Beautification ordinance to be mulled by city

This story appeared in the Antelope Valley Press January 24, 2001

By BOB WILSON
Valley Press Staff Writer

PALMDALE - Residents with more dirt than grass in their front yards will be required to replant, water and maintain their streetside lawns under a proposal recommended unanimously by the Planning Commission.

Only one resident spoke about the proposal when it came before the commission Jan. 18, according to Chairman John Mayfield.

The resident wanted the amount of time given for compliance reduced from three years to 18 months, Mayfield said.

The measure, which would amend the city's zoning laws, will be reviewed by the City Council for possible adoption and enforcement.

The proposal comes at a time when Palmdale Water District officials are predicting the district's demand for water will outstrip supply by 2020.

If the proposal is adopted, residents with single-family homes on lots of less than an acre will be required to install front yard landscaping within 18 months. Residents living on corner lots will be required to install side yard landscaping as well.

Under the proposal, landscaping is defined as the planting and continuous maintenance of some combination of trees, shrubs, vines, ground cover, flowers, lawns or other decorative features.

Decorative features can include rocks, stones, earthen berms, walkways, plazas, courtyards and structures such as fountains, reflecting pools, art works and benches.

Xeriscaping also will be allowed for residents concerned with conserving water or reducing lawncare costs. Xeriscaping allows residents to use native plants and selected "hardscapes" (stones, boulders, decorative concrete and paving stones, etc.) as well as mulch (bark, straw, gravel, decomposed granite, etc.) to be used in the landscape design.

In forwarding the measure to the City Council, members of the Planning Commission discussed the need for the city to assist residents living in homes that lack irrigation systems.

"If you have an existing home that did not have an irrigation system installed when it was built, putting one in could be a little expensive," Mayfield said.

"We suggested that the council try to find some way to help those individuals who may need some assistance living up to the new ordinance," he said.

As it stands, the measure would require every single-family residential lot to have one tree along the front of the property and, if on a corner, two more trees along the side street.

Back yards that are visible from public rights-of-ways also must be landscaped and maintained.

Maintenance would include proper watering, weeding, pruning and mowing of grass and plants, as well as the removal of damaged, dead and decaying plant matter and litter.

Residents would not be permitted to allow their grass exceed 8 inches in height or become infested with weeds, nor would they be allowed to allow plants to grow over windows, eaves, roof peaks, electric lines or property lines.

According to the Planning Commission, the proposal is consistent with Palmdale's General Plan, the goals, objectives and policies of which include promoting visually attractive neighborhoods that enhance the overall image of the city.

Just how the predicted water shortage will affect the Valley is unclear.

In May, scientists told the Metropolitan Water District that rainfall totals, tree-ring records and even the migration patterns of salmon indicate Southern California is in store for as many as two to three decades of diminished rainfall.

The district is a consortium of 27 cities and water districts that provides drinking water to nearly 17 million people in parts of Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura counties.

By 2020, the population of those counties will grow from 15.7 million to an estimated 22.4 million people, according to projections by the Southern California Association of Governments.

Of the 6.7 million expected new residents, about 737,000 are expected to find homes in the Antelope Valley, adding to the stress on existing water suppliers, sewagetreatment facilities and other public infrastructure.

Palmdale Water District officials have projected that in 2020, under average rain conditions, growth in the district will increase its annual water usage to 44,360 acre-feet, while its supply will be only 42,964 acre-feet.

"It all kind of depends on the population, if it grows," said Claudette Roberts, the district's special projects coordinator.

It also depends on rainfall and the district's annual water allotment from the State Water Project, Roberts said.

Between 60% to 80% of residential water is used outdoors, she noted.

If the district's water supply dwindles, it may have to re-establish water prohibitions used to cope during past drought situations, Roberts said.