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1 <br />REQUEST FOR <br />COUNCIL ACTION <br />CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: <br />DECEMBER 5, 2017 <br />TITLE: <br />RECEIVE AND FILE STREET MEDIAN <br />TREE IRRIGATION PLAN <br />(STRATEGIC PLAN NO. 5,2) <br />Cl�t MANAGER <br />RECOMMENDED ACTION <br />Receive and File. <br />DISCUSSION <br />CLERK OF COUNCIL USE ONLY: <br />APPROVED <br />❑ As Recommended <br />❑ As Amended <br />❑ Ordinance on 151 Reading <br />❑ Ordinance on 2nd Reading <br />❑ Implementing Resolution <br />❑ Set Public Hearing For <br />CONTINUED TO <br />FILE NUMBER <br />The California Governor's prohibition on continued irrigation of ornamental grass in public street <br />medians inadvertently affected median trees. City staff immediately took measures to ensure <br />that the median trees would survive the California drought. Over the last two years, staff has <br />been manually watering median trees using a water tank and water soil injections. However, now <br />that the ornamental grass has withered, staff may instead use the existing irrigation systems to <br />water the trees as the primary target of the irrigation. <br />Below is a summary of how irrigation will be performed for median trees to provide short-term <br />relief. Long-term solutions will also be established, but that will require a comprehensive plan <br />developed by an arborist, in consultation and engagement by our Environmental and <br />Transportation Advisory Committee (ETAC): <br />1. Resume irrigation for median trees utilizing existing sprinkler irrigation system at median <br />locations where trees exist. No additional funding will be required. <br />2. Reallocate up to $100,000 of funding from existing median tree and landscape maintenance <br />operations to cover the cost of a demonstration pilot project which will convert existing median <br />irrigation systems to an exclusive tree watering system. The demonstration project may be <br />selected in consultation with ETAC. <br />3. Engage an arborist to assess the health of the City's median trees, and present those findings <br />to ETAC so that the City may develop holistic, long-term, cost-effective solutions. <br />After development of a long-term plan and review by ETAC, the comprehensive plan will be <br />reported and presented to the City Council. The report will include statistics on the City's urban <br />19E-1 <br />