Green County v. Monroe

In Green County v. Monroe, 3 Wis. 2d 196, 87 N.W.2d 827 (1958), which Montrose cites in support of applying the governmental/proprietary distinction, the issue was whether a city's zoning ordinance applied to a county, such that the city could prohibit the construction of a county jail. The court concluded that "the general words of the statutes conferring zoning powers on cities cannot be construed to include the state, or in this instance the county, when in conflict with special statutes governing the location and construction of a county jail." Id. at 202. In the course of its decision, the court quoted a treatise that summarized the majority rule that, unless a different intent is clear, "'states, municipalities, the Federal Government and other public subdivisions, are not to be bound by the requirements of a zoning ordinance, especially where the ... buildings are used for 'Governmental' and not merely for 'Proprietary' uses.'" Green County, 3 Wis. 2d at 199 .