PUBLIC WORKS COMMISSION DATE: June 17, 2013 REPORT NO. PW2013-044 TO: FROM: Chair and Members Committee of the Whole Operations and Administration Geoff Rae, MBA, P.Eng. General Manager, Public Works Commission 1.0 TYPE OF REPORT CONSENT ITEM [ ] ITEM FOR CONSIDERATION [ x ] 2.0 TOPIC Topsoil, Sod and Seed Specifications for Restoration 3.0 RECOMMENDATION THAT Council APPROVE the existing Specifications for Topsoil, Sod and Seed, including the process of delivery of Notices to Residents for new sod care, as provided in Report No. PW2013-044. 4.0 PURPOSE To inform Council of the existing process and specifications for the restoration of sod grass areas disrupted by construction activities. 5.0 BACKGROUND Public Works has received inquiries from residents and City Councillors regarding the condition of sod grass areas at construction restoration locations. The City contracts for the restoration of topsoil, sod and seed on various construction projects and private utility works. The Design and Construction section of Public Works administers the capital project tenders, specifications and inspection of topsoil and sod work. Operational Services administers the restoration of sod areas under Street Excavation Permits for utilities and private contractors.
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 2 In 2006, an informal Landscaping Specifications Review Committee was organized with the General Manager, Director of Design & Construction, Foreman - Parks Turf, and Councillors McCreary and Calnan. Landscaping specifications were drafted, and a final version was incorporated into the 2007 contract specifications and carried over to subsequent years. Operational Services also utilizes the specification for the restoration of utility and private contractor works. A copy of the specification is attached to this report. The current procedure includes an Information for Residents Notice that is delivered to properties along road construction projects prior to work commencing. The Notice identifies a section for Care of Newly Laid Sod, advising residents that watering is required on a regular basis, and that the contractor for the project will also arrange for watering the new sod. An additional Tips for Maintaining New Sod notice is delivered to properties when the new sod work is completed from the spring to early fall. Small restoration areas for utilities under Street Excavation Permits usually do not receive the same notices. The Municipal Code for the City of Brantford includes a section that allows property owners to maintain the boulevard at their expense as follows: Article 6 - Boulevards 614.6.1 Maintenance - landowner s expense - exception Subject to the provisions of the City of Brantford by-law respecting trees on highways, and subject to the provisions of other by-laws respecting public work and obstructions to the view of drivers at intersections, an owner of land abutting a highway may at his/her own expense maintain any boulevard immediately opposite his/her land, but not so as to unreasonably interfere with or impede public traffic. Such maintenance shall not include the construction or reconstruction and repair of sidewalks and curbs. The City s Specifications for Topsoil, Sod and Seed covers the supply, testing, placement, watering, inspection and maintenance of the topsoil and sod. The contractor is responsible for the sod during a one year warranty period, with City inspection at five intervals during that warranty. The Specification allows for payment to the contractor for watering during the first 15 days following placement of the sod. Any additional watering is the contractor s responsibility for the duration of the warranty period.
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 3 The following table summarizes standards for sod work from a number of local municipalities. BRANTFORD LONDON HAMILTON WATERLOO KITCHENER ONTARIO SPECS DATE 2013 2013 2007 2012 2012 2010 WARRANTY 1 YEAR 60 DAYS 30 DAYS 60 DAYS 30 DAYS 30 DAYS TOPSOIL ORGANIC % 4-6 MIN. 4 4-15 4 6 MIN 4 FERTILE LOAM TOPSOIL DEPTH (mm) 150 100 150 150 150 50 FERTILIZER 8-32-16 YES 8-32-16 YES 5-20-20 YES NOT SPECIFIED 8-32-16 YES 3-1-2 MIN. YES WATERING 1 YEAR INCLUDED WITH SOD 60 DAYS INCLUDED WITH SOD 30 DAYS INCLUDED WITH SOD 60 DAYS 30 DAYS INCLUDED WITH SOD 30 DAYS INCLUDED WITH SOD WATERING PAID FIRST 15 DAYS - - DURING 60 DAYS - - The table shows that the 1 year warranty by the City of Brantford exceeds other local municipality standards. Other municipalities with only 30 to 60 day warranties would expect property owners to assume the sod care responsibilities. Areas excavated for the placement of topsoil are inspected prior to the placement of the material. Topsoil is placed, levelled and inspected prior to the placement of the sod. The final inspection of the sod placed on road projects is completed prior to the expiry of the one year warranty period. Deficiencies in the sod are noted to the contractor and repairs are inspected. Holdback securities may be retained for any delays in completion due to weather or other conditions. The Councillors of Ward 3 and Ward 4 requested notification of excavation, topsoil and sod work on road contracts within their Ward. The Councillors are notified when areas have been excavated, prior to the placement of topsoil. Topsoil and sod placed on utility or private excavations under Street Excavation Permits is also warranted for one year. However, the watering requirement is included in the sod price for the restoration of these utility cuts which are typically small areas. Topsoil and sod restoration with the required watering produces a grass product that if properly maintained, passes a one-year warranty period. Following the one-year warranty, the sod areas may be maintained by the adjacent property owners as per the Municipal Code.
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 4 The Tips for Maintaining New Sod notice advises residents that a healthy lawn requires 25-50mm of water each week depending on the weather conditions. Many residents are reluctant to water due to cost, effort or location of the new sod. New sod often does not have the resiliency to recover from drought conditions or from neglected watering, therefore, the maintenance is extremely important to establishing a healthy turf. 6.0 CORPORATE POLICY CONTEXT Not Applicable. 7.0 INPUT FROM OTHER SOURCES Information regarding municipal specifications was located on the associated websites for the noted municipalities. The Ontario Provincial Standards are also available as on-line information. 8.0 ANALYSIS New topsoil and sod installations will thrive with adequate water and fertilizer. The topsoil specifications for an organic content of 4-6% is an acceptable industry standard. The bulk of the topsoil is 95% inert earth materials graded from clay, silt and sand. The excavation and placement of topsoil and sod on road construction projects is inspected by staff on-site for the project. Topsoil supplied by contractors has laboratory testing provided to ensure compliance with the specifications. Occasionally, a sample of topsoil is taken from the jobsite during construction for additional testing of organic content. Inspectors check the sod at five (5) intervals during the one-year warranty, as noted in the specifications. Contractors are advised of poor sod conditions prior to the expiry of the warranty and sod replacement or watering is performed. Street Excavation Permits are administered by the Operational Services section. Small areas of sod restored for utility work or development servicing is inspected by Operations staff. A landscaping contractor performs the work to the same specifications. The relatively small sod areas are usually maintained by the adjacent property owners, and sod replacement, if required, is often completed on a complaint basis within the warranty period. The City s one-year warranty exceeds other local municipalities for similar topsoil and sod work. The warranty requires contractors to price the sod and watering work to allow them to maintain, repair or replace the sod prior to the one-year expiry. Several factors contribute to sod failure in the years following construction, such as: lack of watering manual watering is labour intensive compared to automated sprinklers lack of fertilizer lack of weed control excessive fertilizer burn-out
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 5 excessive mowing too short in dry weather natural pests grubs snow storage on boulevards, front lawns weather conditions drought, dry seasons water conservation strategies sun exposure shade conditions of mature trees may protect some sod areas location of new sod many corner properties have long flankage boulevards with poor access due to fences or hedges. location of utility work restoration very small isolated sod areas may be at the far limits of a property poor lawn care on adjacent properties may cause encroachment of weeds property ownership tenants may not be required to maintain lawn areas. Distant landlords may neglect lawn care. costs to water and maintain many property owners are reluctant to pay for water or lawn feed or mowing costs. property owners refuse to maintain sod that they consider to be the City s responsibility on City boulevard property. property owner vacations often leave sod areas neglected for extended periods. commercial and industrial property owners may reduce expenses for lawn care. Several zones may be adjacent or opposite to residential zones. Some photos have been provided shown as pairs where the properties are either on the opposite side of the street or adjacent to each other. The photos are from projects constructed in 2008 and 2010. #1 SOUTH SIDE BOULEVARD OPPOSITE NORTH SIDE BOULEVARD 2008 road, sewer and watermain project native sandy soil area, Henderson Survey opposite boulevard separate sidewalk area weed growth is starting to green up the north boulevard
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 6 #2 SOUTH SIDE BOULEVARD OPPOSITE NORTH SIDE BOULEVARD 2010 road, sewer and watermain project native sandy soil area, Henderson Survey opposite boulevard separate sidewalk area weed growth is starting to green up the north side boulevard #3 NORTH SIDE BOULEVARD ADJACENT NORTH SIDE BOULEVARD 2010 road, sewer and watermain project native sandy soil area, Henderson Survey adjacent boulevard separate sidewalk area
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 7 #4 NORTH SIDE BOULEVARD ADJACENT NORTH SIDE BOULEVARD 2010 road, sewer and watermain project native sandy soil area adjacent boulevard combined curb and sidewalk area weed growth starting in brown areas #5 NORTH SIDE BOULEVARD OPPOSITE SOUTH SIDE BOULEVARD 2010 road, sewer and watermain project native sandy soil area opposite boulevards separate sidewalk area the south boulevard is in a complete brown condition prior to being overtaken by future weeds
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 8 It is clearly visible that individual property owners have different levels of lawn care and maintenance. The majority of City boulevard areas that are neglected will generally become green over the years as weed growth dominates. New sod areas that are neglected will stand out as brown areas until weeds eventually take over. As noted in the Background section of this report, property owners are not required to maintain boulevards on City property, but may do so at their own expense. There may be cases where the boulevards are not maintained and become overgrown. Property Standards enforced by the Building Department on a complaint basis generally deal with private properties that allow growth to exceed 20 centimetres (8 inches). They may also need to refer to a noxious weed listing from the Province, if required. City boulevards are not subject to the same property standards for 20cm height of growth. Boulevards and rights-of-way that are not maintained may grow to greater heights. Complaints of high growth in the boulevards and right-of-ways are referred to Engineering Services for consideration. It is recommended that a similar limit of 20cm height be considered. However, subject to location, height of growth and driveway visibility, the overall height of boulevard growth is at the discretion of Engineering Services. The cost of cutting boulevards or right-of-ways is absorbed by the Operations or Parks budgets. There are very few high growth boulevard complaints that require cutting by City forces. Current Specifications and Alternatives to Boulevard Sod, Watering and Maintenance 1. Continue to apply the current Specifications for Topsoil, Sod and Seed Recommended The current specifications provide topsoil, sod and seed with a one-year warranty that establishes a grass cover for the adjacent property owners. The current specifications require: topsoil testing and reporting prior to acceptance; excavation for the placement of 150mm depth of topsoil, with inspection; placement and grading of topsoil with inspection; placement and watering of sod payment for watering sod for the first 15 days; one-year warranty by the contractor for watering and maintenance as required; inspection by the City at five (5) intervals during the year; In addition to the contractor s obligations, the City provides Notices and Information to Residents and Property Owners along the road construction projects to advise them of new sod watering and care for healthy lawns.
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 9 It is recommended that the current Specifications for Topsoil, Sod and Seed developed in 2007 be formally adopted and continue to apply for restoration areas. 2. Extend the warranty period Not Recommended The current one-year warranty exceeds other local municipality specifications. Regardless of the length of the warranty, the failure of sod is mostly attributed to a lack of lawn care by private properties after they assume responsibility for the sod. 3. Pay contractors to water for extended periods of time Not Recommended The cost of water may be as high as $20.00 per cubic metre when delivery and labour is included. Road Construction Program length estimate - 3,000 metres. Estimate 75 days watering alternate days at.010m 3 /m 2 day (approximately ½ inch of water/day) 3,000m x 10m width x.010m 3 /m 2 day x 75 days x $20/m 3 = $450,000 The estimated cost to the construction program would be at least $450,000 per year. Unfortunately, at the end of the warranty, the property owner may still neglect the lawn care and the sod may still die off. The $450,000 expense would be wasted on water for properties that will elect to ignore the boulevard areas. Paying for extended watering is not recommended since the current specifications require the contractor to monitor and maintain the sod for the duration of the warranty period at his own expense. The cost of this option would be funded from the annual roads construction program which would reduce the number of road projects to be done each year. 4. Funding be established for topsoil and sod replacement on out-of-warranty construction projects and street excavation permits on a complaint basis Not Recommended. Public Works has received complaints regarding projects constructed as far back as 10 years. Even if topsoil and sod replacement was considered on projects under five years old, the process is not recommended for the following reasons: Property owners that neglect sod and lawn care would be seen as getting rewarded with new topsoil and sod, and possibly more than once. Property owners that exercise their right to maintain the boulevards may resent the fact that they have spent time, effort, and money on the City boulevards while the negligent neighbor gets new sod.
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 10 New sod can die off within days or weeks if neglected. The sod replacement process would need to be limited for the number of times replacement is done, and records of location would need to be kept. Replacement of topsoil and sod on a complaint basis would probably start with a smaller number of claims. However, property owners adjacent to sod replacement properties would also complain after they see their neighbors receiving new sod, creating a domino effect of complaints down the street. Property owners are not required to maintain boulevard areas, as noted in the Municipal Code. There is currently no boulevard or sod replacement funding for Operations or Public Works. Creation of a boulevard restoration program could generate complaints from properties all over the City, not just from out-of-warranty construction projects and street excavation permits. A 5 year time frame for replacing topsoil and sod on construction projects could cost as much as $ 400,000 per year to replace about 10% sod placed over that time frame. The 10% estimate could be very low if drought and weather conditions are not favorable and more sod dies off. The $ 400,000 per year expenditure would have zero value as soon as property owners neglect to water the new sod. 5. City assumes all boulevards for lawn watering and mowing Not Recommended Since the property owners are not required to maintain City boulevards, then the ultimate responsibility for the quality of sod or weed growth in the boulevards is with the City. The Municipal Code allows the adjacent residents to maintain the boulevard at their expense and establish their own level of care. There are well over 400kms of roads in the City or over 800kms of boulevards counting each side. The cost of dedicating staff, equipment, vehicles and water have not been estimated for this report due to the size of the endeavor and the fundamental shift in policy that is required. (Water costs alone would be millions of dollars to adequately water grass sod.) The logistics of dealing with individual property owners with major differences in their lawn care priorities would also be a deterrent to this strategy.
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 11 9.0 FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS Maintaining the existing Specifications for Topsoil, Sod and Seed, as recommended does not have any new financial implications. Tenders for work that include the specifications allow for competitive pricing from contractors. The non-recommended options would have significant impacts on the annual operating budgets for Operational Services, or the capital budget for roads, resulting in less construction work each year. 10.0 CONCLUSION The current Specifications for Topsoil, Sod and Seed are adequate for establishing sod growth as demonstrated in projects from 2007 to present. The sod is established over the one-year maintenance period and subsequently is placed under the care of property owners, at their discretion. It is recommended that Council approve the existing Specifications for Topsoil, Sod and Seed, including the process of delivery of Notices to Residents for new sod care. Russ Loukes, P.Eng., PTOE Director of Engineering Services Paul Madden, Director of Operational Services Geoff Rae, MBA, P.Eng., General Manager, Public Works Commission Paul Christie, P.Eng., Manager of Design & Construction Attachments: Appendix A - Specifications for Topsoil, Sod and Seed Appendix B - Notice to Residents Appendix C Notice Tips for Maintaining New Sod Notice In adopting this report, is a by-law or agreement required? If so, it should be referenced in the recommendation section. By-law required [ ] yes [ x ] no Agreement(s) or other documents to be signed by Mayor and/or City Clerk [ ] yes [ x ] no Is the necessary by-law or agreement being sent concurrently to Council? [ ] yes [ x ] no
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 12 SPECIFICATIONS FOR TOPSOIL, SOD AND SEED APPENDIX A
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 13
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 14
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 15
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 16
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 17 SAMPLE INFORMATION FOR RESIDENTS NOTICE APPENDIX B
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 18
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 19 TIPS FOR MAINTAINING NEW SOD NOTICE APPENDIX C
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 20 PHOTO PAIRS OF 2008 AND 2010 ROAD PROJECTS ROWS #1, 2, 5 OPPOSITE SIDE OF STREET PROPERTIES ROWS #3, 4 ADJACENT PROPERTIES APPENDIX D #1 #2 #3
Date: June 17, 2013 Page 21 #4 #5