Resources for County & Municipal Leaders
Thoughtful development begins with strong planning. This resource center provides county and municipal leaders with practical tools and introductory guidance related to land use, master planning, and community benefits - three important components of preparing for growth while protecting the long-term interests of residents and the character of our communities.
These materials are provided for educational and informational purposes only and are intended as a starting point, not legal, planning, engineering, or other professional advice. Any changes to municipal or county plans, ordinances, policies, development agreements, or land-use practices should be evaluated through the appropriate public process and in consultation with qualified legal counsel, professional planners, engineers, and other applicable experts.
Land Use Readiness Checklist
Land-Use Planning: Recommended Steps
1. Review Current Zoning & Land-Use Ordinances
Identify where residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural, and other major uses are currently permitted - and whether those designations still make sense.
2. Identify Areas for Growth and Preservation
Clearly identify where future development is appropriate and where farmland, open space, historic resources, environmentally sensitive areas, and established community character should be protected.
3. Evaluate Emerging & High-Impact Uses
Determine whether existing ordinances adequately address uses that may not have been contemplated when they were written - such as data centers, warehouses, large energy facilities, utility infrastructure, and other intensive development.
4. Review Infrastructure Capacity
Consider whether roads, water, sewer, electric capacity, emergency services, stormwater systems, and other public infrastructure can reasonably support the development currently permitted by zoning.
5. Evaluate Development Standards
Review setbacks, buffers, building height, lot coverage, lighting, noise, traffic, landscaping, environmental protections, and other standards intended to reduce impacts on surrounding properties and communities.
6. Confirm Alignment With the Master Plan
Zoning and land-use policies should support the municipality's adopted long-term vision. Identify areas where current regulations may no longer reflect Master Plan priorities.
7. Identify Regulatory Gaps
Ask: If a major development application were submitted tomorrow, are our ordinances prepared for it? Identify unclear definitions, outdated provisions, or significant uses that aren't adequately addressed.
8. Engage the Right Professionals
Have municipal counsel, the planner, engineer, environmental professionals, and other appropriate experts review proposed changes before adoption.
9. Follow the Required Public Process
Land-use changes should proceed through the appropriate statutory, Planning Board, governing-body, notice, hearing, and adoption processes.
10. Review Regularly - Not Just When Development Arrives
Don't wait for a controversial application to discover that an ordinance is outdated. Establish a regular process for reviewing zoning, development trends, infrastructure capacity, and emerging land uses.
Master Planning: Recommended Steps
Review the Current Master Plan
1. Review What You Have
Determine when the Master Plan was last reexamined and whether it still reflects current development pressures and community priorities.
2. Identify What Should Be Protected
Clearly identify farmland, open space, historic resources, natural areas, rural character, and other community assets.
3. Identify Where Growth Belongs
Determine where future residential, commercial, industrial, and other development is most appropriate based on infrastructure, transportation, surrounding uses, and community goals.
4. Plan for What's Coming
Consider emerging pressures such as warehouses, data centers, energy infrastructure, housing, utilities, and other large-scale development that older plans may not adequately address.
5. Engage the Community
Include residents, farmers, businesses, landowners, municipal professionals, and other stakeholders in identifying priorities.
6. Turn the Plan Into Action
Compare the Master Plan with existing zoning and ordinances and identify the specific changes needed to implement the community's vision.
The Master Plan establishes the vision. Your land-use regulations help put that vision into practice.
What about the cost?
Yes, a comprehensive Master Plan update can become expensive, particularly when it involves extensive professional planning, engineering, mapping, environmental work, transportation analysis, and public engagement.
But municipalities have options to control or offset those costs.
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Start with a Master Plan Reexamination. Determine what actually needs updating before commissioning an entirely new plan.
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Update strategically. A municipality may be able to amend particular Master Plan elements rather than replacing everything at once.
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Use existing county, state and GIS data. Don't pay consultants to recreate information that already exists.
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Coordinate regionally. Neighboring municipalities and counties may share many of the same transportation, agricultural, environmental, infrastructure, and development issues.
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Seek planning and preservation grants. Depending on the work involved, state and federal programs may support planning, farmland/open-space preservation, transportation, environmental resilience, economic development, brownfields, infrastructure, or related studies.
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Use universities and planning partnerships. Rutgers, county planning departments, regional organizations, and other institutions can sometimes provide technical assistance, research, mapping, or student-supported planning work.
Updating a Master Plan doesn't always mean starting over. Review what you have, identify the gaps, prioritize the most important updates, and explore grants and partnerships before committing local funds.
Establish Community Benefits
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Establish a Community Needs List
Maintain a current, prioritized list of infrastructure, public safety, recreation, preservation, economic development, community facility, and other long-term needs.
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Align Priorities With the Master Plan
Ensure community priorities - including land preservation, agriculture, infrastructure, economic development, and community character - are appropriately reflected in the municipal Master Plan and related planning documents.
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Establish a Community Benefits Framework
Develop a consistent process for evaluating significant development projects, their potential impacts, community needs, and opportunities for legally appropriate community benefits.
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Engage Qualified Legal Counsel
Identify municipal counsel with appropriate land-use and development experience to advise what benefits, agreements, contributions, or other arrangements may legally be pursued.
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Build the Professional Team
Determine when planners, engineers, financial professionals, environmental consultants, economic-development professionals, or other specialists should be engaged to evaluate a proposed project.
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Understand the Full Impact of Development
Evaluate impacts beyond the project site - including roads, traffic, utilities, emergency services, schools, environmental resources, farmland, neighboring properties, municipal services, and long-term infrastructure costs.
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Understand the Project's Economic Value
Evaluate projected investment, employment, tax revenue, infrastructure requirements, public costs, incentives, and the broader economic value associated with the development.
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Engage Early
Establish procedures for appropriate discussions with developers early in the process. Waiting until approvals are substantially complete can limit available options.
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Document Commitments
When community benefits are legally appropriate, clearly establish responsibilities, funding, timelines, performance expectations, and accountability through the appropriate legal mechanism.
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Communicate With the Public
Keep residents informed about major projects, anticipated impacts, public benefits, and opportunities for participation.
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Think Regionally
Major developments can affect neighboring municipalities and the county. Consider opportunities for shared infrastructure, agricultural preservation, workforce development, transportation, emergency services, and other regional investments.
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Measure the Long-Term Benefit
Ask the fundamental question: Will this development leave the community stronger 10, 20, or 30 years from now?
The goal is not to discourage development. It is to be prepared for it.
Community Benefits in Action
This Is Already Happening in Rural America
Community benefits are not theoretical. Rural communities across the country are negotiating additional investments from major development projects and directing those resources toward priorities identified by the community.
Lincoln County, Minnesota — $80,000 Every Year
A 200-megawatt wind development provides $80,000 annually to a regional community fund supporting grants and community initiatives near the project.
Southwest Minnesota — $15,000 Every Year
Another 250-megawatt wind development provides $15,000 annually to a community fund supporting the surrounding rural region.
Adair County, Iowa — $83,000 Investment
Wind development revenues helped provide $83,000 to the Adair County Fairgrounds, funding a renovated arena used for livestock shows and other community events.
Deuel County, South Dakota — $30,000+ Every Year
A local wind project established a scholarship program providing at least $30,000 annually to graduating high school students. With additional landowner contributions, approximately $50,000 in scholarships was distributed in 2024 alone.