COM 0919.000 2016-2018 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Valerie Poindexter, Council Chair and Members of the County Council Page 4 A major concern in allowing a rezoning of agricultural land which creates smaller lot sizes is that this will reduce the potential use of the land for commercial agriculture by fragmenting the land into areas too small to be farmed on a commercial scale. While a few crops can be intensively cultivated on very small acreage, usually these crops have a very limited market. Reducing the size of the lots could reduce the range of potential agricultural uses and the range of market opportunities for those crops. In this particular situation, the applicants constructed a dwelling for themselves on one lot while reserving the proposed remaining lots for sale. The newly created lots will still have the potential to be used for farming or agricultural purposes. As an alternative to applying for a change of zone with the current zoning, land size and meeting other infrastructure requirements from reviewing agencies, the owner could build a second dwelling related to active farming on a commercial scale (called a farm dwelling) on the lot. However, the applicant could not further subdivide the subject property to convey that land area. Should this request be approved, the applicants could potentially apply for an Additional Farm Dwelling, allowing for the construction of a second dwelling unit(meeting the criteria for a farm dwelling) on each lot. The potential to allow additional dwellings may contribute to the cumulative burden on the existing infrastructure. As such, a condition is included to prohibit a second dwelling unit (also known as a farm dwelling) and/or a Condominium Property Regime (CPR) on each lot. The condition will require that restrictive covenants be included in the deeds of all the proposed lots for the subdivision prohibiting second dwelling units to preserve the residential/agricultural ambience of the area. The proposed Change of Zone will conform to, among others, the goals, policies and standards of the Land Use and Economic General Plan Elements: Land Use • Designate and allocate land uses in appropriate proportions and mix and in keeping with the social, cultural and physical environments of the County. • Allocate appropriate requested zoning in accordance with the existing or projected needs of neighborhood, community, region and County.