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Caledonia
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Summary of Conservation Subdivision Ordinance
Purpose
Guide the future growth and development of the community in accordance with the Village’s adopted land use plan.
Preserve the rural character of the Village through the permanent preservation of meaningful open space and sensitive natural resources, including those areas identified in the Village’s resource inventory maps.
Protect and restore environmentally sensitive areas and biological diversity, minimize disturbance to existing vegetation, and manage primary and secondary environmental corridors.
Ensure that appropriate conservation lands will be identified, protected and restored during the development design process to meet future community needs for storm water management, floodwater storage, and ground water recharge.
Provide for a diversity of lot sizes, housing choices and building densities to accommodate a variety of age and income groups.
Use ecological planning principles in the design, construction and long-term management of conservation developments.
Allow housing to be concentrated on portions of a parcel in order to protect, preserve and restore environmentally sensitive areas or agriculture-productive areas on other portions of the parcel.
Preserve scenic views by minimizing visibility of new development from existing roads.
Provide buffering between residential development and non-residential uses.
Provide commonly owned open space areas for passive and/or active recreational use by residents of the development and, where specified, the larger community.
Preserve significant archaeological sites, historic buildings and their settings.
Protect and preserve an interconnected network of open space throughout the Village, and to help establish effective buffers around working farms and along boundaries of existing protected lands (such as parks).
Where Does Ordinance Apply?
Applies to a land division of a Parent Parcel of three (3) acres or more where the land division creates five (5) or more new parcels or building sites by successive division within a five (5) year period.
Applies to a land division of a Parent Parcel of three (3) acres or more where the land division creates five (5) or more new parcels or building sites by successive division within a five (5) year period.
First Step: Conserve & Protect The Land
Open Space Requirements
40% preserved: Urban (municipal sewer & water) or 60% preserved: Rural (private on site sewer systems)
Identify and Map Potential Conservation Lands
Environmentally Sensitive Lands, Agricultural Lands
Protect and restore environmentally sensitive areas and biological diversity, minimize disturbance to existing vegetation, and manage primary and secondary environmental corridors.
Environmentally Sensitive Lands, Agricultural Lands
Protect and restore environmentally sensitive areas and biological diversity, minimize disturbance to existing vegetation, and manage primary and secondary environmental corridors.
Water Resource Protection
Conservation lands identified, protected and restored during the development design process to meet future community needs for storm water management, floodwater storage, and ground water recharge.
Interconnected Open Space
Protect and preserve an interconnected network of open space throughout the Village, and to help establish effective buffers around working farms and along boundaries of existing protected lands (such as parks).
Protect and preserve an interconnected network of open space throughout the Village, and to help establish effective buffers around working farms and along boundaries of existing protected lands (such as parks).
Next Step: Site The House Lots
Housing is clustered on portions of a parcel in order to protect, preserve and restore environmentally sensitive areas or agriculture-productive areas on other portions of the parcel.
Calculate Density (number of houses allowed)
First, subtract from Parent Parcel the following non-buildable acerage:
1. Floodplain (FEMA)
2. Wetlands
3. 75 feet of a high water mark of navigable streams and lakes
4. Slopes greater than 12 percent
5. Habitats for rare, threatened or endangered species
6. Burial sites and Indian mounds
7. Drainage ways and 25 foot buffer from edge of drainage way.
8. Environmentally sensitive areas
9. Existing Roads
First, subtract from Parent Parcel the following non-buildable acerage:
1. Floodplain (FEMA)
2. Wetlands
3. 75 feet of a high water mark of navigable streams and lakes
4. Slopes greater than 12 percent
5. Habitats for rare, threatened or endangered species
6. Burial sites and Indian mounds
7. Drainage ways and 25 foot buffer from edge of drainage way.
8. Environmentally sensitive areas
9. Existing Roads
Next, Determine Density Bonuses (additional houses allowed)
1. Bonuses are at the discretion of the Village.
2. Development Yield shall not to exceed the maximum allowable density permitted under the plan for that area.
3. Each standard provides a Development Yield Bonus of 5% of the Base Development Yield. The maximum bonus permitted is 20%.
4. Complies with one or more of the following standards.
a. Creating a funding mechanism which will generate sufficient annual revenue to cover the restoration and management costs of the Common Open Space areas, including taxes, insurance, management and enforcement.
b. Encouraging public trail connection by linking new trails along the outer boundaries of the development to existing local or regional public recreational trails, parks, primary or secondary environmental corridors, or other recreational facilities.
c. Providing for connection of internal open spaces, whenever possible, and connection with existing or potential open space lands or adjoining parcels outside of the development.
d. Providing affordable housing, to include a minimum of 15 percent of all units that would be affordable to moderate-income households, as defined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and as applicable to the Village’s demographics. Affordable housing refers to the value equal to 80% of the median value of houses in the local area.
e. Reusing historical buildings and structures, including those sites inventoried by the State Historical Society of Wisconsin. The U.S. Department of Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation of Historic Properties shall apply.
f. Providing for more than 75% of the lots within a neighborhood to abut significant open space on at least one side. A bonus under this subsection shall be prorated on the basis for 1% of each 5% over the minimum as follows
80% = 1% bonus
85% = 2% bonus
90% = 3% bonus
95% = 4% bonus
100% = 5% bonus.
g. Preserving in its entirety any portion of a primary or secondary environmental corridor which is within the subdivision.
Pre-planning
1. Initial Conference
2. Initial Application
3. Inventory and Mapping of Existing Resources
Public Input
1. Concept Plan (density is set)
2. Preliminary Plan
Homeowners Association
Land Stewardship Plan
1. Prepared by an ecologist or other expert trained in natural resource protection in accordance with requirements of the conservation easement.
2. Includes a baseline report of the land and advises the developer, land trust and homeowners association on how the conserved lands will be restored and maintained.
Conservation Easement
1. Legal document that permanently protects open space from further land divisions.
2. Held and enforced by land trust and/or town. Currently, the town is working with the Kenosha/Racine Land Trust, which is either the sole holder or joint holder (with town) of the conservation easements in conservation subdivisions located in Caledonia. The KRLT will advise the developer and ecologist/biologist on the contents of the Stewardship Plan, and is currently developing a standard format for Stewardship Plans, which will be forwarded to the town board for adoption in 2004. The KRLT will monitor the conserved land at least annually to determine if the land use is in compliance with the easement and will provide a written report on its determination to the developer/Homeowners Assocation and the town. The KRLT will work with the developer and home owners assocations to plan for maintenance of conserved lands and will offer educational programs.
Zoning For Conservation Subdivisions
1. Caledonia is under Racine County zoning.
2. Rezoning allows for clustering of houses and more flexibility in site design.
3. Re-zoning choices:
a) Planned Unit Development (PUD) zoning for Urban Area (municipal sewer and water)
b) Conservation-2 (C-2) zoning for rural lands (no municipal sewer or water)