NS-2891 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

ORDINANCE NO. NS -2891 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA ANA AMENDING CHAPTER 41 OF THE SANTA ANA MUNICIPAL CODE TO UPDATE THE WATER EFFICIENT LANDSCAPE ORDINANCE THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA ANA DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. The City Council of the City of Santa Ana hereby finds, determines, and declares as follows: A. In 1992, the State of California enacted the Water Conservation in Landscaping Act requiring the adoption of a water efficient landscape ordinance by cities and counties throughout the state. AB 1881, signed in 2006, required updates to local ordinances by January 1, 2010. In accordance with state law, the City of Santa Ana updated its ordinance, which was codified in Santa Ana Municipal Code in Chapter 41 Sections 1500 through 1504. B. With the drought conditions at emergency levels, in April 2015 Governor Brown signed an Executive Order (EO B- 29 -15) directing local agencies to update their ordinance to further water conservation and continue with efforts to substantially reduce water usage for residential, commercial and industrial landscape areas. C. Two key components of the Executive Order require: 1) The Department of Water Resources (DWR) to update the original Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance (MWELO) of 2009; and 2) cities and counties to update their local Landscape Ordinances, so they are "at least as effective as" DWR's updated Model Ordinance. D. In response to this mandate, a stakeholder group was formed under the leadership of the Municipal Water District (MWDOC) of Orange County earlier this year. The Orange County Model Ordinance and Guidelines were complete in October 2015 and have been reviewed by City staff as well as the City Attorney. The guiding principles of the County Model are local control, consistency among Orange County cities, and promoting the values and benefits of landscapes while recognizing the need for efficient use of water. The proposed zoning code amendment incorporates the criteria and guidelines of the "regional" Orange County Model Ordinance and Guidelines, and upholds the "at least as effective" threshold in relation to the State MWELO. E. The ordinance applies to landscape projects that require a permit, plan check or development review. New residential, commercial, industrial and public Ordinance No, NS -2891 Page 1 of 9