The landscaping standards contained in this chapter, as well as those found elsewhere in this Code are designed to accomplish the following goals:
(a) Protect the health, safety and general welfare of the public;
(b) Enhance property values;
(c) Improve the appearance of the community through the preservation of natural resources, trees and native plants;
(d) Maintain the ecological balance of the area;
(e) Screen unsightly equipment or materials from the view of persons on public streets or abutting properties and buffering from uncomplimentary land uses;
(f) Promote water conservation through rain water capture, treatment, and storage, and efficient landscape and irrigation design;
(g) Promote and protect the health, safety and welfare of the public by creating an urban environment that is aesthetically pleasing and that promotes economic development through an enhanced quality of life;
(h) Reduce soil erosion and increase infiltration in permeable land areas essential to stormwater management and aquifer recharge;
(i) Reduce the negative environmental effects of development while protecting and enhancing the value of developed properties in the surrounding area;
(j) Encourage preservation of existing trees and other significant vegetation; and
(k) Reduce the "heat-island" effect of impervious surfaces, such as parking lots, by cooling and shading the surface area, and breaking up large expanses of pavement.
(Ord. 6699. Passed 1-16-18; Ord. 6845. Passed 7-21-20; Ord. 6857. Passed 6-2-20.)