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rpose of the Urban Service Area & Connection Policies Since 199,0, Indian River County has had a designated Urban Service Area (USA). Located mostly 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 preset nt 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 very low density residential uses or clustered development, as well as agricultural uses, certain non-residential uses, 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. In the Future Land Use Element of the Comprehensive Plan, there are several Urban Service Area policies. Those policies primarily focus on services provided within the Urban Service Area, densities allowed within and outside of the Urban Service Area, and uses allowed within and outside the Urban Service Area. Those policies also address Urban Service Area expansion. As to the restriction of public facilities outside of the Urban Service Area, that issue is addressed in both the Potable Water Sub -element and the Sanitary Sewer Sub -element of the Comprehensive Plan. Through Policy 5.7 of the Potable Water Sub -element and Policy 5.8 of the Sanitary Sewer Sub - element, the Comprehensive Plan essentially limits the provision of centralized water and sewer service to areas within the Urban Service Area. Although those policies limit water and sewer service to areas within the USA, each of the policies has a list of exemptions to the general rule of prohibiting water and sewer outside of the USA. P Exem tions to the prohibition of providing water and sewer service outside of the USA are limited. Those exemptions include an allowance for uses, such as agricultural businesses and agricultural industries,, that typically need to locate in rural areas. Exemptions also apply to preferred types of development that have efficient layouts such as clustered developments and new town projects, and to properties that lie outside the USA but are located within 500 feet of an existing main distribution line or sewer main that is part of a looped system. Finally, there is an exemption for properties with a high risk of private well contamination. 3 142