City of Tracy Utilities Lawn and Turf Removal and Replacement Program

Requirements

• Apply and get approval before removing any lawn.
• At least 50% of the area in low-water or native plants.
• Mulch the converted area.
• Remove the lawn sprinklers in the converted area and water any remaining lawn separately. New irrigation is drip, microspray or bubblers, with no runoff, under the 2015 Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance.
• Tracy pays $0.75 to $1.00 per sq ft depending on which requirements the project meets; the estimate here uses $0.75.
• Front yards and areas the public can see only; back yards and areas out of public view don't qualify.
• Convert at least 500 sq ft, or all of the lawn if smaller. The lawn must be maintained now: brown from drought cutbacks is fine, bare dirt is not.
• Apply online with photos; the City may inspect, then emails a Notice to Proceed. Touch no lawn or sprinklers before it, and finish within 6 months.
• Plants must be rated very low or low water use for Tracy on the WUCOLS IV list; tree canopy doesn't count toward the cover. Mulch 3 inches deep. Non-permeable hardscape stays under 20% of the project, and artificial turf is not eligible.
• Keep the water account in good standing from 6 months before to 5 years after, and the landscape for 5 years. The check comes 3 to 6 weeks after the final review; a W-9 is needed for $600 or more.

Steps, in order

1. Apply on City of Tracy Utilities’s site and wait for approval. Lawn removed before approval usually does not qualify.
2. Remove the lawn and plant to the requirements above.
3. Send what the program page asks for once the work is done.