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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 1g - Adopt Ordinance No. 2330 RE Water Efficient Landscaping Requirements DATE: November 3, 2015 TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council FROM: Jason Kruckeberg, Assistant City Manager/Development Services Director By: Jim Kasama, Community Development Administrator SUBJECT: ORDINANCE NO. 2330 AMENDING DIVISION 4, CHAPTER 5, PART 5 OF ARTICLE VII OF THE MUNICIPAL CODE REGARDING WATER EFFICIENT LANDSCAPING REQUIREMENTS Recommendation: Adopt SUMMARY At its meeting on October 20, 2015, on a 5-0 vote, the City Council introduced Ordinance No. 2330 amending Division 4, Chapter 5, Part 5 of Article VII of the Municipal Code regarding Water Efficient Landscaping Requirements. The City has until December 1 to either adopt its own Water Efficient Landscaping Ordinance or be subject to the State’s standard requirements. The October 20, 2015, City Council staff report is attached for reference. RECOMMENDATION It is recommended that the City Council adopt Ordinance No. 2330 amending Division 4, Chapter 5, Part 5 of Article VII of the Arcadia Municipal Code regarding Water Efficient Landscaping Requirements. Attachments: Ordinance No. 2330 October 20, 2015, City Council Staff Report DATE: October 20, 2015 TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council FROM: Jason Kruckeberg, Assistant City Manager/Development Services Director By: Jim Kasama, Community Development Administrator Prepared By: Thomas Li, Associate Planner SUBJECT: ORDINANCE NO. 2330 AMENDING DIVISION 4, CHAPTER 5, PART 5 OF ARTICLE VII OF THE MUNICIPAL CODE REGARDING WATER EFFICIENT LANDSCAPING REQUIREMENTS Recommendation: Introduce SUMMARY The City is required to amend its Water Efficient Landscaping Ordinance in response to the Governor’s Executive Order to address the severe drought conditions throughout the State. Local agencies are required to have their regulations in conformance with the new Model Ordinance established by the Department of Water Resources by December 1, 2015. The attached Ordinance No. 2330 (Attachment No. 1) shows the proposed changes. It is recommended that the City Council introduce Ordinance No. 2330 amending Division 4, Chapter 5, Part 5 of Article VII of the Arcadia Municipal Code regarding Water Efficient Landscaping Requirements. BACKGROUND The City of Arcadia adopted a Water Efficient Landscaping Ordinance (WELO) on December 15, 2009 (Ordinance No. 2267), in response to California Assembly Bill 1881. In accordance with the legislation, Ordinance No. 2267 set forth requirements and procedures to ensure that new and rehabilitated landscaping projects limit their water use through thoughtful landscaping and irrigation design. The Ordinance required applicable projects to establish an overall “water budget” within which landscaping and irrigation design choices are made. The regulations do not require the use of xeriscape or desert landscaping, but they do encourage the use of drought-tolerant and native plants. The objective was to have irrigation water used effectively without compromising the quality of the landscaping. Ordinance No. 2267 is highly technical and requires the completion of complex calculations. Rather than include all of the formulas, charts and tables in the Ordinance, a Water Efficient Landscaping Documentation Package was developed to accompany the landscaping and irrigation plans – See Attachment No. 2. The plans and documents are checked by a landscape architectural firm contracted with by the City. This review has been incorporated into the Building Services plan check process. Ordinance No. 2330 - Water Efficient Landscape October 20, 2015 Page 2 of 4 On April 1, 2015, Governor Brown issued an Executive Order to address the severe ongoing drought. The Executive Order directed the Department of Water Resources (DWR) to update the State Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance (MWELO) and imposed interim regulations that took effect on June 1, 2015. The interim measures were incorporated into the State MWELO, and local agencies are required to have their regulations in conformance with and at least as effective as the new State MWELO by December 1, 2015. The updated regulations reduce the water budget available for landscaping, and lowers the thresholds for applicable projects. This means more projects will be subject to the WELO, and plant selections will have to include more drought-tolerant species and less turf. The new regulations also include provisions for graywater use and onsite rain water capture, require local agencies to conduct audits of the projects, and require reporting annually to the State on the implementation and enforcement of the regulations. DISCUSSION The proposed Ordinance fully complies with the recent State Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance (MWELO) approved by the Department of Water Resources. The significant changes to the Water Efficient Landscaping Ordinance and regulations are as follows:  The thresholds at which the WELO applies are reduced. For new development projects, it is 500 square feet or more of landscaping. The previous threshold ranged from 2,500 square feet to 5,000 square feet. For rehabilitated landscaping it is an aggregate area of 2,500 square feet. For existing landscapes over one acre in area, there are survey and auditing requirements. Many more properties will be subject to the new WELO.  Irrigation systems are required to be more efficient by utilizing specific irrigation technologies, such as drip irrigation systems, pressure regulators, and automatic shut-off valves.  Incentives to use graywater, recycled water, and/or captured rainwater for landscape areas under 2,500 square feet. These projects may bypass most of the calculations required for the Documentation Package.  Onsite improvements to increase stormwater retention; such as, using friable (i.e., crumbly or loosely compacted) soil to provide better absorption in planting areas.  The use of artificial turf is not addressed by the WELO, but there is other State legislation that precludes local prohibitions of its use. Artificial turf is a, ‘No Water’ hydrozone for WELO purposes, and, therefore, would contribute greatly to meeting the water budget limitations. The City’s policy allows the use of artificial Ordinance No. 2330 - Water Efficient Landscape October 20, 2015 Page 3 of 4 turf in side and rear yard areas that are not visible from a street, and in front and street-side yard areas it is limited to a maximum of 15 percent of the total area.  Reporting to the State on implementation and enforcement of the WELO. The first report is due by December 31, 2105, on the City’s updated WELO, and an annual report is due by January 31st of each year thereafter.  Projects with landscape areas of 500 square feet and up to 2,500 square feet may comply with the requirements of the WELO, or conform to a list of prescriptive measures in a Water Efficient Landscaping Worksheet that is to be incorporated into an updated Water Efficient Landscaping Documentation Package. As in the past, the WELO applies to all projects, public and private that require permits, plan checks, and/or design reviews that meet the thresholds. For landscaping that is part of a development project, the applicability of the WELO is introduced during design review. The added threshold of 2,500 aggregate square feet for rehabilitation of landscaping irrespective of a development project needs to be publicized. In the homeowners’ association areas, landscaping in front and street-side yards is subject to approval by the Architectural Review Board Chairperson. There is currently no review process for interior side and rear yards in the HOA areas, nor is there an established review process for the non-HOA areas. Property owners in HOA areas that want to re- do their landscaping, and the combination of the front and street-side yard areas is 2,500 square feet or more, will be subject to the new WELO. It is for these projects that a worksheet or checklist is to be developed. The WELO objective is increased water conservation through efficient landscaping and water use management. The attached, legislative draft version of the proposed changes shows deleted text in strikethroughs (strikethroughs) and added text in italics (Attachment No. 1). ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT The proposed ordinance qualifies for an exemption under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) per Section 15061(b)(3) of the CEQA Guidelines because the proposed amendments do not have a potential for causing a significant effect on the environment. A Preliminary Exemption Assessment is included as Attachment No. 3. PUBLIC NOTICE/COMMENTS The Public Hearing Notice for Ordinance No. 2330 was published in the Arcadia Weekly on October 8, 2015. As of the writing of this staff report, no comments have been received. Ordinance No. 2330 - Water Efficient Landscape October 20, 2015 Page 4 of 4 FISCAL IMPACT For the review of the WELO submission package, a pass through charge is collected from applicants as part of the plan check process to pay for a professional review of the landscaping and irrigation plans, and the Water Efficient Landscaping Documentation Package. This is an “at cost” charge based on the work performed. There will be an increase to this cost due to the increased complexity of the WELO, and the additional requirements that projects be audited. A fee increase proposal will be brought to the City Council for consideration at a later date. Staff will provide the annual reporting to the State on the implementation and enforcement of the WELO. RECOMMENDATION It is recommended that the City Council introduce Ordinance No. 2330 amending Division 4, Chapter 5, Part 5 of Article VII of the Arcadia Municipal Code regarding Water Efficient Landscaping. Attachments: 1. Proposed Ordinance No. 2330 2. Current WELO Document Package and Guidelines 3. Preliminary Exemption Assessment