A wide variety of tools including plans, programs, policies, guidelines, actions, budgets, and regulations are available to implement community plans. This chapter identifies six broad categories of tools including:

1. Information – tools for gathering or disseminating information.
2. Cooperation – tools that encourage intergovernmental cooperation or communication.
3. Investment – tools for investing or recovering public dollars.
4. Incentive  –tools that encourage a desired behavior.
5. Regulation – tools that prescribe a required outcome.
6. Design – tools that encourage a particular pattern of development or design.

A description of each category and sample tools are provided below. The glossary at the end of this chapter provides additional resources on these and other tools.

Informational Tools

Informational tools are used to gather or disseminate information. Tools designed to gather information include special purpose plans, studies and impact analyses. Tools designed to disseminate information include factsheets, brochures and educational campaigns. Just as public participation tends to result in plans that are more reflective of citizen desires, education can increase the rate of acceptance, participation and overall success of other plan implementation tools.

Intergovernmental Tools

Intergovernmental tools are designed to foster cooperation and communication among two or more units of government. Intergovernmental efforts involve the coordination of plans, policies and programs to address issues of mutual interest. Communities may also agree to enter into formal intergovernmental agreements. For example, communities may agree to consolidate services, share buildings or equipment, hire joint staff, share revenues, or address long-standing boundary issues.

Public Investment Tools

Public investment tools are tools designed to invest or recover community dollars. The most common form of public investment is the construction of public facilities such as roads, trails, parks, government buildings, and public utilities. Many communities use capital improvement plans to identify and prioritize capital spending. Public investment tools designed to recover public dollars include impact fees, special assessment districts, and tax increment financing districts. Community decisions about public investment significantly impact the location, timing and rate of private development.

Incentive-Based Tools

Incentive-based tools rely on the use of rewards or disincentives to encourage a particular type of behavior. While some tools use financial incentives to encourage a desired behavior, others rely on the intrinsic motivation of residents to take actions that benefit the community. Incentive-based tools are becoming popular for encouraging landowners and developers to conserve open space, develop away from sensitive areas, develop at higher densities, or provide other public benefits. Examples include conservation easements, purchase or transfer of development rights, density bonuses, tax incentives, and inclusionary housing.

Regulatory Tools

Regulation is the most common form of plan implementation used by local government. Regulatory tools provide clear provisions about what can and cannot be done in a community. At the same time, they often lack flexibility in dealing with unique development situations. The two most common regulatory tools in Wisconsin are zoning and subdivision regulations. Other tools include conservation subdivision regulations, planned unit developments, urban growth boundaries, and adequate public facilities ordinances.

Design-Based Tools

Design tools are used to encourage a particular pattern of development or design. While some design guidelines and policies can stand on their own, others need to be implemented through targeted public investment, regulations or incentives. Examples of design-based tools include low-impact development, transit-oriented development, conservation subdivision design, and transportation demand management.