Special Area Study and Plan for Pine Hill Forest Strategic Ecosystem

Alachua County is seeking professional consulting services to conduct a Special Area Study and Plan in accordance with the requirements and procedures in the Alachua County Comprehensive Plan and and Unified Land Development Code for an approximately 1,200-acre project area located in unincorporated Alachua County. The project area is the largest contiguous area of undeveloped privately-owned land remaining within the County's urban growth boundary ("Urban Cluster") as designated in the Alachua County Comprehensive Plan. The project area also contains the "Pine Hill Forest Strategic Ecosystem" which is one of forty-seven such areas designated in the Alachua County Comprehensive Plan as the most significant natural biological communities in private ownership in Alachua County which are afforded special regulatory protections to preserve their ecological integrity. The County's Comprehensive Plan provides that the County shall create "Special Area Plans", in cooperation with landowners, to establish specific guidelines for Strategic Ecosystems prior to approval of land use change, zoning change, or development approval. This project seeks to develop a Special Area Plan that addresses area-specific issues of Strategic Ecosystem assessment and protection, future land use planning, and infrastructure planning within the context of the County's overall growth management framework articulated in the Alachua County Comprehensive Plan. The desired result of this project is a set of recommended goals, objectives, policies, and maps for the project area to be proposed for adoption as part of the County's Comprehensive Plan. Public involvement and focused coordination with private landowners within the project area will be a major component of this effort.