(A) In order to promote the county's Comprehensive Plan goals of preserving prime or unique agricultural and woodland areas and limiting the scale of residential development in agricultural areas, and in recognition of the fact that the groundwater supply is limited and vulnerable to both depletion and contamination, the following standards are established in the Agricultural Districts.
(B) By-right residential uses and densities.
(1) Conventional development use. The maximum residential density of conventional development in the A District shall be one dwelling unit per 20 acres of buildable area. Lots no less than one acre in size may be divided from the base parcel as provided herein. Before a conventional development lot in the A District may lawfully be created, it must be established to the satisfaction of the county's Health Department that the lot can adequately be served by onsite water and sewage disposal systems.
(2) Open space density bonus option. A density bonus will apply when residential development is clustered on small lots with at least 85% open space reserved in the development, as follows:
(a) The maximum residential density of development in the A District under the open space density bonus option shall be one dwelling unit per ten acres of buildable area if the minimum open space preserved from the base parcel is at least 85% (e.g. for a 100-acre base parcel, 85 acres would have to remain in open space). Lots no less than 30,000 square feet may be divided from the base parcel under this option. Individual lots created still also must meet maximum lot coverage requirements.
(b) Before an open space density bonus option development lawfully may be approved in the A District, it must be established to the satisfaction of the county's Health Department that each and all of its lots in the proposed development can adequately be served by onsite water and sewage disposal systems.
(c) If any parcel was subdivided after December 28, 2000, and the subdivider received the maximum density bonus under the zoning regulations in place between that date and October 21, 2009, the open space density bonus option provisions above shall not apply.
(3) Base parcels. Shall be those parcels and property lines existing in the public records as of October 21, 2009. However, if a parcel was legally in existence and zoned Agriculture on December 28, 2000, and if prior to October 21, 2009 that parcel was subdivided to allow the maximum number of bonus lots, the base parcel under the December 28, 2000 ordinance shall be the base parcel for determining the development density of that parcel.
(4) Buildable area. Shall be the upland portion of a base parcel. In no case shall any wetlands be considered in the calculation of the buildable area of any base parcel for density determination purposes.
(Ord. passed 4-12-2016)