Guide to Community Planning in Wisconsin by Brian W. Ohm

Chapter 2:  Types of Plans & Overview of Implementation Tools
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1.3  Comprehensive Plans

Many cities, villages and towns refer to their master plans as "comprehensive plans." Some counties also refer to their county development plans as "comprehensive plans." While the Wisconsin Statutes do not provide a definition of a "comprehensive plan" or any guidance for its preparation, it is important for communities to follow good planning practices and make their plans, be they master plans, land use plans, or county development plans, as comprehensive as possible.

The theory and practice of planning is constantly evolving. In the 1940s, for example, a comprehensive zoning ordinance was considered the same as a comprehensive plan. The plan was implicit in the regulatory process. Rarely did a separate plan exist that articulated the public objectives of the regulatory process. Today, a comprehensive plan is generally understood to be a document separate from the zoning ordinance. Also, historically, master plans tended to be focused only on the physical development of the community. Today, comprehensive plans often include the social and economic components of community development.

The following is intended to provide guidance regarding the comprehensive package planning can provide, no matter what the plan document is called.

What a Comprehensive Plan Does

Comprehensive planning provides an assessment of a community's needs; a statement of a community's values; the community's long-term goals and objectives as well as measurable steps which can be taken to achieve one or more goals. The plans are comprehensive in that the various components encompass many of the functions that make a community work such as wastewater treatment, transportation, housing, and land use. The plans should also consider the interrelationships of those functions and help coordinate the various plans, programs, and procedures of a community.

The comprehensive plan is usually the only public document that describes the community as a whole in terms of its complex and mutually supporting systems. Implementation of the comprehensive plan must be linked to the local budget, cooperation with other units of government, and the needs and capabilities of the private sector.

While the comprehensive plan serves as a blueprint for the community's physical development, the plan must also attempt to clarify the relationship between physical development policies and social and economic goals. The plan provides a long-term perspective to guide short-term community decisions such as how much capacity to build into a new wastewater treatment plant or how to evaluate the potential impacts of rezoning a parcel of land. A comprehensive plan is also not a static document. It needs to be continually updated as conditions change.

A comprehensive plan outlines actions a community should take and gives guidance for making both simple and complex decisions. The plan-making process involves preparing materials to support decisions. The decision-making process involves making choices based on the plan.

The format of a comprehensive plan includes various parts directed at specific substantive areas. The parts may include text, maps, charts and other features. Comprehensive plans are policy-oriented. The plans therefore include a series of "policy statements" which reflect the problems and opportunities provided by the community's resource base, the physical and social needs of the community, and the community's goals.

Specific components a comprehensive plan may cover the following:

q A population element that outlines historic demographic trends and projections such as the number and size of households and income characteristics.

q An economic development element that may include labor force information and an analysis of the community's economic base.

q A housing element that considers such issues as the location, types, age and condition of housing, owner and rental occupancy, and the affordability of housing.

q A natural resources element that considers issues relating to soil types, wetlands, agricultural and forest lands, habitat areas, water resources and other environmental features.

q A community facilities element that addresses the existing and future transportation, sewer and water systems.

q A land use element that considers existing and future land use within the community and attempts to minimize use conflicts; designates lands for protection; and ensures that sufficient space is allocated for different uses.

q An intergovernmental coordination element that describes how a community relates to surrounding communities and promotes coordination with school districts and neighboring communities.

q An historic preservation element identifying manmade resources.

q A community design element that focuses on the aesthetic character of a community.

q A redevelopment element that may explore strategies for addressing the reuse of land and/or facilities and reinvestment.

q A implementation section that outlines the steps needed to implement, monitor and update the plan.

Every community may not need to include all these elements. Each plan must reflect the unique circumstances of the community. Although they may be developed separately, each component should reflect the fact that the parts of the plan are inter related. For example, decisions made regarding new streets and roads will have an impact on future land use patterns, which will have an impact on proposed commercial and recreational developments and so on.