Model Plans Demonstrate Alternatives to Sprawl

What is "Livable Communities Design"?

Any location that people choose to live may be considered "livable." The term "livable communities," however, has recently been coined to refer to communities that: (a) contain a healthy mix of homes, shops, workplaces, civic institutions, and parks; and (b) are designed to provide people with convenient access to daily needs without having to drive. Many feel such communities offer a higher quality of life to more people. Key design principles include the following:

Use pedestrian-friendly design: Streets, buildings, and public spaces should be designed to human scale to make walking, bicycling, and transit convenient and attractive. Mix land uses: Locate homes within easy walking distance of schools, workplaces, recreation, small shops, and other neighborhood services. Create community and neighborhood centers.

Provide high quality public spaces: These include parks, squares, and greens that serve the entire community. Streets and paths should also be designed to be beautiful places (e.g., through use of street trees, landscaped planting strips and boulevards).

Provide a variety of housing choices: Allow a mixture of apartments, townhouses, multiplexes, and single-family residences on different sized lots to meet the housing needs of all residents.

Protect natural resources: Respect the natural terrain, drainage, landscape, and vegetation. Preserve important resources in open space and parks. Promote community character: Preserve historic landmarks and buildings and respect historic architecture.

Goals of Model Developments Project

The goals of CBE's model development project are to:

educate citizens and policy makers about alternatives to sprawl development;

provide models for different types of development that could be replicated in other places in the region or state; and

provide a vision of future development on the sites chosen and assist interested communities and property owners in identifying steps needed to realize the vision.

Sites Selected

CBE selected the sites based on the following criteria:

Existing or potential transit service (preferably rail)

Development and community type

Replicability

Feasibility (market, technical, political)

Consistency with local and regional land use plans

Community and landowner interest

The four sites selected were:

Milwaukee County Regional Medical Center (Wauwatosa)

Capital Court Shopping Center (Milwaukee)

City of Franklin (in the Civic Center District bounded by STH 100 and 36 and Drexel Ave.)

Town of Caledonia (between rail corridor and STH 32 at Six Mile Road)