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• tool to determine the county's residential land use needs. Comparing the expected need with the existing acreage ofresidentially designated land, Indian River County has an RAR of±3.0. A 3 0 RAR indicates that the county currently has three times the amount of residentially designated land needed to accommodate the county's population in 2020. Another way to interpret a 3.0 RAR is in terms ofhow long the county's supply of residentially desianted land is anticipated to last. Given that a 1.0 RAR is anticipated to last 20 years (from 2000 to 2020), a 3.0 RAR indicates that the county has approximately a 60 year supply of residentially designated land. This is important because it means that currently there is a great deal ofland within the urban service area that is served by public services and facilities, and is designated for residential uses yet remains vacant. That is th;- land where the Comprehensive Plan intends for growth to occur. Developing a large portion of that land before expanding the urban service area is an example ofinfill development Expanding the urban service area, as proposed by the subject amendment, discourages infill development (the development of land currently within the urban service area) and promotes sprawl. Based on existing conditions, as well as existing population growth patterns, designating the subject property R, Rural Residential, would be premature. As indicated above, Indian River County's RAR demonstrates that a need to redesignate the subject property to R Rural Residential, does not exist. Future Land Use Element Policy 1.11 This policy states that "the Low-DensityResidential Land Use Designations are intended for areas which are suitable for urban and suburban scale development and mtensities." Policy 1.11 further states that these areas "shall be limited to lands that are located within the urban service area and near existing urban centers. ' The following factors indicate that the site is not currently suitable for urban or suburban scale development and intensity, and that the site is not near any existing urban centers. • The site is two and ahalfmiles from SR 60 and further from the county's other urban centers such as the SR 60/58`h Avenue node, the US 1 Corridor, and the cities of Vero Beach and Sebastian. • In this area, both 1s` Street, SW and 5`h Street, SW are unpaved roads without programmed improvements. • The Indian River Aerodrome is the only residential subdivision within one mile of the site. • To the south of the subject property, across 5th Street, SW, is the ±495 acre Oslo Road/74t Avenue Commercial/Industrial Node. The amount ofland devoted to various use categories indicates that non -urban uses dominate the node. Vacant land accounts for ±120 acres (±24% of the node); citrus and pasture land make up ±252.5 acres (±51% of the node); and commercial/industrial uses comprise only±122 5 acres (±25% of the node). For these reasons, the subject property is not currently suitable for the R, Rural Residential, land use designation; therefore, the request is not consistent with Future Land Use Element Policy 1.11. JULY 16, 2002 -71- fait Lii •