MONROE - An effort to make Monroe a better community is under way, as a regional planning commission meets with community members to address issues in the city and find potential solutions.
The Southwestern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission updated the Monroe Common Council on Tuesday on the progress made in developing the city's comprehensive plan.
So far, the commission has looked at housing and transportation: To that end, it invited members of the public last month to a series of meetings to raise their concerns about the future of housing and transportation and how the city can work with the community to address those issues.
SWRPC manager Troy Maggied said the commission has been working to develop goals and "actionable strategies" for the future of the city.
"Hopefully (the plan) will open up opportunities for the city," he said.
He added that both meetings had high attendance and "great" public input.
Maggied said the general theme of the housing meetings were increasing population density in the downtown area; developing age-appropriate housing; and addressing all income levels with affordable home prices.
Savannah Ernzen, SWRPC associate planner, said the public's input from the transportation meeting focused heavily on bicycle and pedestrian friendliness and working with intergovernmental agencies to coordinate redesigning streets and signs.
"(The meetings were) about increasing existing efficiency of transportation," she said.
Ernzen said many community members are concerned about traffic in residential neighborhoods. She added that some believe the layout of the city is outdated and does not reflect the current time.
While the concerns of the city were easily defined, Ernzen said the meeting produced a "very high-level vision statement."
"A Monroe that provides safe, efficient and diverse transportation options, that is accessible to all community members and visitors," she said, "in addition to providing high quality, affordable connections throughout the city and region."
Maggied said the vision for what Monroe needs "sounds great" but the challenge is finding what needs to happen to implement this vision.
The commission will continue to host meetings in coming months. Topics will include the economy, parks and natural resources, and arts and culture.
The Southwestern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission updated the Monroe Common Council on Tuesday on the progress made in developing the city's comprehensive plan.
So far, the commission has looked at housing and transportation: To that end, it invited members of the public last month to a series of meetings to raise their concerns about the future of housing and transportation and how the city can work with the community to address those issues.
SWRPC manager Troy Maggied said the commission has been working to develop goals and "actionable strategies" for the future of the city.
"Hopefully (the plan) will open up opportunities for the city," he said.
He added that both meetings had high attendance and "great" public input.
Maggied said the general theme of the housing meetings were increasing population density in the downtown area; developing age-appropriate housing; and addressing all income levels with affordable home prices.
Savannah Ernzen, SWRPC associate planner, said the public's input from the transportation meeting focused heavily on bicycle and pedestrian friendliness and working with intergovernmental agencies to coordinate redesigning streets and signs.
"(The meetings were) about increasing existing efficiency of transportation," she said.
Ernzen said many community members are concerned about traffic in residential neighborhoods. She added that some believe the layout of the city is outdated and does not reflect the current time.
While the concerns of the city were easily defined, Ernzen said the meeting produced a "very high-level vision statement."
"A Monroe that provides safe, efficient and diverse transportation options, that is accessible to all community members and visitors," she said, "in addition to providing high quality, affordable connections throughout the city and region."
Maggied said the vision for what Monroe needs "sounds great" but the challenge is finding what needs to happen to implement this vision.
The commission will continue to host meetings in coming months. Topics will include the economy, parks and natural resources, and arts and culture.