Growth management and agriculture: An examination of local efforts to manage growth and preserve farmland in Wisconsin cities, villages, and towns

In this paper we examine the effectiveness of growth management policies in Wisconsin cities, villages, and towns. Unlike most other studies, we consi der the impact of growth management policies on agriculture, specifically t he preservation of farmland, in addition to population growth. Our analysis examines these relationships separately in towns and in cities/villages be cause of differences in their institutional structures. We mailed a survey to every city, village, and town in Wisconsin; the surveys were supplemente d by data collected from several secondary sources. For both towns and citi es/villages, growth management policies are related positively to the rate Of Population growth. The fiscal structure of localities proved to have a s tronger effect on population growth for cities and villages than for towns. Growth management capacity had little effect for either type of municipali ty. The analysis of farmland preservation suggests that exclusive agricultu re zoning is marginally effective in limiting farmland conversion in towns, but ineffective in cities/villages.