PARKS AND RECREATION COMMISSION MEETING AGENDA PACKET - July 10, 2025

Page 2 of 3 • Government properties – January 1, 2027 • Institutional, industrial, and commercial properties – January 1, 2028 • HOA properties – January 1, 2029. The bill does not apply to residential properties that do not have shared common space. Other properties, such as cemeteries, are also exempt from the bill. DISCUSSION City Properties The City will need to convert approximately 6 acres of nonfunctional turf areas identified as part of the August 2024 Citywide Turf Conversion Study. The study, completed with a goal of meeting the City’s Climate Action Plan 2.0 goals and in anticipation of the looming deadlines for the implementation of AB 1572, provides a roadmap for greater water use reductions for City-maintained properties. The conversion of the nonfunctional turf properties could save the City anywhere from 7-9 million gallons of water annually, but at an installation cost of up to $8- 15 million. The turf conversion focused on two different types of conversion: • Converting lawn to mulch areas • Converting lawn to low-water-use plants. Both options considered the need for modifications to the existing irrigation system to maintain healthy trees within the turf area and to use more water-efficient irrigation for any new plantings. If designed properly, in addition to saving water, the lawn conversions could slightly reduce maintenance requirements since staff will no longer be required to mow the lawn on a routine basis, but will instead need to replenish mulch on an annual or semi-annual basis and prune/deadhead the low-water-use plants on a quarterly basis. The changes to the irrigation system, which make up a large part of the initial investment costs, will likely require more maintenance as rotors typically require fewer repairs than drip irrigation or sprayheads (primarily due to the increased number of irrigation heads required). As staff analyzes each turf conversion area, it may be determined that the City could reduce costs in some areas by taking a less aggressive approach with more minimal modifications to keep a healthy landscape, but the study did not provide a cost factor due to the need for detailed analysis to determine the feasibility of this approach. The study was completed in time so that the City could include the implementation costs in the budget that was adopted for the next two fiscal years. The City set aside $1.1 million in funding for nonfunctional turf conversion for the two-year Capital Improvement Program (CIP) workplan and the City will be determining how to complete the necessary conversions and if there are any additional sources or money to implement the conversion program. Other Properties Staff has discussed the matter with a few of the larger property managers, such as the Hacienda Business Park, and with some landscape contractors and HOAs responsible for maintaining non-functional turf in the City. However, much more coordination and outreach will be required so that all affected property owners are aware of the requirements and associated timeline to implement the nonfunctional turf conversions. Page 7 of 58