In December, 2003, City Council approved the first improvements to the City’s landscaping requirements in 13 years. The ordinance was further amended and became effective on May 11, 2006.

A committee of community participants, including commercial, residential and industrial developers, a landscape architect, an urban forester, and a small business owner developed the ordinance over a two-year period.

The new landscaping ordinance is based on a point system, which provides more flexibility and encourages creativity and diversity in design. Plants, which are assigned different point values, can be arranged in any combination on the site to meet minimum requirements. Point requirements are based on the Use Unit, and are determined by the size of the site and the number of parking spaces.

In general, the regulations address the following:

Single-family and duplex developments are required a minimum of one 2-inch caliper tree per lot, and a tree for every 75 feet of frontage.
All other multi-family residential, non-residential, office, and commercial developments are required landscaping both for the site and parking areas.
Industrial developments are required plantings along the frontage and in parking areas.
Stand-alone parking lots are required a designated amount of landscaping.
Buffer requirements are established for subdivisions abutting arterial streets, and for non-residential developments abutting residential developments.
Landscape screening for security fencing is established.
Landscaping for building additions is required, and provisions for sites with limited green space are provided.
All new developments (except residential and duplex) will be required to submit a separate landscape plan.
Credits are provided for preserving existing trees over 6” in caliper.

These standards (Ordinance No. 22,366) address landscaping for all new developments, and became effective January 30, 2004. An amendment was adopted effective May 11, 2006.

Any applicant filing for a building permit between January 30, 2004 and May 10, 2006 is subject to the Landscape Ordinance in effect during that period. Download a copy of this ordinance here. (Adobe Acrobat file, 92 KB)

Any applicant filing for a building permit after May 10, 2006 is subject to the Landscape Ordinance, as amended. Download a copy of the amended ordinance here. (Adobe Acrobat file, 94 KB)

You may call 297-2576 and request a copy of the ordinance be mailed, e-mailed, or faxed to you. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Planning Staff:

Angela Yetter, 297-1831
Scottye Montgomery, 297-3538 or
Aubrey Hammontree, 297-1629