When landscape is required by this Article, the following standards apply.
A. Selection.
1. All plant materials must be of good quality and meet American Horticulture Industry Association (AmericanHort) or its ANSI accredited successor's standards for minimum acceptable form, quality, and size for species selected.
2. Native plants, indigenous to the northern Illinois region, must be used for landscaping.
3. Invasive species are prohibited.
B. Installation.
1. All landscape materials must be installed in accordance with current nursery industry standards and must be properly supported to ensure survival. Support devices such as guy wires or stakes cannot create a safety hazard and must not interfere with pedestrian or vehicular movement.
2. No plantings may be installed to impede water flow unless part of an approved stormwater plan.
3. No landscape can be located within any utility easement, with the exception of lawn grass or other resilient groundcover. If landscape material is located within a utility easement and repair or replacement of the utility is needed, the Village or utility is not responsible for the replacement of any landscape that may be damaged.
4. All plant materials must be free of disease and installed so that soil of sufficient volume, composition, and nutrient balance are available to sustain healthy growth. Installation of plant materials during the appropriate growing season is encouraged.
5. In the case of required plantings, any fractions are rounded up to the nearest whole number.
C. Maintenance.
1. Sites must be permanently maintained in good condition with at least the same quality and quantity of landscaping as initially approved.
2. If any of the plant materials required on the site plan die or are seriously damaged, they must be replaced. Failure to maintain the site in accordance with the approved site plan constitutes a zoning violation and will be enforced in accordance with this Chapter.
(Ord. 885, passed 11-21-2023)