17-7-10.12.7 Landscaping and irrigation standards.
All development must comply with the following landscaping and irrigation standards:
A. Landscaping Standards. Landscape plans shall address the following standards and shall be designed with plant types found acceptable in the adopted 2017 Site Management Plan for the Former Sharon Steel Superfund Site. Following construction and prior to issuing the approval for occupancy, an inspection shall be scheduled with the planning department to verify compliance with the approved landscape plans. No required landscaping shall be removed from the project site after inspection without replacement of equal or better quality. This shall include the installation of healthy plant materials as well as a tree-for-tree replacement as governed by this chapter.
1. Street Frontage Tree Requirements. An applicant shall provide at least one street tree for each forty lineal feet of frontage along all roads. Street frontage trees may be clustered or spaced linearly in the planter between the sidewalk and curb or within ten feet of the inside edge of the sidewalk if there is not a planter area.
2. Plant Materials. Areas requiring landscaping shall be planted with substantial live plant material including: plants, shrubs, trees, sod, etc., for the purpose of buffering, screening, and improving the visual quality of the site. Plants selected for landscape areas shall consist of plants that are well suited to the microclimate and soil conditions at the project site. Plants with similar water needs shall be grouped together as much as possible. Landscaped areas less than four feet wide shall be landscaped with water conserving plants.
a. Types of Vegetation. At least fifteen percent of the landscaping must be evergreen. Up to twenty-five percent of the landscape area may include specialty paving, street furniture, and outdoor seating areas.
b. Size of Trees. The following standards apply to the use of plant and tree material:
i. Deciduous Trees. All deciduous, nonornamental trees shall have a minimum caliper size of two and one-half inches.
ii. Ornamental Trees. All ornamental trees shall have a minimum caliper size of one and one-half inches.
iii. Evergreen Trees. All evergreen trees shall have a minimum height of six feet.
c. Mulch. After completion of all planting, all irrigated nonturf areas shall be covered with a minimum four-inch layer of mulch to retain water, inhibit weed growth, and moderate soil temperature. Nonporous material shall not be placed under the mulch.
d. Soil Preparation. Soil preparation will be suitable to provide healthy growing conditions for the plants and to encourage water infiltration and penetration. Soil preparation shall include scarifying the soil to a minimum depth of six inches and amending the soil with organic material as per specific recommendations of the landscape designer based on the soil conditions.
e. Planting Plan. A detailed planting plan shall be drawn at a scale that clearly identifies the following:
i. Location of all plant materials and ground covers, a legend with botanical and common names, and size of plant materials;
ii. Property lines and street names;
iii. Existing and proposed buildings, walls, fences, utilities, paved areas and other site improvements; and
iv. Details and specification for tree staking (trees less than a two-inch caliper must be double-staked until the trees mature to two-inch caliper), soil preparation, and other planting work.
B. Irrigation Standards. All landscaped areas shall be irrigated. Irrigation plans shall be designed to accompany the landscape plan and shall address the following standards:
1. A pressure-regulating valve shall be installed and maintained by the consumer if the static service pressure exceeds eighty pounds per square inch (psi). The pressure-regulating valve shall be located between the meter and the first point of water use, or first point of division in the pipe, and shall be set at the manufacturer’s recommended pressure for the sprinklers.
2. All irrigation systems shall include an electric automatic controller with multiple program and multiple repeat cycle capabilities and a flexible calendar program. All controllers shall be equipped with an automatic rain shut-off device, and the ability to adjust run times based on a percentage of maximum ETO.
3. On slopes exceeding thirty-three percent, the irrigation system shall consist of drip emitters, bubblers or sprinklers with a maximum precipitation rate of 0.85 inches per hour and adjusted sprinkler cycle times to eliminate runoff.
4. Each valve shall irrigate a landscape with similar site, slope and soil conditions and plant materials with similar watering needs. Turf and nonturf areas shall be irrigated on separate valve. Drip emitters and sprinklers shall be placed on separate valves.
5. Drip emitters or a bubbler shall be provided for each tree unless located in a turf area. Bubblers shall not exceed one and one-half gallons per minute per device. Bubblers for trees shall be placed on a separate valve unless specifically exempted by the city due to the limited number of trees on the project site.
6. Sprinklers shall have matched precipitation rates with each control valve circuit.
7. Check valves shall be required where elevation differences will cause low-head drainage. Pressure-compensating valves and sprinklers shall be required where a significant variation in water pressure will occur within the irrigation system due to elevation differences.
8. Filters and end flush valves shall be provided as necessary for drip irrigation lines.
9. Valves with spray, rotor, or stream sprinklers shall be scheduled to operate between six p.m. and ten a.m. to reduce water loss from wind and evaporation.
10. Program valves for multiple repeat cycles where necessary to reduce runoff, particularly on slopes and soils with slow infiltration rates.
11. Spacing of irrigation heads shall not exceed fifty-five percent of coverage diameter.
12. Backflow preventer device, gate valve or shut-off valve is required and shall be located after the water meter and stop and waste valve.
13. Irrigation Plan. A detailed irrigation plan shall be drawn at the same scale as the planting plan and shall contain the following information:
a. Layout of the irrigation system and a legend summarizing the type and size of all components of the system;
b. Static water pressure in pounds per square inch (psi) at the point of connection to the public water supply;
c. Flow rate in gallons per minute and design operating pressure in psi for each valve and precipitation rate in inches per hour for each valve with sprinklers; and
d. Installation details for irrigation components. (Ord. 2019-03 § 1 (Att. A (part)))