In SE Wisconsin, "Environmental Corridor" Does Not Mean "No-Development"

The City of Waukesha tamps down development fears over that its plan to supply diverted Lake Michigan water beyond its municipal boundaries by arguing that most of the land in an expanded service territory is already developed or is in "environmental corridors" recommended for preservation.

...Waukesha Utility Manager Dan Duchniak said 85 percent of the water service area is developed or in environmental corridors.

But there's the rub: at least when it comes to land in "environmental corridors" by the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission, the designation is a recommendation only, and is subject to change by local governments.

Take a look at this story from one of the Journal Sentinel online suburban papers about a large-lot home in Mequon being allowed to encroach into an environmental corridor - - and note that it won't be a first there:

Mequon - The city of Mequon will modify the final plat restrictions for Eastwyn Bay subdivision in order to allow a property owner to encroach into an environmental corridor along Lake Michigan and adjacent to the Donges Bay Gorge...

The area was originally classified as a primary environmental corridor by the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission in 1991, based on factors such as vegetation and topography, Assistant Director of Community Development Jac Zader said....

The approach is similar to what was done in the Wildwood Preserve subdivision to the south of Eastwyn Bay, he said, where seven homes were built entirely in the environmental corridor...

SEWRPC also is aware of the plans for the Eastwyn Bay property, Zader said. Although it makes recommendations, he explained, SEWRPC does not typically have regulatory authority to stop development in an environmental corridor - an issue that has not been uncommon in Mequon.