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PRESENTATION OF A WATER CONSERVATION APPROACH FOR CITY HALL GROUNDS AND LANDSCAPE AREAS (REFERENCE CITY COUNCIL DISCUSSION OF 05/12/15)
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RECOMMENDED ACTION
Recommended Action
Council accept the report and provide comments.
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SUMMARY
In January 2015, Governor Brown declared a state of emergency due to the current drought conditions. Under the executive order issued by the Governor this past April, local governments were offered incentives to replace lawn with drought tolerant landscapes and prohibited from irrigating ornamental grasses in street medians among other requirements. In response, staff has been working to take advantage of the incentives and to begin to develop approaches to these prohibitions and other regulations promulgated from this executive order.
On May 12, 2015, City Council discussed ideas for how to approach these drought conditions with respect to the grounds around City Hall. Staff was directed to bring back options for City Council to consider.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The Development Services Director has reviewed the proposed project for compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and has determined that the project qualifies for a Class 4 Categorical Exemption pursuant to Section 15304(b) (Minor Alterations to Land) of the State CEQA Guidelines. Consistent with Section 15304(b), the project would be gardening or landscaping; including the replacement of existing conventional landscaping with water efficient or fire resistant landscaping.
BOARD/COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION
Not Applicable
DISCUSSION
Staff has held meetings to discuss our drought response and has consulted with experts in the field to consider a variety of ideas. In addition staff made application to the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California's Turf Removal Program for replacement of turf in a number of areas around the City including around City Hall. On July 15, 2015 our application was approved...
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