5/20/1997 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

regardless of zoning and with no guarantees that the agricultural operation will not be converted to residential in the near future. Also, new developments in or near agricultural areas are required to prohibit caribbean fruit fly host plants. Conversely, new agricultural research facilities are required to provide special setbacks or buffers between structures and test plots and adjacent residential property. •F rent of Au - u t a w eeddential Interface To determine the extent that active agricultural uses abut vacant tracts having residential development potential and located within the urban service area, staff reviewed aerial photographs of the county. Based on that review, staff has developed a map depicting active agricultural areas within the urban service area (attachment W. Based on that map, staff determined that the interface between agricultural and residential uses in the county is quite extensive. Although active agriculture exists throughout the Urban Service Area, it is most prevalent in the following areas (some of which are among the fastest developing areas of the county): 1. The north side of CR 510, between 66th Avenue and 90th Avenue; 2. East of US 1, from The Main Relief Canal to the Brevard County Line; 3. South of SR 60, between 43rd Avenue and 58th Avenue 4. Within the SR 60 Corridor; 5. The east side of 66th Avenue, between 26th Street and 49th Street; 6. The southwest section of the urban service area near Oslo Road and 82nd Avenue; and 7. The barrier island, north of the Town of Orchid. *o=rison with Other Counties As part of its analysis, staff surveyed three Florida counties that are similar to Indian River County to determine their setback and buffer requirements where agricultural and residential uses abut. The table below compares those three counties with each other and with Indian River County. COMPARISONS OF SETBACKS/BUFFERS WSERE AGRICULTURE AND RESIDENTIAL ABUT COUNTY ARE SPECIAL SETBACKS/BUFFERS WHICH LAND USE PROVIDES THE DESCRIPTION OF SPECIAL SETBACKS/SUFFERS REQUIRED? SETBACKS/BUFFERS MARTIN YES RESIDENTIAL 40' WIDE LANDSCAPED STRIP WITH 6' HIGH OPAQUE FENCE, WALL OR BERM. ST. NO NOT APPLICABLE NOT APPLICABLE LUCIE CITRUS YES AGRICULTURE 20' TO 50' WIDE LANDSCAPED STRIP; DEPTH DEPENDS ON DENSITY OF PLANTINGS INDIAN YES RESIDENTIAL 50' SETBACK OR 25' LANDSCAPED RIVER STRIP (TYPE B) WITH A 6' HIGH OPAQUE FEATURE As noted in the above table, only St. Lucie County does not require special treatment of the residential/agricultural border. In the other counties, the special buffer widths range from 20 feet to 50 feet wide and usually require plantings and/or an opaque feature. Citrus county was the only one of the four counties surveyed (including Indian River County) that requires the agricultural use, rather than the residential use, to provide the buffer. In terms of setback width and buffer requirements, Indian River County's current regulations appear to be more stringent than those in St. Lucie and Citrus Counties, but less stringent than Martin County's. MAY 20, 1997 19 BQO!; 101 PAGE 48