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density of the underlying agricultural designation, the county has allowed new towns a density bonus of one unit per acre as an incentive. One advantage of new towns is that they allow for non -sprawl development outside the urban service area with the tradeoff of significant agriculture and natural area preservation. Not only does the new town allowance provide a potential development yield for large landowners outside the urban service area, it also represents a better development alternative than the default land use which is ranchette development. Unlike new towns, ranchette development constitutes rural sprawl and does not preserve agriculture or natural areas. Although the county has allowed new towns since 1990, no new town proposal has gone beyond the conceptual stages. This is likely due to a combination of the standards that must be met in developing a new town, the complexity involved in getting a new town project approved, and the high absorption rate needed. For new towns to be a viable option to the rural sprawl of 5, 10, or 20 acre ranchettes, the density allowance for new towns needs to be sufficient for new town developments to achieve critical mass. Given that a new town with a range of uses from employment areas, shopping areas, recreation areas, civic areas, and cultural areas needs a population of about 5,000 and given that a reasonable size for a new town is about 2,500 acres, the allowable density for new towns should be 2 units per acre. Going forward, the county's policy should be to allow new towns outside the urban service area as an alternative to rural sprawl. Those new towns should have an overall allowable density of 1.5 units per acre with an additional 0.5 units per acre allowed by transferring density to the new towns from off-site areas. The county's new town policy should also require that new town development be clustered in compact areas based on TND principles, that new towns be surrounded by greenbelts, and that the number of new towns be limited. INDIAN RIVER LAGOON The Indian River Lagoon is the most important natural resource in the county from both an economic and ecological standpoint. The importance and value of this resource is discussed in detail in the Conservation and Coastal Management Elements. While the lagoon and surrounding land enjoy a symbiotic relationship in their natural state, development on the land can have adverse impacts on the lagoon system. Lagoon Water Quality In recent years, Indian River Lagoon water quality has remained fairly constant. Within the lagoon, water quality is measured at various points. At each point, water quality generally fluctuates within established ranges. Recently, water quality at several water monitoring stations showed improvement. That improvement may be the result of several recent water quality projects, Future Land Use Element 114