With available housing at an all-time low, Madison city planners look to increase density to accommodate rising population

Proposed changes have led to divisions between some residents who don`t want to see their neighborhoods change.

Dozens of Madison residents gathered in a meeting room at a church this spring for an open house about a subject of major controversy: a 39-page document drafted by city planners.

It’s called the West Area Plan — one of 12 such drafts covering different parts of the city to prepare for expected population growth. City planners project Madison will add more than 100,000 residents by 2050. The plan calls for more housing density, more mixed-use development along transit routes and changes to parks and open spaces.

The plan has drawn crowds at raucous public meetings who argue the city’s process has been opaque and the plan is being forced upon residents.

But not everyone is opposed to the plan...