I. - Intent and purpose.

The purpose of the U.S. Highway 19 Overlay District is to manage access to land development along U.S. Highway 19 in a manner that preserves the safety, efficiency, development potential, and character of the highway corridor. Specific purposes are as follows:

(a)

To protect the safety of motorists traveling on U.S. Highway 19 and its crossroad intersections and preserve the efficiency of traffic flow along the U.S. Highway 19 corridor.

(b)

To protect the safety of pedestrians and bicyclists and provide for pedestrian facilities in appropriate locations.

(c)

To encourage development on the corridor that is compatible with or does not detract from the aesthetic character or natural beauty of the surrounding area.

(d)

To preserve and enhance development options along the highway corridor by promoting consolidation of small, irregular lots into larger, more developable properties and promoting development of unified access and circulation systems that serve more than one property.

(e)

To assure that driveways and street connections to U.S. 19 are designed according to standards, have adequate sight distance for safe entry and exit, and are adequately spaced in accordance with the access spacing requirements of the Florida Department of Transportation for U.S. Highway 19.

(f)

To accomplish these goals through cooperative planning and coordination between area property owners and the many agencies that have an interest in the U.S. Highway 19 corridor, including but not limited to Levy County, the City of Chiefland, the City of Fanning Springs, and the Florida Department of Transportation.