(A) This section shall apply to the following landscape projects:
(1) New development projects with an aggregate landscape area equal to or greater than 500 square feet requiring a building, landscape permit, plan check or design review;
(2) Renovated landscape projects with an aggregate landscape area equal to or greater than 2,500 square feet requiring a building or landscape permit, plan check or design review; and
(3) Existing landscapes installed before January 1, 2010 and over one acre in size, except that such landscapes shall be limited to complying with only those programs that the city or Indio Water Authority may adopt from time to time, which may include, but not be limited to, irrigation water analyses, irrigation surveys and irrigation audits that verify landscape water use does not exceed the maximum applied water allowance (MAWA) for existing landscapes. The maximum applied water allowance (MAWA) for existing landscapes shall be calculated as: MAWA = (.70) (ETo) (LA) (.62/748) unless landscape plans were submitted and approved under a stricter water conserving ordinance.
(B) This section does not apply to:
(1) Registered local, state or federal historical sites;
(2) Ecological restoration projects that do not require a permanent irrigation system;
(3) Mined-land reclamation projects that do not require a permanent irrigation system; or
(4) Plant collections, as part of botanical gardens and arboretums open to the public.
(C) Prior to installation, a landscape documentation package shall be submitted to the city for review and approval for all landscape projects subject to the provisions of this section. Any landscape documentation package submitted to the city shall comply with the provisions of the City of Indio/Indio Water Authority's Landscape and Irrigation System Design Criteria or, where service is provided by another water purveyor, the relevant landscape and irrigation system design criteria adopted by that water purveyor.
(D) Verification of compliance of the landscape installation with the approved plans shall be obtained through a certification of completion issued by the Indio Water Authority or other water purveyor in conjunction with a certificate of use and occupancy or permit process. The certificate of completion shall be filed with the Development Services Department.
(E) The city may delegate to, or enter into a contract with, another public agency, including the Indio Water Authority, to implement, administer, and/or enforce any of the provisions of this chapter on behalf of the city.
(F) The “City of Indio/Indio Water Authority Landscape and Irrigation System Design Criteria,” attached as Appendix A to Ordinance No. 1684 and any amendments thereto, is hereby adopted and incorporated herein by reference as if fully set forth below. The Director of Development Services or Indio Water Authority General Manager may amend this Design Criteria from time to time in a manner consistent with the purpose and intent of this section. One copy of the Design Criteria shall remain on file in the Office of the City Clerk.
(G) The City Council may establish by resolution fees for the cost of reviewing and monitoring landscape documentation packages and landscape irrigation audits. The landscape documentation review fee shall be due at the time that the landscape documentation package is initially submitted to the city.
(H) A violation of this section, including any provision of the City of Indio/Indio Water Authority Landscape and Irrigation System Design Criteria may be subject to an administrative citation pursuant to Chapter 12
of this code, except that the amount of fine shall be $250 per violation.
(I) An applicant, property owner or designee of any applicable project may appeal decisions rendered pursuant to this section, other than the imposition of penalties, to the City Manager or his or her designee, in writing, within 15 days of notification of the decision. The City Manager's decision shall become final on the fifteenth day following service of written notification of said decision unless a timely appeal to the City Council is submitted to the City Clerk within 15 days of notification of the City Manager's decision. The City Council's decision shall be final upon its adoption.
(J) The requirements of this section apply in addition to other applicable landscape development standards contained in Title XV of this code, including but not limited to § 162.120. In the event of any conflict between this section and the provisions of Title XV, the provision that contains the more stringent landscaping water efficiency requirement(s) shall control.
(Ord. 1684, passed 1-20-16; Am. Ord. 1762, passed 7-21-21)