Regional planning commission outlines services and urges fuller town participation in hazard mitigation planning

Sheldon Johnson, executive director of the Northwest Regional Planning Commission, told the Sawyer County Board that the commission provides planning, GIS, community development and water-resources services across a 10-county region and operates on roughly a $3.1 million annual budget.

"Because you're a member, we can work in and around the county," Johnson said, noting the commission has 15 staff and that member counties collectively provide $211,830 toward the commission's work. He described programs ranging from revolving loan funds and enterprise center properties to a suite of housing and environmental programs that the commission administers for local governments.

The commission's deputy director, Jason Allman, described planning projects relevant to Sawyer County, including comprehensive-plan updates and hazard mitigation planning. Allman said the county's hazard mitigation update encountered changing requirements midway when FEMA paused and revised its grants program, and the RPC used supplemental Wisconsin Emergency Management funding to continue the project.

"Some of the rules and requirements did change during that time period," Allman said, explaining why outreach and eligibility rules can shift as federal programs evolve.

During public comment, Edgewater resident Linda Zilmer urged the board to ensure towns were notified and able to weigh in before the county finalized its hazard mitigation plan. "It's not in just having a plan, but it's working the plan," Zilmer said, adding that towns she spoke with in northern Sawyer County did not recall being notified about the open house and worried that exclusion could jeopardize future mitigation funding for local projects.

Johnson responded that the region uses U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey data and regional processes for income and eligibility thresholds, and he encouraged supervisors to route constituents and businesses to RPC staff for loan programs and technical assistance. The commission also said it has leveraged more than $215,000 in Wisconsin DNR grants to support aquatic-plant and lake association management planning in the county.

The commission confirmed a household hazardous-waste event at the Sawyer County Fairgrounds on Sept. 23 and said it would follow up on whether the event will accept televisions and other electronics.

The board did not take formal action on the hazard mitigation plan during this meeting; Johnson and RPC staff left materials for supervisors and said they would share additional handouts and contact information for business-development staff.