Description: The Land Use Element is the culmination of the previous chapters set forth in the Sumter 2040 Comprehensive Plan. That vision of population, housing, economic development, green infrastructure, historic resources, and transportation is implemented in a physical development sense, by the Future Land Use Map. The Land Use Element memorializes Sumter’s policy approach to what type of Development should be encouraged, where that development should be located and, of equal importance, how that development should look from a design perspective. The Land Use Element is the primary tool when making land decisions. By and large, new land uses should be consistent with the land uses encouraged or supported by the Sumter 2040 Comprehensive Plan. However, the Plan and its Land Use Element should be used as a flexible policy guide and not as a rigid regulatory document; it is quite different than the Zoning Ordinance (although they do go hand-in-hand). The Future Land Use Map is not intended to illustrate parcel-specific land uses. Instead, in most cases, area-based interpretations are recommended.
The Sumter 2040 Future Land Use Map builds upon the work done in 2009, especially regarding water and sewer availability. Based upon an in depth analysis, including review of all water service district boundaries, the Sumter 2040 approach recommends suburban development and corresponding residential densities (above 2 units per acre) ONLY where both water and sewer are available or can be made available.