CRACKING THE CODE. Residents, City Council members, and City of Eau Claire officials chatted during a kick-off event for the Century Code update on June 20 at the L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library.

Zoning codes may seem the kind of yawn-inducing municipal minutiae that most of us prefer to ignore. That is, until we try to add on to a property, build a business, advocate for more affordable housing, or even wonder why certain kinds of buildings are located where they are. For those of us who live, work, or visit Eau Claire, zoning is fundamental to how the city looks and functions.

As it happens, Eau Claire’s very first zoning code was adopted in 1923 – exactly 100 years ago. The code hasn’t seen a major overhaul since 1990. “To mark the occasion and plan for the next century,” the city announcement recently, “Eau Claire is taking a critical eye to all its land development regulations and will update and rewrite them to be more user-friendly, integrate graphics, illustrations, and tables, and modernize districts and standards.”

Eau Claire, WI Century Code Update Introduction from Devin Lavigne on Vimeo.

And to do all this, the city is looking for the help of everyone – community members and business owners alike – to provide feedback on what they like and don’t like about Eau Claire’s current zoning regulations and how they can be re-envisioned to improve the community in the future.

The Century Code Update Project kicked off June 20 with an open house at the L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library, which drew scores of residents who provided feedback to city officials on what they think new development should look like, how it can be done sustainably, what kind of housing they’d like to see, and what kind of parking should be provided.

The event is just the beginning of an ongoing process. Residents are encouraged to get involved by filling out an online questionnaire. They can also find informational videos and keep track of upcoming community meetings by visiting tinyurl.com/CenturyCode.