CapstoneProject

Court Street btw 5th & Mission Av
San Rafael Parking Lot
Landscape Ordinance &
Guidelines
Capstone Project Final Report
Alicia Yballa | LEED AP, BD+C
Dominican University of California
BUSX 8030, Spring 2012
Bob Brown, Project Mentor
30 April 2012

San Rafael Parking Lot Landscape Ordinance & Guidelines ii

San Rafael Parking Lot Landscape Ordinance & Guidelines iii
Table of Contents
San Rafael Parking Lot Landscape Ordinance & Guidelines .............................1
Introduction and Background..................................................................................................................... 1
Justification, Description & Goals.............................................................................................................. 1
I. City of San Rafael Climate Change Action Plan.............................................................................................................2
II. San Rafael General Plan 2020..........................................................................................................................................2
III. Scope – Concepts for Inclusion.....................................................................................................................................3
Learning Objectives ...................................................................................................................................... 3
Process & Project Summary ........................................................................................................................ 4
Deliverables and Outcomes......................................................................................................................... 7
Recommendations......................................................................................................................................... 9
Timeline .............................................................................................................11
References ..........................................................................................................12
Appendix ............................................................................................................18
Dedication ..........................................................................................................19

Alicia Yballa | LEED AP, BD+C
Dominican University of California
BUSX 8030, Spring 2012
Bob Brown, Project Mentor
30 April 2012
San Rafael Parking Lot Landscape Ordinance & Guidelines 1
San Rafael Parking Lot Landscape Ordinance &
Guidelines
Introduction and Background
Parking lots are the interface where private business
enterprise meets the public realm and are an opportunity for
urban forestry to heal visual blight and address the
environmental impacts of these auto infrastructure features.
This project is aimed to develop a Draft Parking Lot
Landscape Ordinance and set of Guidelines for adoption by
the City of San Rafael for the sustainability elements of San Rafael’s Climate Change Action Plan, as
derived from the General Plan for 2020. It involves working closely with City Staff and
Stakeholders, and will be taken forward to the Design Review Board, City Council and Planning
Commission. It is an opportunity to be proactive in the application of sustainable ideology and to
practice environmental stewardship at a level that has long-term implications in the Community that
we live.
Justification, Description & Goals
“Parking requirements cause great harm: they subsidize cars, distort transportation choices, warp
urban form, increase housing costs, burden low income households, debase urban design, damage the
economy, and degrade the environment. Off-street parking requirements also cost a lot of money,
although this cost is hidden in higher prices for everything except parking itself.”
Don Shoup, UCLA Prof. of Urban Planning

An update to San Rafael’s existing Parking Lot Landscape Ordinance serves to implement the
recommended programs within the City’s Climate Change Action Plan. After adoption of the
Ordinance, I expect to develop an accompanying set of Landscape Guidelines for Parking Lots. It
will have sections, which will include maintenance and vegetation, provide direction to resources for
trees, plant lists, structural soils, low impact design (LID) for stormwater management, cool paving
and electrical vehicle charging station design, as well as provide diagrams and tables to assist City
Staff in enforcement and clarification for compliance by applicants.
I. City of San Rafael Climate Change Action Plan1
The ordinance addresses issues in three of the four components in San Rafael’s Climate Change
Action Plan:
A. Our Environment. Inventory tree and vegetative
cover to establish citywide goals and strategies to
increase carbon sequestration and shade to address
pollution and heat island effect.
B. Our Buildings. Reduce dependency on non-renewable
resources by developing guidelines to achieve water
conservation in landscaping with LID stormwater
practices and zone-appropriate, water-wise plantings.
C. Our Lifestyles. Promote energy savings from
transportation by participating in regional efforts to
encourage widespread availability of charging stations
and requiring the installation of electrical conduit for the infrastructure of electric vehicle
charging stations.
II. San Rafael General Plan 2020
The ordinance addresses specific issues within the General Plan including:
A. Neighborhood component.2
Screening to reduce
visual impact, provide security and landscaping for
pedestrian safety through site design and well-
landscaped parking lots.
B. Community Design component.3
Provide shade to
reduce thermal gain from pavement and shade cover
for vehicles. Reduce air pollution and emphasize the
use of trees to soften the appearance of parking lots.
1 “City of San Rafael, Climate Change Action Plan,” p 7-11.
2 “San Rafael General Plan 2020,” p 63-127.
3 Ibid., p 129-141.

Include maintenance requirements within the two-year maintenance bond.4
C. Conservation5
and circulation6
components. Encourage renewal energy alternatives by
requiring the inclusion of pre-wiring for electrical vehicle charging stations to encourage
development of alternative fuel infrastructure.
III. Scope – Concepts for Inclusion
Concepts for inclusion were determined after researching existing parking lot landscape ordinances
and guidelines throughout the state of California provided by the League of California Cities’
Housing, Community & Economic Development Public ListServ and in MuniCodes for each
municipality. San Rafael City Staff aided in the review of existing regulations, City needs and the
process for ordinance adoption. Scope of the project was limited to an update of the existing
Ordinance 14.18.130 – Parking facility dimensions and design (see Appendix: Existing City of San Rafael
Municipal Code Requirements). A summary of the preliminary research findings revealed eight distinct
concepts for inclusion: shade, screening, design, tree soil preparation/planting area, stormwater
management, cool paving, maintenance and electric vehicle infrastructure. The concepts were
further divided between the Ordinance and Guidelines based on whether or not a specific issue
would be mandated versus recommended. Stakeholders provided input and guidance to define this
division.
Learning Objectives
 To learn about Urban Forestry in its application to Sustainability Practices.
 To learn about the Planning process.
 To apply best management practices for stormwater management contextually in planning
infrastructure for parking lots in San Rafael.
 To understand how electric vehicle charging station infrastructure can be incorporated.
 To determine achievable requirements for the rehabilitation of existing parking lots.
 To understand Stakeholders’ viewpoints and how Stakeholders are involved in the process.
 To understand the feasibility of applying regulations versus making recommendations and
the implications these may have on parking counts.
4
This 2-year maintenance bond no longer exists in current regulations.
5 Ibid., p 285-303.
6 Ibid., p 155-195.

 To learn the process of developing an ordinance.
Process & Project Summary
Research criteria were based on meeting program requirements for the San Rafael Climate Change
Action Plan, derived from the General Plan for 2020, documents I found to be in harmony with
each other and with the principles and foundations of Sustainability Practice. The initial research
findings were kept in a relational database format in FileMaker Pro for ease of search, sorting and
analysis, the primary key being each municipality. There were some revelations and some surprises.
Most municipalities had an existing ordinance for parking lot landscaping, ranging from very simple,
almost rudimentary, to the City of Davis, which were accompanied by a detailed set of Guidelines,
master list of trees, and planting/irrigation specifications.
It is important to note that the General Plan 2020 for San Rafael was written in 2004. Although
written in very general terms, some program recommendations within the plan are no longer
congruent with current practices in the Planning Department. Annual, rigorous review of these
documents assures alignment of efforts. On a positive note, this can be evidence that, although small
and incremental, change and, hopefully impact, has taken place.
Early in the process, it became clear that trees, for growth potential/success, shade, maintenance,
aesthetics, carbon sequestration, and stormwater management are the governing factor in any
landscape ordinance. Concurrent with a thorough literature research on these topics, I began a
photo documentation of existing trees in existing parking lots – what works and what doesn’t. The
literature and field studies yielded the same findings, i.e. the majority of trees and landscaping in
parking lots in San Rafael are not working. This lack of success is multi-factorial including lack of
maintenance, inappropriate tree species or installation, soil compaction, damage by automobiles or
vandalism, improper pruning, etc. This lack of success is mostly attributable to a lack of
understanding of what trees and vegetation need to survive and a lack of placing value on the
importance of trees and landscaping in an urban environment.
The practical application of Sustainability Practices in an urban environment requires that the
Community, as a whole, place value on the importance of Nature. This is compounded by the lack
of resources for implantation and enforcement, resulting in minimizing the impact an ordinance of
any kind may have.
Bob Brown chose and assembled the stakeholders for input. Stakeholders included: three landscape
architects, one of which is also an arborist and on the Design Review Board for San Rafael, Jeff
Kent, two commercial real estate developers, the San Rafael City Engineer for the Department of
Public Works, the San Rafael Community Development Director, the San Rafael Principal Planner,

and Sandra Sellinger, founder/director of Marin ReLeaf. Preliminary findings were presented in a
Policy Choice Matrix and PowerPoint presentation. (see Appendix: 120201 Policy Choice Matrix and
120128 Stakeholder Presentation #1) The dissension amongst the stakeholders was remarkable, but
most surprisingly apparent between the landscape architects. Although motivated to ‘do the right
thing,’ they all had different levels of knowledge on the same topics. It is difficult to make an
evaluation on one meeting, however it appeared that one commercial real estate developer was
outspoken in his motivation about the cost of complying with regulations over doing the right thing
for the environment. Unexpected ,was that the City Engineer had little experience and limited
knowledge of state-of-the-art concepts for paving materials and general landscape design for LID
stormwater management.
Stakeholder viewpoints remain crucial in the decision-making process because buy-in is necessary for
compliance of the ordinance and ultimately the overall success of the goals to mitigate climate change.
It is important to seek to understand the perspective of the Stakeholders, as cost is likely to override
any desire to ‘do the right thing’ and an equitable compromise may be difficult to find. A step in
the right direction would be to educate Stakeholders and the Community in Sustainability.
We regrouped offline to redirect our efforts in response to Stakeholder input. I expanded my
research: added shade studies using various-sized canopy trees, performed field studies of landscape
islands in parking lots, studied soil volume for tree success, composed a photo documentation of
successful (but mostly unsuccessful) parking lot tree plantings, compared the use of permeable
paving with structural soils and suspended pavement in relationship to trees, did cost comparisons
and much more.
What the findings revealed were not expected and this shifted our timeline. I adjusted the research
to pursue the answers to the questions the findings had brought up for my Project Mentor. Figuring
out what the right questions are can be the most difficult task. We had a special meeting offline with
Jeff Kent for guidance from his progressive work with Santa Clara County. This meeting brought
the importance of the relationships between tree success, stormwater management, permeable
paving, and the upcoming changes in the National Pollutant Discharge and Elimination System,
NPDES7
, permitting (see Appendix: National Pollution Discharge and Elimination System General Permit for
Discharges from Construction Activities). We added Terri Fashing, Stormwater Program Administrator
for the Marin County Stormwater Pollution Prevention Program, MCSTOPPP8
, to the group of
Stakeholders (see Appendix: Stormwater Quality Manual for Development Projects in Marin County).
7 “NPDES Construction General Permit”
8 “Stormwater Quality Manual for Development Projects in Marin County; Guidance for Applicant.”

It is critical to figure out the right questions and to ask a lot of them. Be ready and flexible to
adjust the scope of the project when the answers dictate a shift. Expect resistance to change.
Even if well within the process, recognize the gaps in resources and the need to invite the proper
Stakeholders to the game to cover all the bases.
Conversations with Terri Fashing revealed incongruences between the new permitting requirements
for NPDES and the requirement for shade trees in parking lots that this parking lot landscape
ordinance would mandate. Specifically, the soil specifications for stormwater management would
preclude the growth of trees in this substrate. The new NPDES permitting requirements will be
significantly more stringent than the current regulations and will mandate removal of impervious
surfaces with ratios of impervious to pervious surfaces of 2:1. The reality in San Rafael is that the
majority of parking lots that this landscape ordinance will apply fall below the 5,000sf/25 spaces
thresholds where the NPDES permit requirements would kick in. We therefore aligned our
recommendations with these new requirements by encouraging the same ratios in the design
guidelines and making reference to the NPDES permit requirements for projects above the
thresholds.
In addition, tree planting in the interior of parking lots, now being unfavorable for success, is
recommended at the southerly and westerly perimeters of the lots where soil volume is favorable for
growth potential and solar conditions provide maximum shade to asphalt surfaces and vehicles.
The greatest lesson learned is that ‘timely coordination’ between agencies makes compliance for
applicants and enforcement for regulators feasible, ultimately fulfilling the overarching goal of climate
change mitigation. Without coordination, all the hours put in to write this ordinance would be
nullified in less than half the time it took to put it all together. Working together by being flexible
in our approach and ideas builds positive relationships between agencies.
New findings and recommendations were presented in a Policy Choice Matrix and PowerPoint
presentation at a second Stakeholder meeting. (see Appendix: 120424 Ordinance Policy Matrix, 120424
Stakeholder Presentation #2, 120424 Recommended Tree List for Ordinance)
Stakeholders overriding motivation is about practical feasibility. Closest to this pulse is City Staff,
on the front lines.
It is important to listen well and really hear your Stakeholders because responding to their input by
asking and answering the ‘right’ questions weakens the dissension and allows for productive debate
resulting in resolutions that are less about compromise and more about reaching common goals
toward Sustainability in a holistic manner. Pursuit of Sustainability can be viewed as utopian.
Pausing to allow for consensus closes the gaps and brings us closer to living sustainable lifestyles.

Deliverables and Outcomes
As part of the course of his work, Bob Brown will draft the updated Ordinance and submit it for
review together with several others in the works. I will attend and assist him with presentations to
the San Rafael Design Review Board, Planning Commission and City Council for adoption of the
Ordinance. After adoption of the ordinance, I will develop a set of Guidelines to accompany the
Ordinance to aid City Staff in enforcement and clarification for compliance of the regulation by
applicants.
Concurrent with this Capstone Project, Bob Brown as my Project Mentor, we were also classmates
in Master Class #39 for the Environmental Forum of Marin, EFM9
. This arrangement allowed for
enhanced accountability and an opportunity for additional presentations for feedback from a
contingency well aligned in Sustainability Practices – essentially dry runs, although only general
concepts were presented to EFM, saving technicalities for the Stakeholders. This alerted me to any
adverse reactions to our proposals and helped to instruct our angle of presentation to the
Stakeholders. My background in Landscape Architecture, as a steward of the landscape, and Bob’s
expertise in Planning was a well-rounded team for technical knowledge and process.
Deliverables and outcomes are listed below and can be found in the Appendix.
Deliverable Outcome
1 Sustainable
Practices
Certificate
Program Intake
Interview
In retrospect, it is satisfying to find that my initial goals have been fulfilled
in the classroom work and that this project is well aligned with my
interests, skill set and learning objectives of the program.
2 EFM Project
Proposal
The project proposals for EFM and the Capstone Project were written by
Bob and me, respectively, slightly different with respect to the
requirements of each program. It was the beginning of my learning of the
differences of perspectives between the disciplines of Planning and
Landscape Architecture. The project remained well aligned with the initial
proposals, with only minor shifts in scope dictated by research and field
study findings in the process.
3 Stakeholder
Presentation #1
This presentation was the first opportunity for many of the Stakeholders
to learn about some of the sustainability issues involved in parking lot
construction. Response to feedback and input from Stakeholders helped
to define the scope of the project by focusing the research to address their
concerns. It made me aware of their gaps in knowledge about
sustainability and where the next presentation could help to educate them.
9 www.marinefm.org

Deliverable Outcome
4 Policy Choice
Matrix
This matrix was the working document given to stakeholders, at the
Stakeholder Presentation #1. It provided the framework for our project
team to work within and is the summary of existing regulations and
guidelines that initially defined the scope. It also acted as a reference for
Stakeholder input.
5 Research
Findings
Response to Stakeholder feedback redirected the research and determined
the need for tree canopy shade and field studies. These studies caused an
adjustment in the expected outcome of the ordinance. The photo
documentation, hard numbers of the costs and shade canopy calculations
were definitive contributors to the outcome of our recommendations for
the Ordinance. Key was input from MCSTOPPP regarding the new
NPDES permitting requirements and the effects this would have on tree
success. This required further analysis to help answer technical questions
that came up for us and would likely be asked by the Stakeholders. At
this stage, Bob was ruminating on the shift in our recommendations, as
these were different than what he had expected due to the research, field
study findings and stormwater management requirements. Further
analysis also shifted the timeline.
6 EFM Project
Update
This timely submittal helped to formulate the initial recommendations for
the Ordinance and helped to keep the project on track and within the
timeline. It laid out the next steps in our process and delineated the
concepts for inclusion between the Ordinance and Guidelines.
7 EFM Final
Presentation
Another timely submittal helped to formulate the final recommendations
for the Ordinance. It is the Research Findings significantly pared down
(sans technical jargon) and gave the project a good feel for the direction
of the final presentation for the Stakeholders.
8 Master Tree List
Database
This Master Tree List is a database compiled from the nine Bay Area
Counties and can be sorted on any criteria. It is a rich and valuable
resource of trees in any public landscape in San Rafael and will be
provided in the Guidelines. Previous to this, there has not been a tree list
as comprehensive for San Rafael.
9 Ordinance
Policy Matrix
After much mashing, this Ordinance Policy Matrix is composed of the
recommendations that will be presented at the Stakeholder Presentation
#2. The recommendations are further delineated between Ordinance and
Guidelines.
10 Stakeholder
Presentation #2
This submittal is the edited Research Findings post-analysis and presents
the rationales for the recommendations in the Ordinance Policy Matrix.
11 Recommended
Tree List for
Ordinance
This Tree List will accompany the Ordinance and is specific to trees
recommended for parking lots in San Rafael.

In the grand scheme, the outcome of applying these regulations and recommendations to parking lot
landscapes will reduce heat island effect, conserve energy, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, address
water quality and quantity for stormwater management, capture particulate matter pollution, create
safe pedestrian environments, and make for a more beautiful San Rafael. By providing specific,
thorough and clear regulations and guidelines, compliance to achieve a sustainable community will
be more likely.
Recommendations
The factors that brought this project together made it a most valuable experience – Bob as the
Project Mentor, his established relationship with the City of San Rafael, his access to the
Stakeholders, his expertise in planning, our concurrent enrollment in EFM Master Class #39, a well-
defined project with a scope and timeline aligned for both programs and the City’s need for our
contribution. This set up a framework that will most likely ensure a successful outcome: the
adoption of an updated parking lot landscape ordinance for the installation and rehabilitation of
parking lots to increase tree cover, reduce thermal gain, maximize tree growth and carbon
sequestration, improve aesthetics, and slow filter and absorb rainwater. I am fortunate to have
gained some insight on the process of regulations and what goes behind it, i.e. a tremendous amount
of research. I am much clearer on the delineation between the disciplines of Planning and
Landscape Architecture and now understand the utmost importance of working together to
understand the perspectives of each. In this process, I appreciate the position of City Staff as they
are, more often than not, uncomfortably sandwiched between the Regulators and the Applicants,
otherwise known as the Community. The most profound lesson is that being a steward for the
environment means different things to different people and that there are huge gaps in knowledge
about Sustainability – it will therefore remain a nebulous word.
The City is resource poor and enforcement of regulations is illusory. City Staff begs for clarity in the
regulations. In the creation or updating of ordinances, this cannot be achieved without the broadest
knowledge base of the existing regulations. An understanding of relationships between agencies is
essential and vastly complex, so I may only offer humble recommendations. Is it possible to get all
these people at the same table for the purpose of understanding respective perspectives? My first
recommendation would be to standardize the Sustainability knowledge of the factions by having
them interact in a playing field such as the Environmental Forum of Marin. Secondly, is
coordination, i.e. coordination between the actions of each of the agencies – more communication
and less adversarial politics.

There is a distinct delineation between the disciplines of Planning, Landscape Architecture and
Architecture. Although conceptual overlap inherently exists, in practice, this delineation has been
considerably blurred. My strongest recommendation is for both parties to step back and regain
respect for the distinction that separates them. This would be a generative step toward progressive
thinking and could result in holistic resolutions that would make Sustainability a feasible reality.
The work of this project has provided the ingredients for a draft parking lot landscape ordinance,
which Bob will submit along with several others in the works as part of a package. I expect to
attend and assist with presentations of these Drafts to the Design Review Board, Planning
Commission and City Council, so the process will continue . . .
In closing,
“So many citizens say parking is a fundamental right. Instead, as a car is private property,
parking should have private, not public solutions, leaving city governments to focus on public
transportation.” Peñalosa, SF Supervisor

Timeline

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new developments and redevelopments; §11.30 – Watercources; §14.18.010 – Specific
purposes; §14.18.020 – Applicability; §14.18.030 – Computation; §14.18.045 – Designation
for clean air vehicles; §14.18.130 – Parking facility dimensions and design; §14.18.160
Parking lot screening and landscaping; §14.16.370 – Water-efficient landscape; §14.13.040
Property development regulations (-WO) §17.10 – Dumping, dredging and construction
within tidal waterways.
“San Rafael General Plan 2020.” San Rafael Community Development Department. November 15,
2004.
Scott, Klaus I., James R. Simpson, E. Gregory McPherson. “Effects of Tree Cover on Parking Lot
Microclimate and Vehicle Emissions.” Journal of Arboriculture 25(3): May 1999.

Sellinger, Sandra. Marin Releaf. www.marinreleaf.org. Sandrasellinger@comcast.net. 415-456-
1387.
Smiley, E.Thomas, L. Calfee, B.R. Fraedrich, and E.J. Smiley. “Comparison of Structural and
Noncompacted Soils for Trees Surrounded by Pavement.” International Society of
Arboriculture. 2006.
“Stormwater Management Plan. Action Plan 2010.” Marin County Stormwater Pollution
Prevention Program (MCSTOPPP). Marin County Department of Public Works. By EDA,
Inc. May 2005.
“Stormwater Quality Manual for Development Projects in Marin County; Guidance for Applicant.”
Marin County Stormwater Pollution Prevention Program (MCSTOPPP). No date.
“Stormwater, Trees, and the Urban Environment; A comparative Analysis of Conventional Street
Tree Pits and Stormwater Tree Pits for Stormwater Management in Ultra Urban
Environments.” California Rural Water Association. March 2009.
The London Plan, “Annex 4 Parking Standards.” Parking Standards for Retail and Leisure and
Mixed-Use Developments in London. SDS Technical Report 12. GLA. Spatial Development
Strategy for Greater London. 2004.
Tilt, Dr. Ken, Dr. Joe Eakes, David West, James Miles, William East. “Best Management Practices
for Successful Urban Tree Plantings.” Alabama Cooperative Extension System. 2004.
Toronto City Planning. “Design Guidelines for ‘Greening’ Surface Parking Lots, DRAFT.”
November 2007.
“Tualatin Riverkeepers. Your Voice for Clean Water.” www.tualatinriverkeepers.org
Urban, James, FASLA. “Alternatives to Structural Soil for Urban Trees and Rain Water.” ASLA
Conference, Annapolis, MD. Date unknown.
US Green Building Council. Green Neighborhood Development. LEED Reference Guide for
Neighborhood Development. 2009.
Wolf, Kathleen L. “Trees, Parking and Green Law: Strategies for Sustainability.” College of Forest
Resources, University of Washington. February 2004.

Appendix
SUBMITTALS & DELIVERABLES
110720 Sustainable Practices Certificate Program Intake Interview
111226 Environmental Forum of Marin Project Proposal
120128 Stakeholder Presentation #1
120201 Policy Choice Matrix
120302 Research Findings
120307 Environmental Forum of Marin Project Update
120316 Environmental Forum of Marin Final Presentation
120419 Master Tree List Database
120424 Ordinance Policy Matrix
120424 Stakeholder Presentation #2
120424 Recommended Tree List for Ordinance
GUIDELINES
Best Management Practices for Tree Planting
City of David Tree Planting and Irrigation Detail
Existing City of San Rafael Municipal Code Requirements
LEED Options
Marin County Stormwater Ordinance
Marin County Stormwater Pollution Prevention Program; Stormwater Quality Manual for
Development Projects in Marin County
National Pollution Discharge and Elimination System General Permit for Discharges from
Construction Activities
SAMPLE GUIDELINES

Dedication
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it
is the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead
Bob Brown, AICP

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