INTRODUCTION

Land Use practices vary considerably across the world. The United Nations' Food and
Agriculture Organization Water Development Division explains that "Land use concerns the
products and/or benefits obtained from use of the land as well as the land management actions
(activities) carried out by humans to produce those products and benefits."[2] As of the early
1990s, about 13% of the Earth was considered arable land, with 26% in pasture, 32% forests and
woodland, and 1.5% urban areas.

As Albert Guttenberg (1959) wrote many years ago, "'Land use' is a key term in the
language of city planning."[3] Commonly, political jurisdictions will undertake land-use
planning and regulate the use of land in an attempt to avoid land-use conflicts. Land use plans
are implemented through land division and use ordinances and regulations, such as zoning
regulations. Management consulting firms and non-governmental organizations will frequently
seek to influence these regulations before they are codified.

Land use and land management practices have a major impact on natural resources
including water, soil, nutrients, plants and animals. Land use information can be used to develop
solutions for natural resource management issues such as salinity and water quality. For instance,
water bodies in a region that has been deforested or having erosion will have different water
quality than those in areas that are forested. Forest gardening, a plant-based food production
system, is believed to be the oldest form of land use in the world.

The major effect of land use on land cover since 1750 has been deforestation of
temperate regions. More recent significant effects of land use include urban sprawl, soil erosion,
soil degradation, salinization, and desertification. Land-use change, together with use of fossil
fuels, are the major anthropogenic sources of carbon dioxide, a dominant greenhouse gas.

According to a report by the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation, land
degradation has been exacerbated where there has been an absence of any land use planning, or
of its orderly execution, or the existence of financial or legal incentives that have led to the
wrong land use decisions, or one-sided central planning leading to over-utilization of the land
resources - for instance for immediate production at all costs. As a consequence the result has
often been misery for large segments of the local population and destruction of valuable
ecosystems. Such narrow approaches should be replaced by a technique for the planning and
management of land resources that is integrated and holistic and where land users are central.
This will ensure the long-term quality of the land for human use, the prevention or resolution of
social conflicts related to land use, and the conservation of ecosystems of high biodiversity
value.
 PURPOSE OF LAND USE

The comprehensive plan, also known as a general plan, master plan or land-use plan, is a
document designed to guide the future actions of a community. It presents a vision for the future,
with long-range goals and objectives for all activities that affect the local government. This
includes guidance on how to make decisions on public and private land development proposals,
the expenditure of public funds, availability of tax policy (tax incentives), cooperative efforts
and issues of pressing concern, such as farmland preservation or the rehabilitation of older
neighborhoods areas. Most plans are written to provide direction for future activities over a 10-
to 20-year period after plan adoption. However, plans should receive a considered review and
possible update every five years.

A community comprehensive plan serves the following functions:

The plan provides continuity. The plan provides continuity across time, and gives
successive public bodies a common framework for addressing land-use issues.

It is the means by which a community can balance competing private interests. John
Public may want to store oil drums on his property. Jane Citizen, his neighbor, would like to
open a restaurant on her property. Planning seeks to strike a balance among the many competing
demands on land by creating development patterns that are orderly and rational, provide the
greatest benefits for individuals and the community as a whole and avoid nuisance conflicts
between land uses.

It is the means by which a community can protect public investments. Planning is the
means by which a community avoids digging up last year’s new road to lay this year’s new
sewer pipe. Well-planned, orderly and phased development patterns are also less expensive for a
community to provide with public services than low-density, scattered development.

It allows communities to plan development in a way that protects valued resources.

Planning can identify environmental features like wetlands, agricultural lands, woods and steep
slopes and suggest strategies for preserving those resources from destruction or degradation by
inappropriate development.

It provides guidance for shaping the appearance of the community. A plan can set forth
policies that foster a distinctive sense of place.

It promotes economic development. The plan contains valuable information that drives
the location decisions of prospective firms.

It provides justification for decisions. Plans provide a factual and objective basis to
support zoning decisions and can be used by communities to defend their decisions if challenged
in court.
 Through public dialogue, citizens express a collective vision for the future. Last, but
certainly not least, the planning process provides citizens an opportunity to brainstorm, debate
and discuss the future of their community. A plan developed through a robust public input
process enjoys strong community support. Subsequent decisions that are consistent with the
plan’s policies are less likely to become embroiled in public controversy.
 Land Use Goals and Objectives
1. To keep the Land Use Plan and Future Land Use Map current with changing growth
conditions inthe Region.
1.1. Review the Land Use Plan and Future Land Use Map at five year intervals to ensure
theseplanning documents remain useful guides for growth and development.
1.2. Consider prompt review and possible amendment of the Land Use Plan and Future
Land Use Map between five year intervals should development conditions significantly change.
1.3. Integrate pertinent development data into Geographic Information Systems to expand
and keep current on-going development trend analysis for planning purposes.
1.4. Adopt or amend zoning, subdivision, flood plain, and health regulations necessary to
fully implement the goals, objectives, and policies of the adopted Dubuque County Regional
Smart Plan.
2. To plan for the future and orderly development within a regional context.
2.1. Consider the regional setting and economy when assessing the opportunities and
constraintsfor land development.
2.2. Encourage intergovernmental partnerships to minimize the negative impact of
city/county urban fringe development on regional watersheds, ecosystems, and rural
infrastructure through compact and contiguous development with storm water management.
2.3. Encourage intergovernmental cooperation to develop policies for development of
fringe areas, to enhance development, and avoid unregulated sprawl.
2.4. Promote corridors of green along natural and roadway corridors.
2.5. Encourage cooperative regional planning with all levels of government, to develop a
strategic plan for fringe area development that may include annexation.
2.6. Encourage local governments to establish mutual agreements to plan, facilitate,
coordinate, and resolve possible conflicts of proposed development within municipal fringe
areas.
2.7. The County should initiate a process with local governments to establish mutual
fringe area planning and development agreements.
2.8. Recognize that transportation and land use are directly related, and encourage
appropriate land use and transportation planning.
3. To protect and enhance the viability, livability, and affordability of residential
neighborhoods, while integrating multifamily development throughout the region.
3.1. Promote inclusive and economically integrated neighborhoods that allow a diverse
mix of residents and housing types.
 3.2. Promote providing a range of housing options throughout the region.
3.3. Encourage connecting and interrelating neighborhoods with greenbelts or other
pathways, commercial nodes, or public facilities.
3.4. Encourage preservation of historic and aesthetic character and function of established
neighborhoods.
3.5. Encourage protection of existing residential areas from encroachment by
incompatible development and land uses.
3.6. Support providing neighborhood amenities throughout the region in an equitable
manner.
3.7. Encourage neighborhood identity, planning, and pride of place.
3.8. Support preservation of the environmental quality of residential areas and buffer
from noxious or nuisance impacts.
3.9. Support protection of historic neighborhoods from inappropriate development,
inconsistent with existing historic development.
3.10. Continue to promote affordable housing for those who would like to purchase a
home, but do not qualify for assistance.
4. Ensure that opportunities for convenient and concentrated commercial development
are provided to support both the local and regional market.
4.1. Support protection of downtown commercial districts and encourage continued
reinvestment and redevelopment.
4.2. Encourage expansion of commercial opportunities in existing commercial corridors
or nodes where infrastructure can support growth.
4.3. Promote opportunities for neighborhood commercial centers that assure
compatibility with residential property.
4.4. Support preservation of historic and aesthetic character and function of established
commercial districts.
4.5. Encourage mixed use development in the downtown area and unincorporated
villages.
5. Provide sufficient opportunities for industrial development sites within the community.
5.1. Promote the retention and expansion of existing, and attraction of new, industrial
development opportunities in suitable locations.
 5.2. Support protecting existing industrial development from encroachment by
incompatible development.
5.3. Support annexation of land suitable for industrial development if necessary.
5.4. Lessen negative impacts to residential areas which are located near industrial areas.
6. To balance open space and environmental preservation with the community’s
development needs.
6.1. Encourage protecting and preserving existing open space and park land to meet the
region’s needs.
6.2. Encourage expansion of urban green spaces in suitable locations to encourage
livability and enhance aesthetics.
6.3. Encourage parks, green space, trails, and similar park/open space uses easily
accessible to residents at neighborhood level.
6.4. Provide common open/green space and landscaping into all new development
wherever possible.
6.5. Support management of development along bluff lines and protect scenic vistas.
6.6. Support protection of undeveloped and underdeveloped remaining land along bluff-
lines.
6.7. Support protection and enhancement of riverfront, wetlands, waterway corridors,
floodplains, and other sensitive land areas.
7. Ensure that the physical character and form of the region reflects its historic setting and
that the built environment is compatible with the natural environment.
7.1. Consider defining and enhancing gateways and focal points to create a sense of
place.
7.2. Promote protection and preservation of historic buildings, urban pattern, and natural
environment.
7.3. Promote quality in the design and construction of new public and private
development.
7.4. Preserve natural areas and wildlife corridors that contribute to the character of the
area.
8. Encourage the concept of mixed-use development to create diverse and self-sufficient
neighborhoods.
8.1. Promote a compatible mix of land uses that create a diversified urban environment
that mixes