Chapter 18.86
LANDSCAPING REGULATIONS
18.86.050 Parking lot landscaping.
18.86.075 Water efficient landscaping standards.
18.86.100 Deferred installation.
18.86.130 Conflicting landscape plans.
18.86.010 Applicability.
(a) The landscaping regulations described in this chapter apply to all zoning districts in the city, except any project which has been approved by the city council, planning commission or public works director prior to the effective date of the ordinance codified in this chapter unless a time extension is requested for such development project.
(b) No building permit shall be issued to erect or construct any industrial or commercial development or model home in a subdivision where the approved tentative map contains five lots or more, or multifamily residential structures, unless the public works director first determines that landscaping, as required by this section, will be installed. (Ord. 1148 § 2 (part), 1992).
18.86.020 Purpose.
The purpose of this chapter is to establish standards for the placement, amount and type of landscape material and other buffers installed in order to:
(a) Enhance the aesthetics of the community;
(b) Conserve water resources;
(c) Provide environmental enhancements such as, but not limited to, the reduction of noise, dust and erosion;
(d) Reduce visual pollution which might otherwise occur within an urbanized area; and
(e) Establish a greater sense of privacy from visual and physical intrusion. (Ord. 1148 § 2 (part), 1992).
18.86.030 Landscape plan.
(a) Except for single-family dwellings, which are not model homes, a landscape plan shall be approved by the city planner before a building permit is issued or a final map including common area is approved. The landscape plan shall be prepared by a licensed landscape architect, landscape designer or licensed landscape contractor that will install the project landscaping and irrigation system, certified landscape designer, or other licensed or certified professional in a related field. Any changes to the approved plan which affect plant species or irrigation component coverage must be approved by the city planner.
(b) The landscape plan shall include information as provided for in the application checklist maintained by the city planner, but shall typically include the following minimum information:
(1) Scale, north arrow, location of adjacent streets, property lines, easements, sidewalks, drives, paved areas, buildings, existing trees (including street trees) and any other natural or manmade site features influencing the use of the site;
(2) Construction details pertinent to installation of the landscape in accordance with city standards;
(3) A note or calculation sheet with all landscape calculations relevant to the application of this section;
(4) A plant list giving the common and botanical names of plants to be used. This plant list shall be arranged in legend form with a key number assigned to each plant. On the plan, each plant shall be identified by a key number. The size of the plant, its spacing and quantity to be used shall follow in the landscape legend;
(5) Plants shall be selected appropriately based upon their adaptability to the climatic, geologic and topographical conditions of the site. Protection and preservation of native species and natural areas is encouraged;
(6) Irrigation plans (at the same scale as the landscape plans) and specifications which comply with the Uniform Plumbing Code ensure adequate irrigation coverage and include the following:
(A) Scale, north arrow, locations of adjacent streets, property lines, easements, sidewalks, drives, paved areas, buildings, existing trees, including street trees, and any other natural or manmade site features influencing the use of the site;
(B) Identification and description of automatic irrigation components to ensure that vegetation is adequately serviced through water-conserving features;
(C) Identification of the system point of connection and size, water pressure available, and maximum demand of the system in gallons per minute;
(D) All locations of irrigation valves, controllers, hose bibs, quick coupler valves, sprinkler heads and backflow preventors;
(E) Sizes of Irrigation Lines. Schedule 40 P.V.C. is required for all pressured lines and under all paved areas. Piping must be installed a minimum of twelve inches underground for nonpressure irrigation lines and eighteen inches underground for constant pressure irrigation lines;
(F) All irrigation systems shall be designed to avoid runoff, low head drainage, over-spray or other similar conditions where water blows onto adjacent property, nonirrigated areas, walks, roadways or structures;
(G) Trees, shrubs and other landscaping materials shall be maintained in accordance with Section 11.04.100.
(c) Such plans shall, at a minimum, identify all areas to be landscaped and include area and tree calculations and general types of landscaping proposed for such areas. (Ord. 1299 § 34, 2005: Ord. 1148 § 2 (part), 1992).
18.86.040 Trees.
Requirements for trees shall be as follows:
(a) One tree shall be provided for every three hundred square feet of required landscaped area.
(b) Within the parking area, one tree must be planted for every ten parking spaces or fraction thereof. These trees must be distributed throughout the parking area surface to provide shading within the parking lot. These trees shall count toward the total number of trees required in subsection (a) of this section.
(c) Trees shall be planted and maintained in planters or landscape areas in all off-street parking areas so that at tree maturity fifty percent of the parking area is shaded at solar noon on June 21st. This requirement shall not apply to the development of single-family residences.
(d) Of the required trees, one tree shall be placed every thirty lineal feet of street frontage unless determined by the public works director that the species selected warrants greater spacing.
(e) Evergreen trees shall be a minimum of six feet in height at time of planting. Fifty percent of deciduous trees shall be a minimum caliper of one inch at time of planting and fifty percent shall be a minimum caliper of two inches at time of planting.
(f) Where existing mature, healthy trees, as determined by the public works director, are removed as a result of any construction, they shall be replaced, on a one-for-one basis, with deciduous trees of a minimum caliper of two and one-half inches and evergreen trees with a minimum height of ten feet. These trees shall count toward the total number of trees required in subsection (a) of this section.
(g) Trees planted or removed from the public right-of-way are subject to the issuance of a tree work permit and all provisions as set forth in Chapter 11.16. Placement, species and type of tree well covering are subject to city approval prior to the issuance of the tree work permit.
(h) Trees shall be placed in tree wells with a minimum four-foot diameter or in landscaped areas no less than five feet in width and depth. (Ord. 1142 § 2 (part), 1992).
18.86.050 Parking lot landscaping.
Parking lot landscaping standards for all districts shall be as follows:
(a) Landscape buffers which are a minimum of five feet in width of landscaping shall be provided adjacent to public rights-of-way.
(b) All trees located within parking lots shall be located in planting areas protected by six-inch high concrete or extruded curbs. Such curbs shall be at least four and one-half feet square.
(c) Each separate landscape area shall contain a minimum area of fifty square feet and shall have a minimum dimension of at least five feet and shall include at least one tree.
(d) All parking lots within or adjacent to residentially zoned properties shall have a minimum landscape area of five feet in width along common lot lines. (Ord. 1299 § 35, 2005: Ord. 1148 § 2 (part), 1992).
18.86.060 Ground covering.
Ground covering over the landscaped or otherwise approved area may include:
(a) Decorative rock, or other inert materials, up to twenty-five percent of the required landscaped area, unless the public works director approves a greater amount after consideration of the visual appearance of the site;
(b) Lawn or turf, subject to the limitation set out in Section 18.86.070;
(c) Living ground covers other than lawn or turf must be planted in a manner such that the area designed for the ground cover is fully covered within three years. (Ord. 1148 § 2 (part), 1992).
18.86.070 Water conservation.
Unless otherwise specified in Section 18.86.075, all landscaping plans approved under this section must comply with the following:
(a) The minimum dimension of each lawn or turf area shall be eight feet in width or length;
(b) The maximum slope of lawn or turf areas shall be three to one;
(c) In multifamily developments, lawn or turf areas shall not exceed fifty percent of the required landscape area;
(d) In model homes, commercial or industrial developments, lawn or turf areas shall not exceed twenty-five percent of the required landscape area;
(e) An efficient water-conserving irrigation system including drip, low arching and/or low gallonage heads must be used;
(t) Soil must be improved by incorporating a minimum of three inches of organic soil amendment into the top six inches of soil, unless recommended otherwise by the soil report for the property;
(g) Soil in landscape areas shall be loosened to a minimum depth of six inches prior to planting;
(h) Nonporous material, such as solid plastic sheets, shall not be placed under the mulch;
(i) Nonturf areas shall emphasize low water consumptive plants. (Ord. 1429 § 1, 2020: Ord. 1148 § 2 (part), 1992).
18.86.075 Water efficient landscaping standards.
Projects with new landscape areas of five hundred square feet or larger in size or projects to rehabilitate landscape areas of two thousand five hundred square feet or larger shall demonstrate compliance with state water efficiency standards by complying with the following:
California Department of Water Resources Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance Method. Projects required to use this method shall submit a landscape documentation package demonstrating compliance with the revised state model water efficient landscape ordinance (MWELO). Project improvements shall be installed and maintained in compliance with an approved landscape documentation package. The revised state model water efficient landscape ordinance is hereby incorporated by reference and shall be used for the administration of this chapter. (Ord. 1429 § 2, 2020).
18.86.080 Nonconforming.
When an existing building not in conformance with this title is expanded, landscaping shall be provided in an amount which is proportionate to such expansion as demonstrated in the following example:
Example:
Existing building = 10,000 square feet.
Expansion = 1,000 square feet or ten percent increase.
Required = Percentage of landscaping required by the zoning district.
.10 (expansion) x .15 (required) = .015 or 1.5% of the site is to be landscaped.
(Ord. 1148 § 2 (part), 1992).
18.86.090 Exemptions.
The following are exempted from compliance with this section:
(a) Building permits for interior remodel except in change of use from residential to nonresidential or single-family to multifamily;
(b) Permits such as, but not limited to, reroofing, siding, temporary power, change of electrical service, change of furnace, addition of interior plumbing, addition of interior electrical, fencing, on- and off-premises signs, and encroachment;
(c) Development projects where the existing vegetation to be retained meets or exceeds the requirements of this section. (Ord. 1148 § 2 (part), 1992).
18.86.095 Installation.
Prior to final building inspection and issuance of a certificate of occupancy, a letter signed by a licensed landscape architect, or the landscape professional who performed the installation, shall be submitted to the city planner certifying that landscaping and irrigation for the project has been installed in accordance with the approved plans. An extension of time for completion of landscaping and irrigation system installation may be granted by the city planner in accordance with Section 18.86.100. (Ord. 1299 § 21, 2005).
18.86.100 Deferred installation.
The landscape plan must be implemented before the certificate of occupancy is issued, except in the event of a declared drought or during the winter season in which case a good and sufficient surety bond, case deposit or a letter of credit shall be filed with the city clerk prior to the issuance of a certificate of occupancy. The surety bond shall be written by a surety company authorized to do business in this state. The letter of credit shall be issued by a bank, which is authorized to do business in this state. The bond, case deposit or letter of credit, shall be in an amount fixed by the city services director to ensure that all landscape materials are provided and installed in accordance with the landscape plan. (Ord. 1299 § 36, 2005: Ord. 1148 § 2 (part), 1992).
18.86.110 Maintenance.
All landscape areas must be maintained, including using pruning standards accepted by the International Society of Arboriculture and/or National Arborist Association. Any damaged or dead plant must be replaced or repaired within thirty days following notification by the city services director of the damage. If the season of the year makes this repair or replacement within a thirty-day period impractical, the person responsible for landscaping shall schedule an appropriate time for the accomplishment of this work with the administrator. Trees shall be pruned to achieve the required shade coverage at maturity, and shall not be topped or otherwise improperly pruned. Maintenance must include the checking of the sprinkler pattern and drip systems, weeding, fertilization, pest control; replacement of mulches, weed barrier and dead material; proper pruning and use of property mowing heights. (Ord. 1299 § 37, 2005: Ord. 1148 § 2 (part), 1992).
18.86.130 Conflicting landscape plans.
In the event of a conflict, landscape requirements that accompany design guidelines for a special development district such as planned unit developments, specific plan areas as approved by the city council, or as established in the Marysville Plaza redevelopment plan shall supersede the requirements of this section. (Ord. 1148 § 2 (part), 1992).