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to modify existing standards governing the acceptable acreage of non-residential zoning within <br /> Nodes <br /> Rural Community Activity Node Locations: <br /> •Five (5) existing Rural Community Activity Nodes, <br /> •Limited to a total of five hundred (500) acres in each Node per the Comprehensive Plan, <br /> •Located around major road intersections and historic crossroads in the rural portions of the <br /> County, <br /> •Encourages limited non-residential development for local residents convenience needs (i.e. <br /> gas station, small grocery store, post office, agricultural services, etc). <br /> ISSUE: <br /> •The Zoning Ordinance establishes limits on the total amount of non-residential zoned property <br /> permitted within a Node, <br /> •The Ordinance would allow up to a total of nine (9) acres each of LC-1 or NC-2 zoned <br /> property but only in instances where existing density within a given Node is similar to existing <br /> `urban' Transition Areas, <br /> •If density within the Nodes is not similar to existing Transition Areas, non-residential zoning is <br /> limited to a cumulative amount of five (5) acres for each zoning district, <br /> •This amounts to only 2% of the land area within the Node. <br /> •The review of a recent rezoning petition brought these limitations under greater scrutiny, <br /> •Many Nodes already meet the 5 acre total for LC-1 and NC-2 zoned property <br /> •How can Nodes be developed at higher levels of non-residential development, as originally <br /> thought to be possible, and provide for BOCC involvement <br /> PROPOSAL: <br /> •Amend Section(s) 4.2.8 (b) (4) and 4.2.9 (b) (4) to increase the maximum allowable non- <br /> residential development within Rural Community Activity Nodes to ten (10) acres, <br /> •Continue to limit non-residential development within all other Nodes to five (5) acres (i.e. Five <br /> (5) acres of LC-1 and NC-2 zoning), and <br /> •Include a provision allowing the possibility of additional non-residential development with the <br /> submission, review, and approval of a Planned Development (PD) application <br /> RATIONALE: <br /> •Rural areas have seen an increase in population since the adoption of the 1981 <br /> Comprehensive Plan, <br /> •The Rural Community Activity Nodes allow for more non-residential development (i.e. <br /> convenience goods and services) to reduce the need to commute to urbanizing areas. <br /> •The remaining Nodes can still be developed at what staff has determined acceptable levels of <br /> intensity given their purpose as defined within the Comprehensive Plan <br /> Planning Board Recommendation: <br /> •Planning Board reviewed item at their June 3, 2009 regular meeting, <br />