LAND USE & THE FUTURE OF "SMART GROWTH"
August through October, 2001

Land use has been a recurring theme for We the People/Wisconsin, and it's one of the areas where we have been able to show that we've moved public discussion (1995 - The Search for Common Ground; 1998 - Land Use on Trial). At the Governor's Conference on Smart Growth in early 2000, for example, the work of We the People/Wisconsin was specifically cited as being important to the legislative forum and ultimate consensus.

Now, it's time to take a look at what happens next. Communities across Wisconsin must implement the Smart Growth law over the next five to 10 years, and they're asking for help from the state itself as well as interest groups that have dealt with the issue, ranging from the Wisconsin Realtors Association to 1000 Friends of Wisconsin. There is a sense that it's time to move beyond the forum of whether land-use planning makes sense and who should do it to the nitty-gritty details of how it is best accomplished.