A. Standards of Design and Development
1. All Lots. Any part of the total lot area not required for buildings, structures, loading and vehicular access ways, streets, parking and utility areas, pedestrian walks, and
hard surfaced activity areas shall be landscaped with trees, shrubs, and groundcover plantings and may include other inorganic materials such as aggregate. No vehicular parking shall be permitted on landscape areas. All landscape areas and material shall be maintained in a healthy, neat, clean, weed-free condition. Dead plant material on commercial sites shall be replaced within six months after notification from the City with living plant material equal to that shown on the original site plan. Plants in right-of-ways shall be warranted as per City plant warranty requirements.
a. Irrigation. Provision shall be made for water service to all landscaped areas requiring water, including required right-of-way landscaping adjacent to residential subdivisions. Such right-of-way landscaping shall be irrigated according to the irrigation specification standards provided by the City. Landscaped areas receiving stormwater runoff may have only a temporary irrigation system installed for plant establishment (first 2-3 years).
b. Irrigation Site Plan. A diagrammatic irrigation site plan shall be submitted indicating the locations of main and lateral irrigation lines and any necessary sleeving.
c. Irrigation Compatibility. The City shall require that irrigation system installation in the public right-of-way is compatible with and is planned for future extensions and expansions of irrigation systems that will be interconnected. Compatible fixtures shall include, but not be limited to meters, controllers, valves, piping, and electrical service and metering.
d. Shrubs. All shrubs shall be a minimum of 5 gallon size.
e. Plant Materials. Plant material composition shall be as per the list in Section 151.15.007 or other plant list provided by the City.
f. Turf Limitations. Turf includes lawns and grassy areas which are kept mowed. The following restrictions apply:
(1) The use of turf is prohibited in governmental, commercial, and industrial development, except for specific circumstances as allowed by the City.
(2) Use of turf in multi-family residential development is limited to 10 percent of the landscape area.
(3) Use of turf may be authorized as an element of a Planned Area Development or Specific Plan but shall not exceed 10 percent of the landscape area (excluding open space areas).
(4) The use of turf is limited to areas that benefit the residents, e.g., park-like areas.
2. Use of turf in new single-family residential development shall be limited to rear yard areas only.
3. Turf type used shall be limited to low-water-use species only (See Section 151.15.007 Low Water Use, Drought Tolerant Plant List or see other plant list provided by the City), except as exempted in Section 151.16.003.A.1.
4. Street Frontages. Landscaping shall be established along the street frontages in the area lying between the public sidewalk and any buildings, parking areas, loading areas, or actual storage areas on the property except for necessary driveways. Landscaping shall also be established in the right-of-way adjacent to collector and minor, major and principal streets adjoining residential subdivisions.
a. An area that averages 10 feet of landscaping shall be located between the back of sidewalk or curb line and any parking area.
b. Street Trees – Commercial. Landscaping in front and exterior side yards shall include trees at a rate not less than one tree for each 50 feet of street frontage. Trees may be clustered, if appropriate to the site and to the landscape plan proposed. Any lot with less than 50 feet of frontage shall provide one tree. These trees are to be located outside of the street right-of-way except in cases where there is a designated planting strip between the back of the curb and the sidewalk in the right-of-way, and spaced as specified in this section. This requirement shall also apply to private streets within commercial zoning districts. Landscaping may extend into the street right-of-way provided a written agreement has been recorded between the City and the developer stating that the owner is responsible for all maintenance in perpetuity and that the City is held harmless.
c. Street Trees – Residential. Street trees are required on the exterior boundaries of residential subdivisions along collector and arterial roadways. An average of one tree per 50 feet of frontage is required unless site conditions make this standard infeasible. Additional landscape requirements shall be as defined by the City and shall be based on the nature of the site, to include available right- of-way width and slope considerations, sidewalk location, utility locations, and the extent of existing native vegetation.
5. Trees. Street trees shall be required along all arterial and collector streets in accordance with the following standards:
a. Minimum Size. Street trees shall be a minimum of 15 gallon size, and, for right- of-way areas, shall meet Arizona Nursery Association Average Tree Specifications.
b. Planting Detail. All trees shall be planted and staked in accordance with best management practices and the provisions of the City.
c. Recommended Lists. Street trees to be planted may be chosen from the recommended list of trees in Section 151.15.007 or other plant list provided by the City. Approval for the planting of alternate species may be given by the City upon demonstration that the plant is low-water use and drought tolerant.
d. Spacing. All street tree spacing shall be made subject to the following provisions or as limited by the clear vision area requirements of Section 151.04.009.
(1) Trees shall not be planted closer than 25 feet from the curb line of any intersection of streets or alleys, or closer than 5 feet from private driveways, fire hydrants, or utility poles and must be located outside of clear vision areas as defined by Section 151.04.009.
(2) Street tree canopy shall not interfere with required lighting. Street trees may be pruned to avoid conflict as needed.
(3) Street trees shall not be planted closer than 5 feet from the face of the curb.
(4) Where there are overhead power lines, street tree species are to be chosen that will not interfere with those lines.
(5) Street trees shall not be planted within 5 feet of any permanent hard surface paving or walkway. Space between the tree and such hard surface may be covered by non-permanent hard surfaces such as grates, bricks or sand, paver blocks, cobblestones, etc.
(6) Commercial and industrial site street trees, as they mature, shall be gradually pruned to provide at least 8 feet of clearance above sidewalks and 12 feet above street roadway surfaces.
6. Multi-Family Areas. Common area landscaping and amenities shall be installed prior to issuance of any occupancy permits in a MFR, MHP, or RV Residential District, or as provided in Section 151.15.002.B.
7. Residential Subdivisions. Landscaping shall be established in the right-of-way adjacent to collector and minor, major, and principal arterial streets adjoining residential subdivisions. Such landscaping shall meet the requirements of this Section and other specifications of the City for spacing, size, and type.
8. Commercial, Multi-Family Residential and Industrial Areas.
a. In commercial, multi-family residential, and industrial districts, there shall be required a minimum 15 percent of the lot area to be landscaped with a variety of plant types and sizes and other features. This shall be in addition to the required street trees.
b. Street frontage landscaping (Section 151.15.004.A.4) and planters in parking lot interiors (Section 151.15.004.A) are still required, but can be counted as part of the 15 percent landscaped area.
c. All landscaping shall consist of low-water use, drought-tolerant, plants. Plants chosen from the list in Section 151.15.007 will satisfy the drought tolerant requirement. Alternative plant species will be considered during the site plan review process and may be utilized if approved by the City.
d. In lieu of these standards, and at owner’s option, the owner may prepare a detailed plan and specifications for landscaping and other features. Such plan and specifications shall be submitted to the Committee for review.
Maximum Bay Sizes. Parking areas shall be divided into bays of not more than 12 parking spaces. Between or at the end of each parking bay there shall be planters of at least 10 feet by 17 feet in length. Each planter shall contain one major tree, at a minimum size of 15 gallons, and ground cover. Stormwater shall flow into the depressed planter to assist in irrigating the trees and plants when practicable.
e. The front of a vehicle may encroach upon any interior landscaped area when said area is at least 3½ feet in depth per abutting parking space and protected by wheel stops or curbing. Two feet of said landscaped area may be part of the required depth of each abutting parking space.
B. Plant Material Composition
Plant material (trees and shrubbery) composition shall not exceed 20 percent of the same genus/species as a percent of the total number of trees and shrubbery indicated on the site plan, with the exception of street right-of-way plantings as approved by the City.
The composition totals for trees and shrubbery shall be considered separately. The 20 percent genus/species limitation may be exceeded if the species is represented by different subspecies. Modification to this limitation may be addressed during the site plan review process.
C. Maintenance
1. Landscaped areas on private property shall be reasonably maintained by the owner or the lessee of the property as to pruning, trimming, watering, or other requirements to create an attractive and safe appearance for the development. Landscaping on public right-of-ways adjacent to residential subdivisions will be maintained by the City upon acceptance of all off-site improvements.
2. Any plant materials not surviving shall be replaced within 180 days of notice from the City to replace the plant materials.
3. Lack of maintenance shall constitute a violation of the Development Code.
4. This maintenance requirement shall extend to the planter strip adjacent to the project for commercial development, but not to any median.
(Ord. 743, passed 4-10-86; Am. Ord. 804, passed 3-24-88; Am. Ord. 834, passed 3-9-89; Am. Ord. 875, passed 1-10-91; Am. Ord. 1043, passed 9-11-97; Ord. 1100, passed 10-28-99; Am. Ord. 2003-021, passed 11-25-03; Am. Ord. 2007-010, passed 6-14-07; Am. Ord. 2010-019, passed 12-9-10; Am. Ord. 2018-002, passed 2-8-18)