§ 27-577. Landscaping and screening.

(a)

Findings and intent. Landscaping offers many benefits including providing color and shade, buffering wind, sun, and bad views, and reducing glare. Landscaping also integrates structures and uses with the site while reducing the visual impact of development on adjacent uses.

(1)

Landscaping is important to completing the design picture.

(2)

Landscaping is a working component of the development, serving to screen, buffer, soften, and energize the buildings, streets, and parking.

(3)

Landscaping identifies street frontage and maintains character for rights-of-way.

(4)

Landscaping is an on-going requirement for healthy development.

(5)

Landscaping shall exceed the typical code requirements by at least 75 percent.

(b)

Streets and drives.

(1)

New construction must provide at least a 25-foot landscape zone between structures and/or parking lots and all public streets and access easements 40 feet wide or greater. This requirement may be reduced to 12 feet where there is no paving, other than a sidewalk, between a building and the right-of-way. The distance is to be measured from the public right-of-way or curbline of a private easement.

(2)

Landscape berms and/or continuous rows of shrubs are required to screen parking from adjacent development or public streets. Shrubs used in this area must not exceed a maximum height of 30 inches at maturity.

(3)

In general, formal, stand-alone trees are encouraged to be planted in landscape zones along major streets and medians. These trees should be planted as follows:

a.

One tree with a minimum caliper of two inches (ornamental) evergreen trees must be at least six feet tall when planted) provided for every 30 feet of street easement or frontage.

b.

Street trees should be planted no closer than 55 feet and no more than 65 feet apart. Groupings of ornamental trees and shrubs should be placed in between the street trees.

(c)

Design.

(1)

Unity of design should be achieved by repetition of certain plant varieties and other materials and by coordination with other landscaping where appropriate.

(2)

Plant selection should be appropriate to planting zone, hydrozone, specific site conditions, and ability to provide year-round ornamental value.

(3)

The choices, placement, and scale of plants should relate to the architectural and site design of the project. Plantings should be used to screen, accent focal points and entries, to contrast with or reinforce building design, to break up expanses of paving or wall, to define on-site circulation, to provide seasonal interest, and to provide shade.

(4)

Landscape areas located between commercial districts and residential districts must provide 100 percent sight-obscuring year-round buffer using plant material or a combination of fence, berm and plant material.

(5)

Landscape and streetscape design should be used to enhance the frontage of primary roadways.

(d)

Buildings.

(1)

At least 75 percent of the length of building foundations facing public streets, the exterior of the development, or common spaces must be planted with ornamental plant material such as ornamental trees, flowering shrubs, perennials, and groundcovers.

(2)

Planting must be massed and scaled as appropriate for the entryway size and space.

(3)

Landscaping should breakdown in scale and increase in detail, color, and variety to mark entryways into developments.

(e)

Parking.

(1)

Parking lot landscaping must be used to minimize the expansive appearance of parking lots, provide shaded parking areas, and mitigate any negative acoustic impacts of motor vehicles.

(2)

Parking lot landscaping should reinforce pedestrian and vehicular circulation, especially parking lot entrances, end of driving aisles, and pedestrian walkways leading through parking lots.

(3)

Groups of parking of between 40 and 50 spaces must be separated by a ten-foot wide landscaped median or berm, or pedestrian walkway within a landscaped median.

(4)

Parking areas that cannot be grouped must include one landscaped island the size of one stall separating each 20 spaces.

(5)

The primary landscaping material used in parking lots must be trees that provide share or are capable of providing shade at maturity. Shrubbery, hedges and other planting materials may be used to complement the tree landscaping, but shall not be the sole means of landscaping.

(f)

Maintenance.

(1)

All new development landscaping must be irrigated with an automatic system approved by the planning department. Rehabilitation development must either have an irrigation system or a watering plan.

(2)

Plants that die must be replaced as quickly as possible, but in no event longer than four months.

(g)

Phasing. The first phase of construction should include perimeter landscaping, entry drives, and detention ponds. Future phases must indicate interim landscaping.

(Ord. No. O-50-06, § 1, 5-25-2006)