The density or intensity of a use that would have been allowed on a site in the absence of the density and development restrictions of this code may be used by "clustering" the development within nonsensitive areas within the project site or off-site through the transfer of development rights.

Development on parcels may be clustered on nonsensitive portions of the site by concentrating the number of units or the amount of square footage allowed for the entire site under the otherwise applicable land use designations on non-environmentally sensitive portions of the site. The clustered development shall be platted and meet all applicable provisions of this code including those in the environmentally sensitive land regulations relating to development activities adjacent to environmentally sensitive areas. The remaining portion of the site that was utilized in computing the density of the clustered area shall be included in the plat and set aside from development by appropriate reservation on the plat or other recordable instrument suitable in form and content to the county. If the clustering of all the allowable density on the nonsensitive portions of the site is not practicable or cannot be done in compliance with applicable regulations, the developer may transfer all or part of the density off-site as provided below.

Due to the predominance of family farms conducting bona fide agricultural activities within the county which make the continued viability of such activities a critical county concern, it is the intent of this code to encourage the continuation of the family farm by allowing certain intrafamily transfers for residential and agricultural purposes. Density requirements of this code and the comprehensive plan, notwithstanding, any natural person owning at least 100 contiguous acres may convey to one or more lineal descendants a portion of such acreage for residential and agricultural purposes. Any subsequent conveyances to the same lineal descendant that would not otherwise meet the density requirements of this code or the comprehensive plan, but for the provisions of this section, shall be contiguous to the parcel previously conveyed.

Unless waived in writing by the director of planning and development, all dwelling units must abut a public road or approved private road as provided in section 7.03.04 of this code.

Okeechobee County development rights are hereby created. All protected environmentally sensitive areas, except for those owned by a public agency and those subject to a conservation easement or other legal restriction precluding the physical development of the land on the effective date of this code, are assigned Okeechobee County development rights at the following ratios:

A.

Wetlands: 100 percent of the development potential authorized in the Okeechobee County comprehensive plan may be transferred.

B.

Uplands that are a critical habitat for plant or animal species listed by the Florida department of agriculture and consumer services (FDACS) the Florida game and freshwater fish commission (FGFWFC), or the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) as endangered, threatened or species of special concern: 100 percent of the development potential authorized in the Okeechobee County comprehensive plan may be transferred.

Okeechobee County development rights shall be severable from the underlying fee and shall be transferable to receiver parcels of land identified pursuant to the land use element of the comprehensive plan.

A.

Residential. The receiver site shall be designated for the construction of residential units, in residential zoning districts which lie within the urban residential area as designated on the future land use map of the Okeechobee County comprehensive plan. Development units being transferred from protected environmentally sensitive areas shall be used to increase the density of the residential use by three units per acre if the sending parcel was a wetland described in section 4.03.01A, above and four units per acre if the sending parcel was an upland described in section 4.03.01B, above.

B.

Maximum density. If the county determines, during the review process established within this development code, that the parcel proposed for development reflects unique or unusual circumstances, or that development of the parcel at the maximum density would affect surrounding uses in a manner contrary to the public health, safety, and welfare, or would be inconsistent with the comprehensive plan, the development review board may limit the number of development rights that may be transferred to the receiver parcel. Any development order that limits the use of development rights to less than the indicated maximum density shall include specific findings of fact on which the restriction is based and shall specify what changes, if any, would make the parcel proposed for development eligible for development at the maximum indicated density.

A.

Timing. Development rights allotted to a protected environmentally sensitive area may be transferred to any person at any time and shall be deemed, for taxation and all other purposes, to be appurtenant to the land from which the rights are transferred until a development order is issued authorizing use of the development rights at a receiver parcel at which time they shall attach to the receiver parcel for all purposes.

B.

Recordation of transfer of development rights. No development right shall increase the intensity or density of the use of a receiver site until the owner of the transferor parcel has recorded a deed in the chain of title of the transferor parcel expressly restricting the use of the land in perpetuity to a conservation zone. The deed restriction shall be expressly enforceable by the county, and a boundary plat for the transferor parcel shall be recorded reflecting the restriction.

C.

Evidence of restriction required for development approval. A developer of a receiver site must submit, in conjunction with his application for development approval, evidence that the transferor parcel has been restricted to nondevelopment uses and that a boundary plat has been recorded in accordance with the above provisions.