236.13 Basis for approval.

1,374 words·~6 min read·/wi/chapter-236/236-13-2

A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.

(1)Approval of the preliminary or final plat shall be conditioned upon compliance with:

(a)The provisions of this chapter.

(b)Any municipal, town, or county ordinance that is in effect when the subdivider submits a preliminary plat, or a final plat if no preliminary plat is submitted.

(d)The rules of the department of safety and professional services relating to lot size and lot elevation necessary for proper sanitary conditions in a subdivision not served by a public sewer, where provision for public sewer service has not been made.

(e)The rules of the department of transportation relating to provision for the safety of entrance upon and departure from the abutting state trunk highways or connecting highways and for the preservation of the public interest and investment in such highways.

(ad)In this subsection:

1. “Binder course” means the non-surface-level course that is attached to the packed-level gravel course.

2. “Land disturbing activity” means any man-made alteration of the land surface resulting in a change in the topography or existing vegetative or nonvegetative soil cover that may result in runoff and lead to an increase in soil erosion and movement of sediment into waters of this state. “Land disturbing activity” includes clearing and grubbing, demolition, excavating, pit trench dewatering, filling, and grading activities.

3. “Total cost to complete a public improvement” includes the cost to make and install storm water facilities. “Total cost to complete a public improvement” does not include any of the following:

a. Any fees charged by the governing body of the town or municipality.

b. Land disturbing activities that are necessary to achieve the desired subgrade for public improvements.

a. As a further condition of approval, the governing body of the town or municipality within which the subdivision lies may require that the subdivider agree to install any public improvements reasonably necessary and provide financial security to ensure that the subdivider will make those improvements within a reasonable time after approval. The governing body may not require that public improvements be installed or accepted as a condition of submitting, reviewing, approving, or recording of a preliminary or final plat.

The governing body may not require the subdivider to provide security at the commencement of a project in an amount that is more than 120 percent of the estimated total cost to complete the required public improvements, as determined under subd. 1d. Nothing in this subd. 1. a. prohibits a governing body from requiring as a condition of approval that public improvements be installed within a reasonable time after the plat is approved.

Effective date note NOTE: Subd. 1. a. is shown as amended eff. 7-1-26 by 2025 Wis. Act 68 . Prior to 7-1-26 it reads:

Effective date text 1. a. As a further condition of approval, the governing body of the town or municipality within which the subdivision lies may require that the subdivider make and install any public improvements reasonably necessary or that the subdivider provide security to ensure that the subdivider will make those improvements within a reasonable time. The governing body may not require the subdivider to provide security at the commencement of a project in an amount that is more than 120 percent of the estimated total cost to complete the required public improvements, as determined under subd. 1d.

b. The subdivider may construct the project in such phases as the governing body of the town or municipality approves, which approval may not be unreasonably withheld. If the subdivider’s project will be constructed in phases, the amount of security required by the governing body under subd. 1. a. is limited to the phase of the project that is currently being constructed. The governing body may not require that the subdivider provide any security for improvements sooner than is reasonably necessary before the commencement of the installation of the improvements.

c. If the governing body of the town or municipality requires a subdivider to provide security under subd. 1. a. , the governing body may not require the subdivider to provide the security for more than 14 months after the date the public improvements for which the security is provided are substantially completed and upon substantial completion of the public improvements, the amount of the security the subdivider is required to provide may be no more than an amount equal to the total cost to complete any uncompleted public improvements plus 10 percent of the total cost of the completed public improvements.

d. This paragraph applies to all preliminary and final plats, regardless of whether submitted for approval before, on, or after August 1, 2014.

1d. The estimated total cost to complete the required public improvements under subd. 1. shall be determined as follows:

a. A governing body of the town or municipality may provide an initial estimate to the subdivider of the estimated total cost to complete the required public improvements. If the subdivider accepts the initial estimate, then the initial estimate is the estimated total cost to complete the required public improvements.

b. If the governing body of the town or municipality does not provide an initial estimate to the subdivider or the subdivider rejects the initial estimate, the subdivider shall provide the governing body with a bona fide bid from the subdivider’s contractor to complete the required public improvements in the event of a default. If the governing body accepts the subdivider’s bona fide bid, the bona fide bid is the estimated total cost to complete the required public improvements.

c. If the governing body of the town or municipality rejects the subdivider’s bona fide bid, the governing body shall provide the subdivider with an estimate for the cost to complete the public improvements in the event of a default. If the governing body’s estimate does not exceed the subdivider’s bona fide bid by more than 10 percent, the governing body’s estimate is the estimated total cost to complete the required public improvements. If the governing body’s estimate exceeds the subdivider’s bona fide bid by 10 percent or more, the estimated total cost to complete the required public improvements is the amount agreed upon by the subdivider’s engineer and the governing body’s engineer.

1m.

a. If the governing body of the town or municipality requires a subdivider to provide security under subd. 1. a. , the governing body shall accept a performance bond or a letter of credit, or any combination thereof, at the subdivider’s option, to satisfy the requirement.

b. The subdivider and the governing body of the town or municipality may agree that all or part of the requirement to provide security under subd. 1. a. may be satisfied by a performance bond provided by the subdivider’s contractor that names the town or municipality as an additional obligee provided that the form of the contractor’s performance bond is acceptable to the governing body of the town or municipality.

c. Unless the governing body of a town or municipality demonstrates that a bond form does not sufficiently ensure performance in the event of default, the governing body of the town or municipality shall accept a performance bond under this subdivision if the person submitting the performance bond demonstrates that the performance bond is consistent with a standard surety bond form used by a company that, on the date the bond is obtained, is listed as an acceptable surety on federal bonds in the most recent circular 570 published by the federal department of the treasury, as required under 31 CFR 223.16 , and the performance bond is issued by a surety company licensed to do business in this state.

2. For purposes of subd. 1. , public improvements reasonably necessary for a project or a phase of a project are considered to be substantially completed upon the installation of the asphalt or concrete binder course on roads to be dedicated or, if the required public improvements do not include a road to be dedicated, at the time that 90 percent of the public improvements by cost are completed.

a. With regard to public improvements to which subd. 1. applies, no town or municipality may enact an ordinance relating to the substantial completion of such a public improvement that is inconsistent with subd. 2.