A Lafayette County community offers a free residential building lot — with strings attached. Gary McCrea is president of the Village of Benton , south of Platteville, where the goal is to increase enrollment in the school district, which has been losing students in recent years. Leaders of Benton are serious about expanding the community, and that's why McCrea says they're offering the free land.
McCrea says the village is friendly and safe, the kind of place where residents can leave their doors unlocked. The contest runs through January.