Board to decide on principles for county development The county's comprehensive plan goes to a County Board vote tonight By Anna Krejci News-Chronicle A plan guiding the future of residential and commercial development and the preservation of green spaces will be the subject of a vote during tonight's Brown County Board meeting. The draft of the Brown County Comprehensive Plan has been created over the course of more than two years and its development process has entailed public hearings. After being unanimously approved by the Brown County Planning Commission Board of Directors and the Brown County Planning, Development and Transportation Committee, supervisors are scheduled to vote on the plan tonight. Chuck Lamine, the county's planning director, enumerated the ways in which previous drafts have evolved to the present plan. A study on sharing the costs of highways between the county and municipalities was stricken from the draft because the plan cannot require the two parties to negotiate. The plan would require neighborhoods to be joined with adjacent neighborhoods in some way, including by streets, sidewalks or trails. Language for establishing a "street grid pattern" between neighborhoods was replaced with ensuring "connectivity" between neighborhoods, Lamine said. The change was requested by realtors who believed the term "street grid pattern" could limit development. The plan calls for transforming abandoned railway corridors into trail systems. Trails in urban areas would be paved. By doing so, the county preserves the original railroad routes in case train transportation is desired, Lamine said. Also, the plan has an amendment process similar to the process of its initial adoption. Public hearings, a protocol for reviewing the plan annually and rewriting the plan every five to 10 years are in place. The plan has been and still is the subject of criticism and praise. Representatives of the building and real estate industry plan to attend tonight's meeting, as does at least one board member of the Baird Creek Preservation Foundation. The Realtor's Association of Northeast Wisconsin says the plan could jeopardize individuals' property rights and values, "discourage economic development," and lacks flexibility. Jennifer Sunstrom, governmental affairs director for the Northeast Wisconsin Realtor's Association, said the plan tries to control urban sprawl. "We believe the way the plan is attempting to do that is a little too strict," she said. By encouraging land to be developed without large gaps of undeveloped land in between, Sunstrom predicted that urban property value would rise while rural property value would fall because the supply of land would be altered. Sunstrom said the plan's amendment process is likely to be time consuming, and timing is a large factor in the buying and selling of real estate, she said. While the association criticizes some aspects of the plan, it supports the plan's general goals. One objective is making development more efficient by coordinating sewer and water utility expansions with residential and commercial growth. Another is mixing commercial establishments with residences to increase residents' accessibility to services, permitting people to transport themselves by foot or bicycle. Charlie Frisk, president of the Baird Creek Preservation Foundation, firmly supports the Comprehensive Plan. Its controls on urban sprawl will save money for communities and property owners, he said. By avoiding "leap frog development" - a development pattern where buildings are separated by farm land parcels - road construction will cover less distance and garbage collection and water utility services should cost less. The contiguous development the plan proposes minimizes urban sprawl, he said. Frisk said lower property taxes should result from more efficient sewer and water utility systems. The quality of life should increase if neighborhoods are connected to parks and retail stores, he said. Through forming and adopting the Comprehensive Plan, Brown County is abiding by Wisconsin's Comprehensive Planning Law. The Brown County Board meets at 7 p.m. today at Green Bay City Hall, 100 N. Jefferson St. Copies of the plan are on the county's Web site, www.co.brown.wi.us/Planning/brown_co_smart_growth.html, or at the County's libraries.