Encinitas Municipal Code § 4.11 Landscape Recommendations

The Cardiff Specific Plan area is within a Mediterranean climate. Due to low annual rainfall and sporadic water shortages, drought tolerant plantings are encouraged be implemented in all discretionary review projects.

Landscape is often used to enhance an already-appropriate project design, cover inadequacies in the visual character of the project, or help establish a connection between the public domain and a structure or space. Within the Cardiff-by-the-Sea Specific Plan area, all three applications of landscape are needed. Reinforcing the character of a structure and focusing the pedestrian on important visual elements of an environment are key objectives of landscape design. Protection and visual screening are also valuable uses of landscape design and routinely involve protecting pedestrians from traffic and screening utility areas.

The Use and Development Regulations of this plan deals with many specific landscape requirements and should be consulted with this section and Parking Area Landscaping in Chapter 30.54 of Title 30 of the Encinitas Municipal Code so that a full application of landscape recommendations and standards can be the applied.

A. Each gateway and intersection should be characterized by special landscape treatment.

B. Public spaces and potential public spaces should be a focus of special landscape treatment that provides visual interest, shade and color.

C. All pedestrian connections should be enhanced and protected from traffic by landscape.

A. Landscape includes yards, planting beds, planters, containers and window boxes.

B. Naturalized or native drought tolerant grasses and ground cover, shrubs, trees, vines, flowering plants and specimens should all be used in landscape.

C. Landscape in parking lots should be used to break up the mass of the area into distinct "bays" and also provide shade.

D. Water conservation shall be practiced by limiting turf areas, employing naturalized native plantings, drought tolerant plantings, stabilized decomposed granite, and incorporating efficient irrigation systems and regular maintenance.

E. Landscaping which is in scale with adjacent buildings and of appropriate size at maturity to accomplish its intended goals is most efficient.

F. Landscaping can be used to screen trash, equipment, storage and loading areas from public view from alleys as well as from streets.

G. All new and rehabilitated landscape projects shall comply with the City's Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance (EMC 23.26).

H. Landscape should be protected from vehicular and pedestrian encroachment by raised planting surfaces, depressed walks, or the use of curbs. Concrete mow-strips separating ground cover areas can also be provided.

I. Special paving should be incorporated with each landscape plan to provide clear visual emphasis of special areas, such as entrances, pedestrian ways and intersections.

J. Vines and climbing plants integrated with the building on trellises and walls are not only visually attractive but also help discourage graffiti.

K. Plant palette and architectural design of structure(s) shall go hand in hand.

L. Maintain ocean views within the Cardiff-by-the-Sea specific plan area through the goals and policies of the Specific Plan.

A. Minimum tree size at installation: 33% 36 inch box, 33% 24 inch box, 33% 15 gallon.

B. Minimum street tree size at installation: 36 inch box.

C. Minimum shrub size at installation: 60% 1 gallon and 40% 5 gallon.

D. Minimum groundcover: 100% coverage within 1 year.

E. Careful consideration of the spacing of plant materials will insure that they do not interfere with the lighting of the premises or restrict access to emergency apparatus such as fire hydrants or fire alarm boxes. Plant placement can assist in providing unobstructed access for vehicles and pedestrians and provide clear vision at site intersections.

All property within the Cardiff Specific Plan area is affected by the salt laden air and moderate wind. While development is not limited to an exclusive palette, some examples of appropriate landscape materials include: