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Consistency with Comprehensive Plan Land use amendment and rezoning requests are reviewed for consistency with all policies of the comprehensive plan. As per section 800.07(1) of the land development regulations, the "comprehensive plan may only be amended in such a way as to preserve the internal consistency of the plan pursuant to Section 163.3177(2), FS." Amendments must also show consistency with the overall designation of land uses as depicted on the Future Land Use Map, which includes agricultural, residential, recreational, conservation, and commercial and industrial land uses and their densities. The goals, objectives and policies are the most important parts of the comprehensive plan. Policies are statements in the plan which identify actions which the county will take in order to airect the community's development. As courses of action committed to by the county, policies provide the basis for all county land development related decisions --including plan amendment and rezoning decisions. While all comprehensive plan objectives and policies are important, some have more applicability than others in reviewing plan amendment and rezoning requests. Of particular applicability for this request are the following policies. Future Land Use Element Policy 14.3 In evaluating a land use amendment request, the most important consideration is Future Land Use Element Policy 14.3. This policy requires that one of four criteria be met in order to approve a land use amendment request These criteria are: • The proposed amendment will correct a mistake in the approved plan; • The proposed amendment will correct an oversight in the approved plan; The proposed amendment is warranted based on a substantial change in circumstances affecting the subject property; or • The proposed amendment involves a swap or reconfiguration of land use designations at separate sites and that swap or reconfiguration will not increase the overall land use density or intensity depicted on the Future Land Use Map. The proposed land use amendment meets the policy's third criterion. On February 13, 1990, when the comprehensive plan was adopted, the subject properties were in private ownership. At that time, the sites were correctly designated for residential uses. Since then, the sites have been purchased for conservation purposes. The acquisition of the sites by public agencies constitutes a substantial change in circumstances affecting the subject properties and meets the third criterion of Future Land Use Element Policy 14.3. Therefore, the proposed amendment is consistent with Future Land Use Element Policy 14.3. Future Land Use Element Policies 1.5 and 1.6 Future Land Use Element Policy 1.5 states that the conservation land use designations are applied to those areas which are vital or essential to the nornial functions of ecosystems and have been identified in the Conservation Element as meriting preservation. Future Land Use Element Policy 1 6 limits the use of C-1 designated land to conservation and passive recreational uses. As publicly owned sites containing wetlands and native upland habitat, each of the subject properties meets those criteria. For those reasons, the request is consistent with Future Land Use Element Policies 1.5 and 1.6. March 19, 2002 64 QV 075