ST. LUCIE COUNTY — County commissioners aren't sure what plan — if any — they will create to protect rural areas from sprawl and replace the controversial program that would have preserved historic Adams Ranch.

The property isn't in immediate danger of development, but rural land stewardship, the plan that would have protected most of the ranch forever, stalled last month in the wake of the depressed housing market. Commissioners who criticized the stewardship plan welcomed the chance to rethink the program and reexamine all the county's rural growth rules.

"This slowdown really has given us the opportunity to look at planning in the agricultural areas outside the pressure of the building industry," Commissioner Charles Grande said.

But lack of money and expertise could mean the county can't take advantage of the situation.

More county planners have time for long-term rural planning as building continues to slow, however, creating a blueprint for more than 2,000 acres — without taking away property rights — is an immense and complex undertaking. St. Lucie County already is facing lawsuits from property owners who say its agricultural development rules are unfair.

The county needs the help of consultants it can't afford to hire, said Commissioner Doug Coward, a former planner.

Money also is a necessary ingredient for a transfer of development rights program, which most commissioners favor as a tool for rural preservation.

The program would allow builders to buy the development rights of historically or environmentally significant property and use those rights to build on land designated for growth. Ideally, the county would be the "banker" in a transfer program, buying the development rights and then selling to developers, so officials have more control over growth.

Although the county doesn't have the cash to spend, it is a savings that could cost residents later.

Caring for a community that sprawls across acres costs more than looking after a compact urban area.

Sprawl means more miles of road to pave, utility lines to lay and swales to mow. It means multiple libraries, parks and other facilities to make them convenient to all residents. It means more gas to fuel wide-ranging law enforcement patrols.

"It's really a missed opportunity," Coward said. "It's unfortunate because we've inherited a comprehensive plan from the 1980s that's really a cookbook to repeat the mistakes of South Florida."