Housing, public transportation and health care access are among three of the most urgent issues addressed in Chippewa Falls’ new comprehensive plan.
The plan, which outlines future growth and development preferences for Chippewa Falls over the next 20 years, has been shared with the public and will likely be adopted by the city council in the next couple of months.
“It’s a good guide for us. We revisit it often, and it really helps,” Mayor Greg Hoffman said. “Often people think it doesn’t have much of an impact, that we just do this because we’re supposed to, but it allows the city to look at a wide range of topics and figure out how to address needs now and in the future.”
The 200-page draft plan covers a wide range of topics. In addition to population and housing, transportation, utilities and community facilities, the plan covers topics such as agricultural and natural resources, economic development, downtown, history and culture, land use and energy and sustainability.
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Key takeaways from the plan include the population growth Chippewa Falls is experiencing, especially with under-50 residents moving to the city. Despite the recent trend, much of the population is aging and housing concerns for the aged are especially acute.
The plan forecasts the city of Chippewa Falls will grow by 2,765 residents between 2020 to 2045. The city’s 2020 population was 14,731, up from 12,925 in 2000.
Key issues in the new comprehensive master plan for the city of Chippewa Falls include utilities and community facilities, housing and development and transportation.
The report projects the city will continue growing at 3.5%, bringing its population to 17,496 by 2045.
The plan was revised after the announcement of HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital’s closure to reflect new needs in the community. Impacts are noted in discussions of public transportation, infrastructure and development and a growing workload for the city’s first responders.
The draft plan document goes to the plan commission May 13 and then to the city council for approval.
Planning process
“The plan is a guide. It’s not an ordinance. It clarifies things. It’s a guide for decision making,” said Chris Straight, senior planner for the West Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission, which worked with the city to develop the plan.
To help guide the plan update, the City Plan Commission established an ad hoc steering committee. Members include the mayor, some city council members, representatives from downtown businesses, the school district, park board and the city engineer.
Eight separate focus groups were held during the first half of 2023 to get feedback on the state of the city and help guide its future. Straight said Wednesday comments he received about the draft will supplement the survey responses and focus group feedback.
“I’m taking down notes. We’ve got the comment cards, and we’ll go through them. If there are things that haven’t been discussed or new ideas, or things that weren’t discussed much, we’ll take them back to the plan commission,” Straight said.
The 2023 comprehensive plan survey showed strong support for economic development initiatives, including the importance of providing incentives and services to retain and attract good-paying jobs.
Barriers to economic development include a tight housing market, a shortage of workers, limited public transportation and limited space available in the business park to grow, the plan says.
‘Dire’ emergency services shortfall
St. Joseph’s Hospital, Prevea and Libertas Treatment Center closures caused major updates to some parts of the plan, city planner Brad Hentschel said. The plan notes that for the time being, Chippewa County has only one hospital — the 25-bed Mayo Clinic Health System Chippewa Valley Hospital in Bloomer.
The closures “will leave many health care gaps in the city of Chippewa Falls, including emergency services, wound care, urgent care, AODA and behavioral health services, obstetrics/gynecology, and other outpatient physician services,” the plan states. “Ripple effects are severe, and it is understood that the existing Chippewa Valley services are not sufficient to close the imminent service gap.”
With HSHS also closing facilities in surrounding communities, including HSHS Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire, the shortfall of emergency services within the Chippewa Valley is considered “dire,” the plan states, and emergency services within Chippewa Falls will be challenged with longer EMS runs to area hospitals based on capacity.
A fire engine from the town of Anson sits outside HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital in Chippewa Falls on March 22.
The plan mentions that emergency services demands are increasing and some equipment replacement is anticipated. The increasing demand for health, mental health services and disability services was also noted.
The plan recommends that the city “work with health care providers to mitigate to the extent feasible any and all existing or anticipated health care gaps.”
It also suggests working with area legislators and private health care providers to evaluate the feasibility of designating a future Chippewa Falls-based hospital as a critical access hospital.
Transportation
The impact of the HSHS St. Joseph’s hospital closure March 22 can also be seen in public concern about transportation services, which are needed to get people to medical facilities both in and out of the city.
A lack of affordable public transportation options, especially for seniors and teens, was frequently mentioned in the survey and during focus group meetings, the plan notes.
“It’s clear that the city needs to continue to do things like working to expand public transit and shared ride options so that people can get to hospitals and clinics and health care facilities,” Straight said.
Other transportation concerns included repair and maintenance of roadways. Chippewa Falls has nearly 100 miles of city-owned roads.
Resident survey respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the following should be transportation priorities: sidewalk and trail maintenance (77%), making streets safer for pedestrians/bicyclists (71%) and improved pedestrian amenities and connectivity (64%).
A cyclist rides on a Chippewa Falls street in front of the entrance to Irvine Park on April 21.
Housing a common concern
Chippewa Falls has a tight housing market, Hentschel said. With a limited number of units on the market, as well as housing affordability concerns, housing was the most frequently mentioned issue during the planning process.
The plan recommends the city partner with the Chippewa County Housing Authority and others to explore opportunities to offer additional financial assistance and incentives for new homeowners and rehabilitation, including exploring employer-supported housing and supporting second-floor housing downtown.
It suggests the city review its land use regulations to consider barriers to alternative housing types, allow infill and adaptive reuse compatible with the neighborhood, explore ways to make housing more affordable and encourage neighborhood development with a sense-of-place while discouraging monotonous tract housing.
An estimated 185 subsidized units are using the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program; 45% of the units are set to expire within four years.
The plan suggests the city identify and communicate with owners and managers of subsidized housing units, specifically those utilizing low-income housing tax credits, to discuss a timeline for tax credit expiration and opportunities to keep units affordable for lower-income residents.
“We spend quite a bit of time talking about the tight housing market. Housing affordability is a challenge for many people. Most of the survey respondents said they’d love to own their own home someday,” Straight said.
Specialized housing facilities within the city are also addressed in the plan. The city has three nursing homes with a total licensed capacity of 172 residents, nine licensed community based residential facilities totaling 223 licensed spaces for occupants, 27 adult family homes with a total capacity of 106 and three residential care apartment complexes with a capacity of 184.
The overall total capacity of senior housing facilities within Chippewa Falls is 685.
Residents of the Chippewa Manor Residential Living home in are seen in November 2022.
“This total could accommodate just under 24% of the city’s current 2020 population aged 65 years and older (2,888). As the population continues to age both in Chippewa Falls and the surrounding area, demand for these types of facilities will likely increase,” the plan states.
Hentschel said the plan will be a good guide to helping address housing needs.
“We don’t have a solution yet, but we have data. We have feedback. We’re in conversations with realtors and developers. This is how we begin to solve these issues,” he said.
