Purpose.
The purpose of these landscape requirements is to protect the public health, safety and welfare by requiring that new development be adaptive to the existing natural areas and sensitive to sustaining the existing tree canopy and Texas native landscape thereby reducing heat build-up, air pollution, soil erosion and reduction of the rate of stormwater drainage as well as providing for the control of the density of development.
(1) Landscape plan requirements.
(A) As part of the Site Plan approval a landscape plan shall be prepared and submitted.
(B) The landscape plan shall be prepared by a person knowledgeable in plan material usage, irrigation and landscape design (e.g. a landscape architect is recommended as well as an irrigation specialist).
(C) A minimum of twenty (20) percent of the property shall be landscaped and ten (10) percent of existing trees over six (6) inches shall be preserved.
(D) The landscape plan, drawn to a minimum scale of one (1) inch equals fifty (50) feet, shall provide, at a minimum, the following:
(i) Property limits, topography of the site, north arrow, date and name (seal if applicable) of preparer.
(ii) Location, size and species of all trees to be preserved indicating size measured at twenty-four (24) inches above ground level, location size and species of Texas native landscape materials to be maintained.
(iii) Location and spacing of all plants and landscaping materials to be proposed, including plants, paving, benches, screens, fountains, statues, earthen berms, ponds (include depth of water).
(iv) Species of all plant materials to be proposed include common names as well as scientific names. Texas native plants species are preferred.
(v) Size of all plant materials at time of planting and size of plant at maturity. Texas native plant materials are preferred.
(vi) Layout of irrigation, sprinkler or water systems including water source.
(vii) Description of landscape maintenance requirements and responsibility for all landscape features and plans.
(2) Required landscaping standards.
(A) Planting strip.
Along each public street, a twenty (20) foot wide landscaped planting strip shall be required in all districts except in the main street district where the planning [planting] strip shall be ten (10) feet wide. The planting strip excludes driveways and access ways at points of ingress and egress to and from a property. The planting strip may be in the front yard. The planting strip may include some or all of the sidewalk. The planting strip shall not be located within all or any portion of the public right-of-way.
(B) Street trees.
For all development, a minimum of one (4) inch caliper, eight foot (8) height tree shall be required every twenty-five (25) linear feet of public street frontage within the landscaped planting strip.
(C) For all single detached residential development lots, a minimum of one (1) tree shall be located in the front yard of each lot and one (1) tree in the rear yard of each lot.
(D) For multi-family residential development, a minimum of one (1) tree shall be planted for each dwelling unit on the development property.
(E) For development within the retail, main street and planned commercial districts a minimum of one (1) tree shall be planted for every fifteen hundred (1,500) square feet of floor area with the site.
(F) For the business park district a minimum of two (1) [sic] trees shall be planted for every five thousand (5,000) square feet of floor area within the site.
(G) Planting strips less than six (6) feet wide are prohibited.
(H) Where landscaping is intended to provide a visual screen, the species, quantity, maturity (size), and spacing of the initial plantings shall be sufficient to provide a functional screen within a single growing season.
(I) Planters shall be guarded from automobiles by raised curbs or wheel stops.
(J) Vegetative matter shall cover seventy-five (75) percent of any landscape area.
(K) Stormwater detention facilities do not meet the landscape requirements.
