(A)

Compliance Requirement It shall be unlawful for any person to develop or increase the developed area of any lot, parcel, plot or tract of land within the City of Oviedo, unless in demonstrated compliance with the terms of this article, or if otherwise exempted by this article.

(B)

Purpose and Intent

(1)

These regulations are intended to lessen the transmission of noise, dust, and glare between lots, and to protect the water, air, and other natural resources of the City. The use of existing vegetation to meet these requirements is preferred and strongly encouraged.

(2)

The purpose of these regulations is to ensure efficient water use by establishing minimum standards for landscape and irrigation design, installation and maintenance, recognizing climate, soils, water resources land use and resource planning of the watersheds, that will aid in improving environmental quality and water use efficiency in the City. Water consumption shall be reduced by utilizing one (1) or more of the following:

(a)

The preservation of existing plant communities;

(b)

The use of site specific plant materials;

(c)

The use of pervious paving materials;

(d)

The use of water efficient irrigation;

(e)

And other applicable Best Management Practices (BMP) as approved by the Land Use Administrator.

(C)

Exemptions

(1)

Sports fields, golf courses, agricultural production, and cemeteries are exempt from the high water use zone standards, section 12.7, if a water conservation plan has been approved by the City or under the terms of a consumptive use permit (CUP) issued by the St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD).

(2)

The R-CE, R-1AAA, R-1AA, R-1A, R-1, and R-2 districts shall be exempt from all buffer yard requirements other than the front yard requirements for special corridors.

(Ord. No. 1428, § 2(Exh. A), 1-22-08)

(A)

Plant Species List:

(1)

The plants listed in the latest edition of the Florida-Friendly Plant List in "Florida Yards & Neighborhoods" edited by the University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) shall be used to meet the requirements of this article. The turf/turfgrass species listed below are also allowed:

(2)

Landscaping for common areas, buffer yards, stormwater management facilities, and vehicular use areas shall use only high and/or medium drought tolerant turf/turfgrass species.

(B)

Prohibited Plant Species Those plant species which are listed in Table 15.3, Prohibited Plant List, Section 15.2, Tree Protection, Removal and Replacement are prohibited and shall not be used to satisfy the requirements of these landscape regulations.

(C)

Plant Quality All nursery grown or transplanted plant material shall satisfy the minimum plant quality criteria required to conform to the standards for a Grade Number One (#1) or better as published in "Grades and Standards for Florida Nursery Plants", Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Division of Plant Industry, latest edition.

(D)

Trees Planted Under Power Lines Trees planted under a power line shall not exceed a mature height of twenty-five (25) feet.

(E)

Water Conserving Landscape All required landscaping shall consist of water conserving landscape plant material, subject to conformance with Section 12.7, Xeriscape ^TM Florida-Friendly Landscaping.

(Ord. No. 1428, § 2(Exh. A), 1-22-08)

(A)

For the purposes of this section, large, medium and small trees shall be classified according to the tree classification listed in the latest edition of the Florida-Friendly Plant List in "Florida Yards & Neighborhoods".

(B)

Large Trees

(1)

Trunk Caliper. A new large tree must have a minimum trunk caliper measurement of two and one-half (2½) inches measured at six (6) inches above grade at the time of tree installation.

(2)

Large Trees Planting/Preservation The planting and/or preservation of large trees shall be required for all principal land uses according to the following table:

TABLE 12.1: TABLE OF PLANTED/PRESERVED LARGE TREES

Notes:

* Net Buildable Acres

** Zero front setback townhomes are exempt from the requirement, unless there is a backyard where such trees shall be planted. In case of townhomes with front and rear setbacks of five (5) feet, the required number of lot trees may be split according to the following calculation: a minimum of fifty (50) percent of the required number of lot trees shall be planted on the lots and the remaining number of trees shall be planted in the common area.

(3)

Street Trees. For every fifty (50) linear feet of right-of-way adjacent to a development order parcel, a minimum of one (1) large tree shall be provided by the development order application, within the right-of-way, unless prohibited by the jurisdictional authority or in locations where the presence of underground or overhead public utilities makes the installation of such trees impracticable. Within townhome, multifamily, mixed use and office/commercial developments, medium street trees may be allowed, consistent with Article VIII.

(a)

Existing trees may be counted toward meeting this requirement.

(b)

Trees shall be classified as having a high drought tolerance according to the latest edition of the Florida-Friendly Plant List in "Florida Yards & Neighborhoods."

(c)

The trees shall generally be evenly spaced, although some variation may be allowed, based on topography, soil conditions, drainage features, driveways and other features.

(d)

Street trees shall preferably be located between the roadway and the pedestrian sidewalk or bicycle path and shall be no closer to the roadway than allowed by adopted safety standards.

(e)

Street trees that are planted closer than five (5) feet to a street sidewalk or street curb shall be planted with a root barrier.

(f)

If prohibited by the jurisdictional authority or in locations where the presence of underground or overhead public utilities makes the installation of street trees impracticable, said trees shall be installed on site or the applicant shall pay a fee into the City's Tree Bank equal to the cost of providing and installing said trees.

(4)

Setback from Trees No paving may be placed within ten (10) feet of any existing tree retained that is eighteen (18) inches or more DBH, unless approval has been obtained from the City Arborist.

(5)

Large Trees in Buffer Areas Required large trees may be provided in landscape buffer areas, interior landscaped parking areas or perimeter parking buffer yards.

(6)

Specific Trees Encouraged The use of trees known to provide food for birds is encouraged to attract birds and reduce mosquito population.

(C)

Medium and Small Trees All medium and small trees shall have a minimum trunk caliper measurement of two and one-half (2½) inches measured at six (6) inches above grade at the time of tree installation, except for multi-stemmed species which shall have a minimum container size of forty-five (45) gallons.

(Ord. No. 1428, § 2(Exh. A), 1-22-08; Ord. No. 1647 , § 6, 2-20-17)

Landscaped buffer yards shall be required to provide visual relief from building mass and paved areas; to separate different land uses; eliminate or minimize potential nuisances such as dirt, litter, noise, and glare; reduce adverse impacts of noise, odor, or danger from fires; and to assist in reducing air pollution hazards.

TABLE 12.2: TABLE OF PROPOSED BUFFER YARDS

Foot Notes: 1. The symbol (1) indicates exemption

(A)

Buffer yards shall be located at the perimeter of the land use and shall not be located in any portion of a public or private right-of-way, unless provided for in a recorded landscape easement.

(B)

Buffer yards shall be provided for each proposed use, according to Table 12.42 - Table of Proposed Buffer Yards.

(C)

Buffer yards shall not be required adjacent to property lines for which the property zoning district designates a zero (0) foot building setback.

(D)

Buffer Yard Composition Buffer yards may be composed of a brick wall, a fence, landscaped earth berm, planted vegetation, and/or existing vegetation. They may contain joint access driveways, joint parking lots, sidewalks (perpendicular to the buffer yard for access to streets or adjacent properties), and pedestrian or bike trails as approved by the Land Use Administrator. A six (6) foot high decorative brick wall consistent with the surrounding neighborhood and subject to the government body's approval shall be required between commercial and residential zoning districts. Chain link fences shall have a vinyl coating. Signs or attention-getting devices may be installed in Type B and Type C buffer yards subject to the requirements of this Land Development Code. In no event, however, will any of the following uses be permitted in buffer yards: play fields, stables, swimming pools, tennis courts, parking lots (except as specifically provided in this Section), equipment storage and other open storage, buildings or overhangs. A maximum of twenty-five (25) percent of the required buffer yard may be used for stormwater retention/detention facilities provided that such facilities are constructed and maintained in strict compliance with all applicable regulatory requirements.

(E)

Buffer Yard Descriptions The minimum criteria for those buffer yards identified in Table 12.2 are described in Table 12.3, Table of Buffer Yard Descriptions.

TABLE 12.3: TABLE OF BUFFER YARD DESCRIPTIONS

Note: For the purposes of this Table, the mature height of small trees shall reach a minimum of fifteen (15) feet according to the growth height specification for small tree classification in the latest edition of the Florida-Friendly Plant List in "Florida Yards & Neighborhoods."

(F)

Buffer Yards Included in Setback Requirements Buffer yards may be counted toward satisfying zoning district building setbacks, open space requirements and may be used for passive recreation.

(Ord. No. 1428, § 2(Exh. A), 1-22-08; Ord. No. 1527, § 5, 12-5-11)

(A)

Vehicular Use Area Landscaping Vehicular use areas, interior to the required land use buffer yards, shall be landscaped according to the following minimum criteria:

(1)

Landscaped Surface Area All vehicular use areas shall provide and maintain an area within the vehicular land use area measuring no less than ten (10) percent of the entire vehicular use ground surface area.

(2)

Landscaped Surface Types Landscaped Island Areas and/or Landscaped Divider Strips between parking rows shall be used to meet these requirements.

(a)

Landscaped Island Areas Landscape islands shall be provided and maintained after every ten (10) parking spaces and as terminal ends to all parking rows. The minimum dimension of any landscaped island area shall be eight (8) feet in width as measured from the back side of any protective curbing, and shall be equal in length to the adjacent parking space. Each landscaped island area shall contain at least one (1) large tree. All other landscaped areas within the vehicle accommodation area shall be subject to the requirements of Section 12.2, General Landscaping Requirements.

(b)

Landscaped Divider Strips The minimum width of a landscaped strip shall be five (5) feet. If it includes a lengthwise walkway, its width shall be a minimum of nine (9) feet. Each landscape strip shall include large trees planted with a maximum spacing of not more than thirty-five (35) feet on-center. Each landscape strip shall include low water use plant material as identified in the latest edition of the Florida-Friendly Plant List in "Florida Yards & Neighborhoods". When landscaped strips extend for more than ten (10) parking spaces, such landscaped strips shall be provided with a crosswise walkway to facilitate pedestrian movement.

(B)

Reserved

(Ord. No. 1428, § 2(Exh. A), 1-22-08)

The maintenance of all buffer yards, trees, plantings, and landscape related improvements shall be the responsibility of the property owner or property owners' association, as applicable. Failure to maintain such plantings and related improvements in an attractive and healthy state shall be considered a violation of this Code. Required buffer yard and shade canopy large trees must be maintained to facilitate their natural growth characteristics and form, and may be pruned only for the purpose of maintaining vigorous, healthy growth or to provide for the health, safety and welfare of the public. All required landscaping must be maintained to promote vigorous and healthy growth.

(Ord. No. 1428, § 2(Exh. A), 1-22-08)

(A)

Purpose Xeriscape ^TM Florida-Friendly Landscape is a set of landscape design and maintenance principles which promote good horticultural practice and the economic and efficient use of water. The term Xeriscape ^TM is the registered trademark of the National Xeriscape Council and means water conserving, drought tolerant landscaping or simply the use of appropriate plant materials that do not require special attention and which require little supplemental water to grow properly. Xeriscape ^TM designs do not resemble desert landscapes, but reflect the lush traditional appearance of Florida gardens. Because water restrictions have become a common occurrence in Central Florida, the City is incorporating water conserving landscape standards into this section.

(B)

Design Site development plans shall be designed to retain and incorporate into the plan as many existing trees as possible. Building and parking lot locations, sizes, and shapes will be altered as feasible in order to preserve existing trees. Plants with similar water and cultural (soil, climate, sun, and light) requirements shall be grouped together. The water use zones shall be shown on the irrigation, layout, and planting plans. Where natural conditions are such that irrigation is not required, the presence of site appropriate plants shall not be considered a high water use zone.

(1)

Water Use Zones Installed trees and plant materials shall be grouped together with plants of the same water use needs and climatic requirements into zones. Low water use plants may be placed in medium and high water use zones. Medium water use plants may be placed in high water use zones. High water use plants shall not be used in low or medium water use zones. Medium water use plants shall not be used in low water use zones. The water use zones shall correlate to the water use zone designations of plants listed in the latest edition of the Florida-Friendly Plant List in "Florida Yards & Neighborhoods" as described below. The water use zones shall be graphically shown and their areas quantified in square feet or acres and relative percentages on the Landscape Plan. Installed trees and vegetation shall be spaced and located to accommodate their mature size on the site. The Water Use Zones are as follows:

(a)

Low Water Use Zone (L) Low Water Use Zones shall comprise a minimum of forty (40) percent of the total landscaped area.

(b)

Medium Water Use Zone (M) Medium Water Use Zones shall comprise a maximum of thirty (30) percent of the total landscaped area.

(c)

High Water Use Zone (H) High Water Use Zones shall comprise a maximum of thirty (30) percent of the total landscaped area. All portions of high water use zones shall be provided with central automatic irrigation systems.

(d)

Low and medium water use zones shall comprise at least seventy (70) percent of the landscaped area. If the High Water Use Zone area comprises less than thirty (30) percent of the landscaped area, the Applicant can increase the Medium Water Use Zone area to an amount equal to or less than the amount of the Low Water Use Zone area.

(2)

Plant Selection Plant selection shall be based on the plant's adaptability to the existing conditions present at the landscaped area and native plant communities, particularly considering appropriate hardiness zone, soil type and moisture conditions, light, mature plant size, desired effect, color and texture.

(3)

Removal of Prohibited Plant Species All prohibited plant species shall be removed from each site prior to the beginning of construction. For purposes of determining plant species to remove, refer to Table 15.3, Prohibited Plant List, Section 15.2, Tree Protection, Removal, and Replacement.

(4)

Turf/Turfgrass The type and location of turf/turfgrass areas shall be selected in the same manner as with all the other plantings. Irrigated turf/turfgrass areas are considered to be high water use zones. Irrigated turf/turfgrass areas shall not be treated as a fill-in material but rather as a planned element of the landscape. Turf/turfgrass areas shall be identified on the landscape plans.

(5)

Mulch A layer of mulch to a minimum depth of three (3) inches shall be required in plant beds. Organic mulches are preferred. Gravel, river rock, shall and similar materials may be used as landscape mulch. Mulch rings shall extend to at least three (3) feet around freestanding trees and shrubs. Mulches shall be kept at least twelve (12) inches away from any portion of a building or structure and six (6) inches away from stems of plants or trunks of trees. Plastic sheeting and other impervious materials shall not be used under mulched areas.

(6)

Irrigation The irrigation system shall be designed to correlate to the organization of plants into zones as described above according to the specifications described in Article XVI, Section 16.4, Landscape Irrigation Facilities.

(Ord. No. 1428, § 2(Exh. A), 1-22-08)

(A)

Planting along Water Bodies Required Development sites abutting surface water bodies or wetlands shall be planted with appropriate aquatic plantings, as shown in the Preferred Aquatic Plant List, along at least seventy-five (75) percent of the littoral zone or as required by the City Engineer or by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Lake edge landscaping shall not include wet detention areas unless determined as such by the City.

(B)

Preferred Aquatic Plant List: Lake edge landscape species selection shall be from Table 12. 4- Preferred Aquatic Plant List below or as approved by the City.

TABLE 12.4: PREFERRED AQUATIC PLANT LIST

Other aquatic plants may be used from the List of Aquatic Plants Found in Florida, as prepared by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Aquatic Plant Management.

(C)

Wetlands Wetlands preserved in their natural state shall not be required to install additional lake edge landscaping.

(Ord. No. 1428, § 2(Exh. A), 1-22-08)