Planning commission reviews draft landscape code to qualify Centerville residents for Weber Basin rebates

Centerville Planning Commission members reviewed a first-draft amendment to the city's landscaping code on Oct. 8 that staff said is intended to make Centerville properties eligible for Weber Basin Water Conservancy District rebate programs while also addressing new state water-conservation guidance.

The packet presented proposed changes to City Code (listed in the meeting materials as CCC 12.51) and included Weber Basin and state Division of Water Resources (DWR) materials. Staff said the draft would, if adopted as written, align the city with both Weber Basin's rebate requirements and the DWR technical guidance that the city pulled from DWR's website.

Why it matters: Weber Basin offers rebates and incentives for residents who replace turf with low-water landscaping, but staff and the commission repeatedly raised the question of whether the district's standards would make existing park-strip lawns and other established grass areas citywide nonconforming. That outcome would affect homeowners who only make routine repairs or minor improvements to their property.

Staff member Sydney, who presented the packet, told commissioners that Weber Basin and the state have become more stringent and that "we've…