Residential Sod and Tree Requirements

City of Albertville

ORDINANCE 2000-13

AN ORDINANCE REQUIRING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF
AN ESCROW TO SECURE THE INSTALLATION OF REQUIRED IMPROVEMENTS FOR NEW RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION

The City Council of the City of Albertville, Minnesota, hereby ordains as follows:

1. Prior to the issuance of a final certificate of occupancy for any newly-constructed residential dwelling, the person or company requesting the certificate of occupancy shall have installed all improvements to the property upon which the dwelling is located as required by City of Albertville Zoning Ordinance Sections 1000.7(b) and 1200.4(h), the Residential Development Standards as on file with the City Administrator’s Office, and all individual lot requirements contained in any applicable Developer’s Agreement.

2. In the event a final certificate of occupancy is requested after October 31 of any particular year and before May 15th of the following year, the City may issue the certificate of occupancy, provided the requestor:

A. Provides the City with a cash escrow in the amount of 150% of the estimated cost of all improvements required of the property pursuant to paragraph 1 of this ordinance; and

B. Enters into an escrow agreement with the City to install said improvements by a date certain as specified by the City Engineer and which provides the City with the authority to enter upon the property to install said improvements using the money placed in escrow in the event the improvements are not installed by the date certain determined by the City Engineer.

3. The estimated cost of all improvements required of the lot shall be as determined by the City Engineer. Within thirty days of certification by the City that all required improvements have been satisfactorily installed, said escrow amount shall be refunded without interest to the person or company depositing such escrow with the City.

4. All persons or companies requesting a certificate of occupancy pursuant to paragraph 2 of this ordinance shall pay the City a non-refundable administration fee of $75 for the processing of the escrow and escrow agreement. Said fee may be modified from time to time by resolution of the City Council.

5. This ordinance shall apply to all residential dwelling units within the City, which have not received a final certificate of occupancy at the time this ordinance becomes effective.

This ordinance shall be effective upon its passage and publication in the official newspaper of the City.

Passed this 2nd day of October, 2000.

17 (b) Landscaping; General Residential.

(1) Required Ground Cover. The lot area remaining after providing for
driveways, sidewalks, patios, building site and/or other requirements shall be sodded or seeded and mulched within thirty (30) days of building occupancy, as follows:

a. The boulevard area of all lots shall be sodded.

b. All other areas of lots may be either sodded or seeded and
mulched. A sixty (60) day extension may be granted by the City Council for completion of the sodding or seeding and mulching for non-boulevard areas by written request of the landowner.

17 Amended Ord. 1997-17, 17 November 1997

c. Sodding or seeding and mulching may be completed no
earlier than April 30th of any given year and no later than October 15th. Extensions shall not be granted which do not comply with these planting dates.

(2) Required Plantings. In addition to required ground cover specified
in subsection (b)(1) above and exclusive of required buffering or screening, all residential properties containing four (4) dwelling units or less shall contain a minimum of one (1) shade tree or evergreen tree which shall conform to the minimum size requirements listed in subsection (d) of this section.

(3) Limitations. Fences and trees shall not be located within the street
or other public right-of-way. Any landscape structures and plantings placed upon utility easements or within public right-of-way are subject to removal if required for the maintenance or improvement of the utility. Trees on utility easements containing overhead wires shall not exceed twenty (20) feet in height. (The planting of large trees is not recommended under overhead wires.) The amount of hard surfacing provided on a lot shall be limited to the size and area necessary to accommodate ordinance requirements and allowances.

17 (c) Landscaping; New Residential Subdivisions, Semi-Public and All Income
Producing Property Uses. (Excluding residential structures containing four (4)
dwelling units or less.) Prior to approval of a building permit, all above referenced uses shall be subject to a mandatory landscape plan and specification requirements.

(1) The landscape plan should be developed with an emphasis upon
the boundary or perimeter of the proposed site at points adjoining other property and the immediate perimeter of the structure.

17 (2) Required Ground Cover. The lot area remaining after providing for
off-street parking, off-street loading, sidewalks, driveways, building site and/or other requirements shall be sodded or seeded and mulched within thirty (30) days of building occupancy.

a. The front and side yards (and/or any other yard which abuts
a public street) of all lots shall be sodded. Rear yards, which do not abut a public street, may be seeded and mulched. In special cases, deviation from this standard may be approved by the City Planner or City Building Inspector.

17 Amended Ord. 1997-17, 17 November 1997

b. In cases where sodding or seeding and mulching has not
been done within thirty (30) days of building occupancy, the property owner/developer shall be required to provide an escrow deposit, equal to one and one-half times the estimated cost of the ground cover, which will be returned to the property owner/developer upon completion of the work.

c. If the weather or other uncontrollable factors prevent the sodding or seeding of bare ground within fourteen (14) days of final grading, the area shall be covered with straw or other temporary material to control erosion.

17 (3) Required Plantings. In addition to required ground cover
specified in subsection (c)(2) above and exclusive of required buffering or screening, all new residential subdivisions, semi-public and all income producing property uses (excluding residential structures containing four (4) dwelling units or less.) shall be landscaped using ornamental grass, shrubs, trees or other acceptable vegetation or treatment generally used in landscaping within one (1) year following the date of building occupancy.

a. A minimum of one (1) shade tree or evergreen tree shall be provided per residential unit and per non-residential lot, which shall conform to the minimum size requirements listed in subsection (d) of this section. Please note exception below.

Albert Villas, Albert Villas 2nd, Albert Villas 3rd, and Albert Villas 5th Additions require 2 shade trees or evergreen trees that measure 2 ½ “ in diameter.

Albert Villas 4th and Albert Villas 6th Additions require 2 shade trees or evergreen trees that measure 3”.

b. A minimum of sixteen (16) ornamental trees or shrubs shall
be provided per street side of non-residential lots, which shall conform to the minimum size requirements listed in subsection (d) of this section.

(d) Minimum Size Requirements. All plants must at least equal the following
minimum size:
Potted/Bare Root or
Balled & Burlapped
a. Shade Trees 2-inch diameter
b. Ornamental Trees (Flowering Crab,
Russian Olive, Hawthorn, etc.) 1-1/2 inch diameter
c. Evergreen Trees 3 - 4 feet tall
d. Tall Shrubs & Hedge Material
(Evergreen or Deciduous) 3 - 4 feet
e. Low Shrubs - Deciduous 24 - 30 inches
- Evergreen 24 - 30 inches
- Spreading Evergreens 18 - 24 inches

The type and mode of planting for all trees and shrubs is dependent upon time of planting season, availability, and site conditions (soils, climate, ground water, man-made irrigation, grading, etc.)

17 (e) Spacing. Plant material centers shall not be located closer than three (3)
feet from the fence line or property line and shall not be planted to conflict with public plantings based on the judgment of the City staff.

17 (f) Types of Plantings. The following species are suitable for screening and
landscaping purposes:

COMMON NAME Ground CoversGround JuniperPeriwinkle, myrtleShrubsDwarf-winged EuonymusWinged EuonymusPrivetMock OrangeSumacCommon LilacJapanese yewAmerican arborvitaeShade TreesAmur MapleNorway MapleRed Maple Sugar MapleRiver Birch HackberryWhite AshGreen AshGinkgo TreeHoney locustKentucky Coffee TreeCrabappleOakMountain AshAmerican LindenLittle Leaf LindenConiferous TreesBlack Hills SpruceColorado Blue and Green SpruceAustrian PineWhite Pine SCIENTIFIC NAMEJuniperus spp.Vinca minorEuonymus alatus Acompactus@Euonymus alatusLigustrum spp.Philadelphus spp.Rhus spp.Syringa vulgarisTaxus cuspidataThuja occidentalisAcer ginnalaAcer platanoides (and varieties)Acer rubrumAcer saccharumBetula nigraCeltis occidentalisFraxinus americanaFraxinus pennsylvanica lanceolata (and varieties)Ginkgo biloba (male tree only)Gleditsia triacanthosGymnocladus dioicusMalus spp.Quercus spp.Sorbus spp.Tilia americanaTilia cordata (and varieties)Picea abiesPicea pungensPinus nigraPinus strobusAbies (all varieties)

17 (g) Design.

(1) The landscape plan must show some form of designed site
amenities (i.e., composition of plant materials, and/or creative grading, decorative lighting, exterior sculpture, etc., which are largely intended for aesthetic purposes).

(2) All areas within the property lines (or beyond, if site grading
extends beyond) shall receive landscape treatment or surfacing. All exterior areas not paved or designated as roads, parking or storage, must be planted into ornamental vegetation (lawns, ground covers or shrubs) unless otherwise approved by the Zoning Administrator.

(3) Turf slopes in excess of 2.1 are prohibited.

(h) Landscape Guarantee. All new plants shall be guaranteed for two (2) full
years from the time planting have been completed. All plants shall be alive and in satisfactory growth at the end of the guarantee period or be replaced.

(I) Existing Trees. With respect to existing trees in new developments, all trees
on the site are to be saved which do not have to be removed for street, buildings, utilities, drainage or active recreational purposes. Trees over six (6) inches in diameter that are to remain, are to be marked with a red band, and to be protected with snow fences or other suitable enclosure, prior to any site grading or excavation. The City may further require that the Applicant retain a professional forester to prepare a forest inventory and management plan for the development, in order to control and abate any existing or potential shade tree disease.

(j) Mechanical Equipment. All mechanical equipment such as air-conditioning units, etc. erected on the roof of any structure, shall be screened so as not to be visible.

(k) Buffer Yards

(1) Lot Depth Requirements. Double frontage residential lots shall
have an additional depth of at least twenty (20) feet in order to allow space for buffering/screen planting along the back lot line. Except as may be approved by the City Council and except for lots of record, preliminary platted lots, and residential Planned Unit Development concepts having legal standing on January 1, 1998, for those lots which abut arterial or major collector streets, the following minimum lot depths shall be required. Lot widths of double frontage lots, which meet the minimum depth requirements may be reduced by ten (10) feet, provided lot area minimums, can be met.

Zoning Districts Required Lot Depth
R-1A, R-2, R-4, R-5, R-6, R-7 170 feet
R-1, R-3, R-8 159 feet

(2) Lot Width Requirements. Except as may be approved by the City
Council and except for lots of record, preliminary platted lots, and residential Planned Unit Development concepts having legal standing on January 1, 1998, lots which border major collector or arterial streets on a side yard shall be increased at least ten (10) feet in required minimum lot width for the purpose of establishing buffers along the lot line bordering such streets.

(3) For applicable subdivisions, a screening plan shall be submitted.
The plan shall identify all proposed buffer screening by type, size and location.

(4) Timing/Responsibility of Installation. Weather permitting, all buffer
yards, bermings, and/or plantings shall be constructed or planted within thirty (30) days of issuance of an occupancy permit. In cases where buffer yards, bermings, and/or plantings have not been installed within thirty (30) days of building occupancy, the property owner/developer shall be required to provide an escrow deposit, equal to one and one-half times the estimated cost of the ground cover, which will be returned to the property owner/developer upon completion of the work.

17 (5) Maintenance.

a. Maintenance of the buffer strip planting and/or fence shall be
the responsibility of the individual property owners or, if applicable, the homeowners association.

b. All repairs to the fence or wall and all replacement of
landscape materials or plantings shall be consistent with the original approved screening design.

17 (6) Design Standards. All plantings within designated buffer yards
shall adhere to the following:

a. Fencing and screening shall be consistent with Subsection
(a) of this Section.

b. Plant material centers shall not be located closer than three
(3) feet from the fence line or property line.

c. Landscape screening shall be planted in two (2) or more
rows. Plantings shall be staggered in rows unless otherwise approved by the City Council.

d. Where massing of plants or screening is intended plant
spacing shall be specific to the species chosen to provide screening to a height of six (6) feet in compliance with Section 1000.7 of this Chapter. The American Standard for Nursery Stock published by the American Association of Nurserymen shall be used as the reference for spacing guidelines as needed.

e. Landscape materials, sizes, and spacing shall be consistent
with subsection (d) through (f) of this Section.

1000.8. Traffic Visibility.

(a) On corner lots in all districts, no structure or planting in excess of the
street center line grade shall be permitted within a triangular area defined as follows: beginning at the intersection of the projected property lines of two intersecting streets, thence thirty (30) feet from the point of beginning on the other property line, thence to the point of beginning. (See also Section 1000.6)

17 Amended Ord. 1997-17, 17 November 1997

* Notes
1. Install 6 inches of black dirt under all turf areas.
2. Sod required on slopes of 4:1 or steeper.
3. Permanent underground irrigation required to seed.
4. Perimeter silt fence required for seed.

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