association, 1,000 Friends of Wisconsin, Wisconsin Council of Regional Planning Organizations, and the Wisconsin Chapter of the American Planners Association. These organizations worked together to develop a framework to help communities make more informed decisions about community development. More importantly, each of these organizations continue to support the law.

Myth -- Smart Growth requires communities to develop urban growth boundaries, mass transit, and high-density housing.
Fact -- Although many states have laws commonly referred to as �smart growth,� Wisconsin�s law is not the same as laws adopted by Oregon, Washington, Maryland, Florida, or any other state. Wisconsin�s law does not dictate how communities can grow or where growth can occur.

Myth -- Once a community adopts a comprehensive plan, the community cannot change the plan.
Fact -- Comprehensive plans can be amended as often as a community desires, as long as it follows the proper procedures for amending its plan. In fact, the law requires plans to be updated, at a minimum, once every 10 years.

Myth � Comprehensive planning is expensive and the planning process will be controlled by professional planners and government staff.
Fact � Comprehensive plans, especially for smaller communities, can be developed at a reasonable cost. The University of Wisconsin-Extension, regional planning commissions, and counties can offer expert assistance. �User guides� have been created to help communities prepare the various elements of a comprehensive plan. While much of the planning probably will be done by staff and consultants, local citizens can and should control the process with their participation.

Myth � Smart Growth requires communities to meet certain standards in their comprehensive plan.
Fact � Smart Growth is not a �one-size-fits-all� approach to planning. The law recognizes that each community is different, with its own unique history, values, and resources. Each community is encouraged to develop its own plan that reflects the attitudes and beliefs of its citizenry.

Myth -- Repealing Smart Growth will solve issues related to private property rights, planning, or the DNR.
Fact � Despite some claims, Smart Growth is not responsible for issues related to shoreland zoning, sprawl, large lot-size requirements, impact fees, open-space protection initiatives, or many of the other problems people have had with state and local regulations. These issues have existed for many years and pre-date the Smart Growth law. Although these issues are fair game and may be discussed as part of any planning process, they have nothing to do with the law itself. Smart Growth in Wisconsin is about balanced, more informed planning at the local level, not restrictive land use policies.

As real estate professionals, REALTORS� have a responsibility to make sure any representations they make to the public are accurate. REALTORS� are often entrusted by the public to provide them with accurate information about laws, regulations, and policies that impact the real estate market and the ownership of property. While others may disseminate incorrect information without suffering consequences, the public expects more from REALTORS�. If someone makes a representation about Smart Growth or any other regulation related to real estate, please verify its accuracy with WRA staff or another reliable source before passing this information on to others.

If you have any questions or if you would like additional information, please contact Tom Larson (tlarson@wra.org) at (608) 240-8254. Reprinted with permission.

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