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Use Suitability of Historic Resources In April 1989, an historic properties survey was completed for unincorporated Indian River County. That survey identified 284 historically or architecturally significant existing buildings that were constructed between circa 1900 and circa 1940. Besides buildings, Indian middens are a prevalent archeological resource in Indian River County. Since many areas within unincorporated Indian River County which contain or are suspected of containing Indian middens are presently under public ownership (e.g. Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge, and the Oslo Road Conservation Area), a significant number of middens are currently protected. For those middens not located on public land, the county's policy should be to protect the middens to the extent possible. Consequently, the county should require developers who discover middens during the construction of a development project to take several steps. Those steps should involve the developer notifying the county and ceasing most activities immediately. At that point, it is the county's responsibility to survey the historic resource to determine if it is significant. If the find is determined to have sufficient significance, a protection plan should be developed and implemented. DEVELOPMENT IN THE URBAN SERVICE AREA Since 1990, Indian River County has had a designated urban service area (USA). Located almost entirely east of Interstate 95, the USA is that portion of the county where urban services and facilities are provided. As such, the USA is that part of the county which can accommodate higher intensity development. While the principal purpose of the urban service area is to establish where urban facilities such as water and sewer lines are constructed and where urban services are provided, the USA also serves as an urban growth boundary. In that capacity, the USA serves as the area in which urban development is encouraged, and outside of which urban development is prohibited. In its present position, the urban service area boundary provides a clear delineation between urban and rural areas. Since the uses allowed outside the USA are limited to extremely low density residential uses or clustered development, as well as agricultural and natural uses, the USA serves to maintain the rural character of the land outside the urban service area. For that reason, the USA provides an important function in directing urban and rural development to appropriate locations. An important aspect of the county's comprehensive plan and future land use map is to direct residential, commercial, and industrial growth to property inside the urban service area. In so doing, the plan ensures that infrastructure investments are made in an efficient and cost effective manner, while urban development occurs in a generally compact pattern. Future Land Use Element 89