What Capital Area Regional Planning Commission does

Capital Area Regional Planning Commission (CARPC) is an independent Wisconsin governmental agency established in 2007, succeeding the Dane County Regional Planning Commission (founded 1975), that coordinates regional planning and development across Dane County municipalities. The agency is legally mandated to lead two core functions: areawide water quality management planning (anchored by the 1979 Dane County Water Quality Plan) and regional land use planning (operationalized through the Regional Development Framework). It serves approximately 60 Dane County cities, villages, and towns along with fee-for-service clients in five adjacent counties (Rock, Jefferson, Dodge, Sauk, Columbia), delivering comprehensive planning support, sewer service area and environmental corridor planning, climate resilience and green infrastructure programs, and convening services across local units of government.

The agency's technology backbone is an ESRI ArcGIS-based spatial data platform, including a public GIS Open Data Portal, an interactive Green Infrastructure Viewer, a Stream Crossing Inventory Assessment Tool, real-time chloride conductivity sensors deployed throughout the Starkweather Creek watershed, and a crowd-sourced Heritage Oak web mapping application. Supporting programs include WI Salt Wise (chloride pollution reduction), the Adopt-a-Meter program (community-based water quality monitoring), Starkweather Creek Chloride Management Plan, Black Earth Creek watershed monitoring, and the Regional Data Group (producing population projections and parcel-level residential unit databases). Workforce is 11-50 staff across environmental planning, community planning, GIS, and administrative functions.

CARPC's revenue model is multi-stream: state and local government appropriations, competitive grants (Wisconsin DNR, Wisconsin Emergency Management, U.S. EDA, Fund for Lake Michigan, Water@UW-Madison, USDA), and fee-for-service planning work for projects exceeding 16 staff hours, with smaller community assistance provided at no charge where staff are available. The agency has no private equity, venture, or institutional shareholders, is governed by a Commission of local officials and stakeholders, and is currently expanding scope to absorb regional economic development functions following the wind-down of the Madison Region Economic Partnership (MadREP).

Name

Capital Area Regional Planning Commission

Legal name

Capital Area Regional Planning Commission

Website

https://capitalarearpc.org

Company type

Public

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Capital Area Regional Planning Commission is a Wisconsin governmental agency that delivers mandated regional water quality management, land use planning, and GIS-based technical services to Dane County municipalities and adjacent county clients across south-central Wisconsin.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Regional Planning Services

NAICS

Administration of Urban Planning and Community and Rural Development (925120), Administration of Environmental Quality Programs (9241)

akta.pro primary industry

Urban & Regional Planning (Land Use, Zoning, Master Planning) (BPAIANAD)

Keywords

• Regional planning services
• Water quality management
• GIS mapping services
• Comprehensive planning support
• Land use planning

Headquarters

HQ city

Madison

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Government Funding and Appropriations: CARPC operates as an independent governmental agency established in 2007, funded through government appropriations and annual budgets approved by the Commission.
2. Fee-for-Service Planning Services: For plans and projects requiring more than 16 hours of staff time, CARPC charges based on estimated project hours and hourly rates of staff involved, plus direct costs for travel and materials. Fee reductions may be available for communities demonstrating financial hardship.
3. Grant Funding: CARPC receives grant funding from various sources including Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Wisconsin Emergency Management, U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA), Fund for Lake Michigan, and UW-Madison for specific projects and programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Capital Area Regional Planning Commission (CARPC) is an independent governmental agency that provides regional planning, GIS mapping, water quality management, and data services to Dane County municipalities in Wisconsin. It maintains the areawide Dane County Water Quality Plan, develops the Regional Development Framework, delivers community assistance for comprehensive planning, and operates GIS-based tools such as the Open Data Portal, Green Infrastructure Viewer, and Stream Crossing Inventory.

Product overview

Capital Area Regional Planning Commission (CARPC) is a regional planning agency that provides multiple interconnected services rather than a unified software product. The core offerings include the Dane County Water Quality Plan (water quality management), Regional Development Framework (land use planning), and Community Assistance Program (comprehensive planning support). Supporting services include the WI Salt Wise Program (chloride pollution reduction), Starkweather Creek Monitoring (real-time water quality), GIS Open Data Portal (spatial data access), Green Infrastructure Viewer (mapping tool), and Regional Data products (population projections, residential units database). The agency also offers the Adopt-a-Meter Program for community-based water monitoring and the Dane County Road-Stream Crossing Inventory for flood resilience assessment. These services work together to support regional planning, environmental protection, and community development across Dane County, Wisconsin.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• WI Salt Wise: A program of CARPC focused on promoting smart salting practices to reduce chloride pollution in Wisconsin waterways.

Products and services

• Dane County Water Quality Plan
• GIS Open Data Portal
• Community Assistance Program
• Mapping and Spatial Analysis Services
• WI Salt Wise Program
• Starkweather Creek Watershed Chloride Management Plan
• Regional Development Framework
• Green Infrastructure Viewer
• Adopt-a-Meter Program
• Dane County Road-Stream Crossing Inventory
• Heritage Oak Project

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly 200,000 additional residents expected in Dane County by 2050 requiring regional planning coordination
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers26 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core, secondary and minor.

• Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary regulatory partner for areawide water quality management planning. DNR designated Dane County in 1975 as an area with complex water quality challenges. CARPC is legally responsible for maintaining and implementing the Dane County Water Quality Plan, with regular coordination on sewer service area amendments, environmental corridor designations, and grant-funded projects including Starkweather Creek chloride management, Black Earth Creek watershed monitoring, and water quality plan updates. Funding support provided through DNR Surface Water Grants and River Planning Grants.
• Greater Madison Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint webinar series on regional planning topics including environmental corridors, project funding, and transportation planning. Co-hosting of annual CARPC-MPO Fall Forum. Collaborative efforts on regional development framework implementation and performance indicators.
• Madison Region Economic Partnership (MadREP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSecured $200,000 EDA investment for regional pandemic recovery. CARPC has been working with MadREP and Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce to take on regional economic development functions as MadREP winds down operations. Collaboration on connecting communities with EDA and USDA resources for rural businesses.
• Dane CountycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary service area jurisdiction. CARPC serves Dane County municipalities through regional planning coordination. Collaborative efforts on road-stream crossing inventory, environmental corridors, tree canopy initiatives, and population projections through the Regional Data Group.
• Operation Fresh StartsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerNonprofit providing young adults with conservation and construction training. Conservation Academy members assist with Starkweather Creek chloride monitoring, water sample collection, and data collection. Partnership supported by Water@UW-Madison Community-Based Water Research Grant.
• State Cartographer's OfficesecondaryTechnology or IntegrationTechnical collaboration on GIS training programs. Partnered with CARPC to provide hands-on mapping training for Operation Fresh Start Conservation Academy and high school students. Collaboration on Starkweather Creek monitoring equipment.
• Trout UnlimitedsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on Stream Crossing Inventory project, training staff together on the Mecan River. Joint efforts on water quality and flood resilience initiatives.
• Yahara Pride FarmssecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerProducer-led group promoting agricultural practices that retain nutrients in soil and protect regional water quality. Executive Director Jason Valerius toured farmland with Yahara Pride Farms chair Jeff Endres to discuss agricultural water management and drainage districts.
• U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)secondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional stakeholders funded USGS monitoring program in Black Earth Creek watershed. USGS provides stream monitoring and water quality data collection for regional water resource management.
• Water@UW-MadisonsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvided Community-Based Water Research Grant supporting Starkweather Creek chloride monitoring project. Partnership enables expansion of conductivity meters and real-time monitoring capabilities.
• Dane County Tree BoardsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerCARPC Senior Environmental Planner Matt Noone serves as Chair. Tree Board provides funding for school tree nurseries and technical support for heritage oak project and tree canopy initiatives.
• Sustain DanesecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership on mapping training for high school students. Collaborative engagement on regional sustainability initiatives.
• Midwest Climate CollaborativesecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerCARPC co-hosted the 2025 Midwest Climate Summit at UW-Madison Memorial Union, bringing together regional organizations to discuss climate resilience and local leadership.
• Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Forestry DivisionsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerDNR nurseries grow trees from seeds of natural origin for reforestation. CARPC collected over 50,000 acorns from heritage oak trees for shipment to Wilson Nursery in Boscobel, WI.
• Rotary Club of MadisonminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAdopt-a-Meter program participant covering annual cost of chloride monitoring meter and assisting with sensor data collection in Starkweather Creek.
• Friends of Starkweather CreekminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAdopt-a-Meter program participant supporting chloride monitoring efforts in Starkweather Creek watershed.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Puget Sound Regional Council: Regional planning organization referenced as a benchmark (Vision 2050 growth center targets) that combines land use, transportation, and growth management planning across a multi-county region.
• Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC): Multi-county regional planning commission serving the greater Philadelphia region with comprehensive planning, GIS, and water quality functions structurally similar to CARPC's role.
• Mid-America Regional Council (MARC): Kansas City-area association of governments providing regional planning, environmental, and data services to municipalities across a multi-county footprint.
• Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP): Large regional planning body for the greater Chicago region with analogous land use, water, and data functions but operating at a much larger metropolitan scale.

Regional players

• Wisconsin Department of Administration - Division of Intergovernmental Relations: State-level counterpart that interacts with Wisconsin RPCs on statewide planning guidance, comprehensive plan review, and intergovernmental coordination affecting CARPC's mandate.

Direct peers

• West Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission: Wisconsin RPC providing planning, mapping, and economic development services to counties and municipalities with a comparable governmental structure and service mix.
• Greater Madison Metropolitan Planning Organization: Partner MPO that co-hosts the CARPC-MPO Fall Forum and joint webinars on environmental corridors, project funding, and transportation planning for the same Dane County region.
• East Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission: Wisconsin RPC offering comprehensive planning, GIS, and environmental planning services to municipalities across multiple counties under similar state-enabled statutory authority.
• Bay-Lake Regional Planning Commission: Wisconsin regional planning commission providing analogous land use, water quality, and community planning services to a different multi-county footprint in northeastern Wisconsin.
• Southwestern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission: Wisconsin RPC delivering community planning, GIS, and grant-writing assistance to towns and villages under the same statutory framework as CARPC.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCvDrVcfUFJhnXrn-VvMImvQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/CapitalAreaRPC
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/capital-area-rpc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Capital Area Regional Planning Commission