Sunnyvale staff recommend decomposed‑granite median remodel; council seeks more tree cover and public outreach

City staff presented a study‑session briefing April 22 on a planned renovation of center medians along Fremont Avenue and Fair Oaks Avenue and recommended converting the medians to decomposed granite to reduce long‑term maintenance costs.

The project, funded in prior budgets, would renovate medians on Fremont from Belleville to Wolf Road and on Fair Oaks from Fair Oaks Way to Kensington Place and U.S. 101. Interim Assistant Director of Public Works Dennis Singh told the council the project goal in the capital improvement program is to emphasize drought‑tolerant, low‑maintenance planting, install or repair irrigation, reduce water use and worker hours, and improve sight lines. Singh said staff’s evaluation shows decomposed granite (DG) has a higher upfront cost but lower ongoing maintenance and inspection needs than a mulch/ground‑cover option.

The staff recommendation was for Option A — convert medians to decomposed granite — with estimated construction cost including contingency of about $2,625,000 against a project budget of $2,750,000. Singh summarized the tradeoffs: “Staff recommends option a due to its long term cost effectiveness.” He also noted that DG would result in “less vegetation…and would be a bigger change from the current median islands that the general public sees.”

Public works director Chip Taylor and Parks Superintendent Jim Stark joined the presentation. Taylor said drought‑tolerant materials are harder to make look “as lush,” but added that drivers typically do not scrutinize medians while passing: “when you're driving, it's much quicker and you don't really notice it.” Stark noted many existing median trees are dead or dying where irrigation fails and said that tree planting and irrigation improvements could be part of any solution.

Council members pressed staff on community engagement, tree counts and spacing, and timelines. Council Member Mellinger asked whether staff had undertaken outreach (staff had not) and recommended early contact with neighborhood associations. Mellinger and others said they would prefer no net tree loss; several council members signaled willingness to consider a budget modification to increase tree counts and reduce spacing from staff’s proposed 100‑foot spacing to roughly 50 feet. Stark said adding trees is feasible and that proper irrigation will help establish new trees.

Council Member Srinivasan urged use of native, drought‑tolerant shrubs and suggested staging work and increasing tree canopy where possible; he also encouraged staff to consult Valley Water on plant selection. Council Member Lay asked for information on how many trees would be removed and asked staff to prioritize native species and to report both “worst‑case” and average tree spacing in design materials.

In public comment several residents urged the council to prefer the more vegetated option (Option B) or to require more trees in Option A. A city consultant/engineer and staff said mulch requires monthly inspections and replacement every four years versus a nine‑year life expectancy for DG; mulch also has higher irrigation needs according to staff estimates.

The session did not include any formal vote. Staff said the next steps, pending council direction, are to continue design, prepare bid documents, advertise and award a construction contract; staff said a change in direction would likely lengthen design and require revisiting the budget. Singh asked council: “What additional information does council need to make a decision? And then are there any options that you do not like?”

Council members directed staff to (1) pursue public outreach with adjacent neighborhood associations and affected residents, (2) prioritize avoiding net tree loss and examine tighter tree spacing (council discussion suggested targeting roughly 50‑foot spacing where feasible), and (3) return with design documents and cost implications for any tree‑count/budget adjustments before issuing the construction contract.