Changes Over Time

In the Disney animated Musical “Beauty and the Beast” the Beast undergoes a transformation in both personality and appearance. Graphically it is displayed in his changing from a beast, back to a handsome prince, but of course he first had to undergo a more personal transformation—one that affected his thoughts, personality and values. The Beast is not too dissimilar to most of us, we change over time. To find this out, we only need to look at photos of our younger self to see how we have changed in body shape, clothing, hair style, skin tone and other traits. Photos may capture a glimpse of our personality through our actions, and what can be seen in the eyes and facial expressions. Our nation has values as well that are expressed through our land use changes. This has been evident from the early days of the republic and the declaration of Manifest Destiny. This post will focus on changes in one specific area south of Madison, WI, in what is now the City of Fitchburg. Even today, Fitchburg is more rural than urban. It is a microcosm of Dane County, with rural, ex-urban, suburban (the predominant style of development) and some dense multi-family areas. The area was chosen as it well represents land use patterns that have occurred in the nation over the span from 1937 to today. While it may not align temporally with varied movements in the nation, it nonetheless is representative of such movements and changes in land use. The chosen area is near the center of Fitchburg, and is about 1025 acres in area. It is bordered by Lacy Road on the north, Irish Lane on the south, South Fish Hatchery Road on the west and Syene Road on the east. Of course, air photos give only a two-dimensional view of the land surface, when in fact it is three dimensions. The study area has undulating topography, particularly a ridge that runs generally east-west through the landscape about halfway between the north and south border. This area is part of a recessional moraine deposited by the Wisconsin glacier over 10,000 years ago. As you read through the post, please ponder what this says about our collective values as a nation.

Grandfather's 1940 era Farmall Tractor

Our journey begins in 1937. The study area is primarily farm land but with a few features to point out. First, the orange circle, near the middle of the study area, shows a farmstead occupied in this era of family farms. The square at the lower right shows a farm field with a ridge at the far south east corner (north is up). Finally, one constant, until development, is topography, and please notice how evident a drainage channel (three blue arrows) is in this air photo, and if you look closely you can see it likely has some grass buffers to parts of its side. Water flows to the north east in the channel. While this era had tractors, they were not the large machines that we see today. In that era you probably had only a few spades on a plow, while today 24 is not unusual. Notice the quilt work pattern of fields showing a variety of cultivation and crop patterns. Farming has become more heavily mechanized, of which evidence will show in later air photos. 1937 is pre-World War II and precedes the baby boom generation.

1937

Our next photo is 1955. We are now in post WWII America and the nation is in the midst of the suburban experiment. The study area has yet to be affected by significant development, as was true of most of Fitchburg at the time. The field in the lower right how has some contour cropping. The drainage channel, marked by a blue arrow, is still evident, but somewhat less than in the 1937 photo. Part of the channel appears to have been straightened. The effects of the dust bowl and soil erosion has led to the establishment of better tilling practices, but yet there is a disregard for the drainage channel. A few additional homes show up in the study area, mainly along the east side of S. Fish Hatchery Road, which is to the left edge of the aerial photo. Not part of the study area, but visible at the farm bottom right is a rural subdivision that is developing south of Irish Lane.

1955

The next photo, 1968 really begins to show post WWII suburbanization. At the right side dark squares show rural subdivisions under construction. Lot sizes are about half-acre, with a rural street cross section. If you look closely you will see only a small section of paved street in the dark blue square to the north side of the image. At this point in time, the farmstead in the center of the image, is now an area covered by trees; the buildings have been razed, or burnt down. The farm was consolidated into a farm of an adjoining relative. The blue triangle shows the location of one of the many high tension line power poles that run through this area. This is now a double 168 kV line, but perhaps was a single 168 kV line when first introduced.  The growing nation needed electricity and high voltage power lines are being put in place to meet demand. To the east of the study area a seed corn processing plant has been constructed.  Also, notice even further changes in contour cropping of the land at the lower right. Fields, generally, are larger patches than in 1937 likely a recognition of the movement to larger machines, and movement from a variety to one or two types of crops. Corn, in particular, will come to dominate the farm fields of the Midwest.

1968

By 1980, the drainage channel is a hint of its prior self.  Likely simply plowed over and left to nature.  It would have served the same drainage basin area as it did in 1937.  Agricultural fields have even less demarcation than in prior years.  I believe this to be the height of land conversion to farmland. Demand was high, baby boomers were now entering young adulthood, and would have families (generation X) to feed, and it was still at a point, unlike today, where the vast majority of our products that we ate were produced within the nation. Farm set aside programs, to reduce soil erosion were in their infancy. The demand for corn as fuel in the early part of the 21st century would see farmland converted out of set aside back to production. A large blue rectangle near the rural subdivisions shows farmland that has been converted to a park. The town of Fitchburg, purchased 60 acres using LAWCON money, local funds and even funds obtained as a fee-in-lieu of park dedication. You can see two ball diamonds, and in the lower right of the park area two tennis courts. Softball was a common recreation activity enjoyed by baby boomers and their fathers. My dad, and my brother John played on the same slow-pitch softball team in Sun Prairie in this era. The two rural subdivisions are now larger and have more homes, although a few empty lots remain in each. By 1975 Fitchburg had changed its land use practices and pretty much prohibited rural subdivisions. The reason is quite simple—rural subdivisions place a high demand on city services. A good example is the rural subdivision just south of Irish Lane (seen first at the bottom of the 1955 air photo). Contamination of private wells by septic systems and agricultural practices would require the city to install public wells to serve the area in the 1980’s.

1980

The next air photo is 1995. McGaw Park, which occupies 60 acres of the light blue rectangle shows tree growth starting to predominate in the non-developed portions of the park. The park, by now, has an access drive off of Lacy Road, and five ball diamonds-four for softball one for little league. It has a shelter, sand volleyball, basketball, and other facilities not readily visible. Easily visible, however, are two large parking lots. The drainage channel first seen in 1937 is once again more defined in this air photo. The former central farmstead is still an area of trees.

1995

The last aerial photo is from 2014, with 2016 parcel data overlaid. The former farmstead is now trees, but some of the trees have been removed for a street project completed in 2015 so is not shown on the air photo. A large multi-family development is occurring at the southwest corner of lacy Road and Syene Road, which can be noted by the lot and street pattern.  A number of developments have occurred, most in the first half of the 2000's.. A business park with single family homes exists to the upper left. A municipal well site, not noted, is also located in that area. Storm water retention ponds can be seen near the central part of the study area. These ponds, provide a slower release of storm water to avoid downstream flooding, but since they are wet ponds, they also work to trap certain pollutant loadings from entering the streams, rivers and lakes. Two somewhat isolated developments also exist. One being a small lot single family, with some two family units at corner lots. Showing a new trend (called new urbanism) in development, the homes are closer to the street and some are served by alley. The development near McGaw Park is comprised of several four unit buildings as a retirement community. Many seniors who live there are active, and the condominium affords freedom to move around to visit grandchildren, or undertake other pursuits and travels. They are the older part of the baby boom generation, a generation that has so defined the United States with its large demographic impact. Baby boomers remained the largest generation until recently when supplanted this past April by the Millennial generation. Finally, McGaw Park trees have increased in size, one parking lot is barely visible through the trees that have been planted to shade and prevent a heat island effect. The McGaw Park trees are viewed by many neighbors as natural, even though they are first growth trees that are nearing the end of their life span. The farm in the lower right corner shows some use, but not as much in the past of contour cropping. The central drainage channel is more visible east of a subdivision due to the greater amount of storm water that comes off a development (due to increased impervious surface, and longer release times due to the detention of the storm water). The upper reach is not visible. Finally, in a bode to late 20th and early 21st century need for wireless communication, a cell tower is outlined by a red trapezoid.

2014 Air photo, 2016 parcels

By the end of this year, this area will look even more different. A new plat will be located just west of McGaw Park. Man is ever changing the natural landscape to accommodate an appetite for new housing and development. While new forms of development are often criticized for their density and small lots, they help save farmland. For example if the approximate 223 single family homes that were built in this area since 2000 were one acre in size, when streets, storm water and parks are added that would account for over 300 acres of land in the study area. This is compared to the approximate 90 acres occupied today. In creating neighborhoods with a mix of uses and density the city allows different aspects of the market to be met, more vibrancy, less loss of farmland, and the ability to provide transit. A general rule of thumb is a density of 8 units/acre to help make an area  transit feasible.

The landscape of our earth changes over time from both natural and man-made activity. As shown, land use patterns change, services are added to meet demand, and the resiliency of nature is tested. As much benefit as storm water controls provide, they have their downside in lengthened time of release which leads to more scouring. Everyone wants a cell phone, but those near the tower are having to put up with increasing use of generators in case of power outages. The problem is not the outage but the weekly testing and the noise produced. Development near high power lines become difficult, although some do not mind living next to them. Some view development as inevitable, if not beautiful, and in keeping with the American protestant ethic of subduing nature. Others view development as a zit on the landscape. Nationally, the ethos are such that farmland is often viewed as the manifest destiny, that it is there to be developed. To change our gobbling up of farmland requires a change in our values. In the meantime increasing the density affords an ability to have greenfield development, and yet at the same time preserve farmland at a greater rate. A development at 8 units/acre uses half the land of one at 4 units/acre. Whether development is the beauty or the beast is in how one views the time and world in which we live. Planning is the balancing of competing interests. This study are shows one method of achieving that balance.