THU AM News: UW-Oshkosh study shows impact of zoning changes on workforce housing; WHA touting patient review data

September 3, 2026

— A study from UW-Oshkosh found local zoning changes seem to be “a necessary but insufficient condition” for expanding workforce housing.

The report was issued earlier this summer by the university’s Whitburn Center for Governance and Policy Research. It makes the case that “zoning reform” as well as engaging with public-private partnerships and state government programs are key to expanding workforce housing options.

While zoning changes to allow developers more flexibility have helped create an “enabling environment” for housing expansion, authors say the success of such policies depend on other factors such as developer interest, financing and intergovernmental collaboration.

“Similarly, state partnerships alone cannot fully address local housing shortages without supportive zoning frameworks at the municipal level,” they wrote.

The study analyzed local regulations and efforts in five Wisconsin cities: Madison, Eau Claire, Viroqua, Merrill and Montello. The first two of these, along with being the largest municipalities considered, expanded workforce housing in large part by adopting zoning flexibility, authors found.

While Madison allowed higher-density mixed-use developments near employment centers, resulting in a streamlined approval process for small multifamily and “infill” housing, the city also worked with large employers in the region such as Exact Science to drive more workforce housing.

“From an analytic standpoint, Madison exemplifies how zoning reform, in concert with private sector engagement, can yield measurable outcomes in workforce housing supply,” authors wrote. “The reforms also reveal how local governments with deeper administrative capacity can convert policy intent into practice.”

At the same time, Eau Claire finished an update of its zoning code in 2025, allowing more residential structures in single-family neighborhoods and adding provisions for duplexes, townhouses and other developments. Authors say this approach allows developers to “build more diverse housing types without complicated variances” or conditional use approvals.

Meanwhile, smaller communities like Viroqua and Merrill have leaned on programs provided by the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority, per the report. While Viroqua has adjusted its zoning laws to allow “projects that otherwise could have been prohibited,” Merrill hasn’t done much to systemically change its own zoning framework.

Authors used Montello as a baseline case study, noting it hasn’t enacted zoning changes or state partnerships, “demonstrating how traditional zoning and limited capacity limit the production” of workforce housing.

“Without new zoning allowances or state collaboration, Montello has realized truly little quantifiable progress in expanding workforce housing opportunities,” authors wrote. “Local market conditions also limit development, as smaller rural communities often have fewer developers and financial intermediaries interested in lower-margin housing projects.”

Another section of the report proposes a comprehensive State-Local Workforce Housing Partnership Program, involving a coordinating body within WHEDA as well as the state Department of Administration’s Division of Housing.

The proposal calls for state incentive grants for municipalities adopting “zoning reforms” that boost housing density or diversify housing stock, technical assistance networks offering legal help and more to local governments, and housing development consortiums linking partners to co-finance projects.

“The combination of financial support with regulatory flexibility would incentivize scalable and sustainable workforce housing development across Wisconsin,” authors wrote.

See the report.

— The Wisconsin Hospital Association is touting patient review data from CMS showing the state tied Texas for having the most five-star rated hospitals in the country.

Becker’s Hospital Review created a list of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ latest Patient Survey Star Ratings, showing 22 Wisconsin hospitals got five-star ratings for overall patient experience. That’s the same number as Texas, despite the state having a much larger population, WHA notes in today’s release.

WHA Chief Quality Officer Nadine Allen said the results are “especially meaningful” as they represent the views of patients and their families.

“Patient experience ratings are far more than measures of satisfaction,” she said. “They are among the clearest indicators of whether patients feel heard, respected, supported and confident in their care team.”

The ratings come from the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems, a national survey of patients following hospitalization. The CMS figures, released last month, are based on patient surveys from October 2024 to September 2025.

See the release.

— Prof. Said Audi, of Marquette University and the Medical College of Wisconsin, is getting a $558,000 NIH grant to research acute respiratory distress syndrome, a life-threatening lung condition.

ARDS usually occurs in critically ill patients or those with severe injuries, when swelling in the lungs causes a build-up of fluid that can interfere with breathing. Because the condition results in less oxygen reaching the body, it has a high risk of death, especially for older patients or those with severe illness.

Common causes of the condition include a widespread infection of the bloodstream called sepsis, severe pneumonia, major injuries to the head or chest such as from a car crash, breathing in harmful substances, severe COVID-19 in some cases and more.

Audi notes ARDS causes 75,000 deaths per year, in addition to 3.6 million hospital days and more than $5 billion in health care costs.

“Even with everything we have learned about ARDS on the cellular level, patient outcomes remain unpredictable,” he said in the announcement.

His two-year study is getting funding from the National Institutes of Health’s National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. His team will seek to understand why some people are more susceptible to severe forms of ARDS while identifying relevant cellular mechanisms and ultimately guiding future efforts to treat the condition.

“With an improved understanding of ARDS, we will be able to investigate specific therapeutic targets to mitigate ARDS morbidity, mortality and financial burdens,” Audi said.

Audi is a professor in the Marquette University and MCW Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, whose prior research has explored lung transplants, functional imaging, computational modeling and other fields.

See the release.

For more of the most relevant health care news, reports on groundbreaking research in Wisconsin, links to top stories and more, sign up today for the free daily Health Care Report from WisPolitics and WisBusiness.com.

Sign up here.

— BioForward Wisconsin has announced the recipients of the 2026 Wisconsin Biohealth Awards: Prof. Kathleen Schmainda of the Medical College of Wisconsin; and Vogel Bros. Building Co. President and CEO Peter Vogel.

Schmainda, a professor of biophysics at MCW, will be recognized with the Hector F. DeLuca Scientific Achievement Award at this year’s Wisconsin Biohealth Summit. It’s being held Oct. 21-22 at the Baird Center in Milwaukee.

Since joining MCW in 1996, Schmainda has developed a research program for translating imaging technologies into clinical tools, and founded the college’s first translational brain tumor imaging research laboratory.

BioForward Wisconsin says her work “exemplifies the path from scientific discovery to clinical application” and more informed patient care.

Meanwhile, Vogel is receiving the Wisconsin Biohealth Business Achievement Award, which spotlights business leaders who’ve played a key role in the state’s biohealth sector. He’s spent more than 40 years in the construction industry, and leads the fourth-generation family-owned construction firm that was founded in 1875.

The construction firm has worked on at least 100 life science projects over the last 30 years under Vogel, totaling more than $1 billion in construction and renovation costs and 2.5 million square feet in the Madison area.

Lisa Johnson, CEO of BioForward Wisconsin, touted Schmainda’s influence on the field of cancer treatment as well as Vogel’s impact on the infrastructure needed to grow biohealth companies in the state.

“Together, they illustrate that delivering successful patient outcomes takes an entire ecosystem — from groundbreaking science to the people and organizations that make progress possible,” she said.

See the release.

Waukesha sees industrial growth despite limits on land availability

Realta, MGE explore building a nuclear fusion power plant in Wisconsin

TOPICS

AGRIBUSINESS

– DATCP launches $5 million food security grants

– Wisconsin Farm Bureau: Trump beef import plan ‘certainly hurts our farmers’

CONSTRUCTION

– 100 homes in 100 days: Menasha volunteers to fix tornado damage before winter

– Proposed exterior upgrades to Edgewater hotel head to City Council

ENTERTAINMENT & THE ARTS

– Madison museum plans AI-generated sculpture, to artists’ dismay