Hawthorne Press Tribune
Herald Publications - El Segundo, Hawthorne, Lawndale & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 61, No. 28 - July 11, 2019
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City Council..........................3
Classifieds............................3
Entertainment......................2
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Lawndale..............................4
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Pets........................................8
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The Weekly Newspaper of Hawthorne
Life-Saving Hawthorne Officers
Hawthorne PD officers Jack Cunningham and Michael Jenks received special recognition at a recent City Council meeting for their roles in saving a local resident’s life last month. Photo: City of Hawthorne
West Basin Seed $$ Makes Yard
Conversions More Affordable
By Rob McCarthy
The West Basin Municipal Water District
made some noise last week with an announcement
about its turf removal program. It raised
the incentive by $1 for customers to plant
yard-sized gardens that can thrive using less
irrigation. Outdoor irrigation of lawns and
flower beds account for half of the water used
in the South Bay.
The average check from West Basin to owners
who replace grass with drought-tolerant
landscaping around their properties is $3,900,
according to district spokeswoman DeAnne
Blackmon. That’s based on an average lot size
of 1,300 square feet. The turf removal incentives
are flexible and can include residential
properties up to 5,000 square feet, she said. A
property that size could be in line for a $15,000
check for outdoor improvements.
John Arney runs a landscape construction
company in the South Bay and says any size
check from West Basin will “get the ball rolling”
on an outdoor renovation of the grounds.
Expect to pay anywhere from $7,500 to $15,000
for a professionally designed and installed
landscape, said the owner of Helix Landscape
Construction. “If you’re dissatisfied with your
landscape as it is and someone is giving you
four grand, those are two very good incentives,”
he said. Grass lawns are fine “for any other
area other than the dry Southwest where we’re
in a desperate situation with water shortages.”
West Basin is hosting classes for residents to
learn how to remove turf and choose landscaping.
The Metropolitan Water District is paying
$2 of the incentive, and the local water supplier
sweetened the offer by adding another dollar
starting in July. The next landscape conversion
class is at 5:30 p.m. on July 16 at Inglewood
City Hall. Residential and commercial property
owners are invited to enroll by calling (310)
371-7222.
Adding California-friendly, drought-tolerant
plant varieties around a property can save 1,800
gallons of drinking water each month, according
to West Basin. The water supplier is committed
to securing a safe and reliable source of
drinking water for its South Bay customers.
It also hopes to increase the participation in
the turf removal program, which is funded by
the Metropolitan Water District and the local
West Basin district.
The do-it-yourself approach won’t work for
everyone. There’s the turf removal, which is
physically demanding. The sod is heavy, Arney
said, and it needs to be hauled away and disposed
of properly. A property owner can expect to
need to hire laborers and a dumpster for the
demolition stage of the landscape remodel.
Arney recommends choosing plants in onegallon
buckets because they cost less and will
fill in eventually. Going from a green carpet of
grass in front and back to a new garden takes
patience, but Arney said the right selection
of California-friendly plants will fill in over
time. “Plants need some room to grow into
one another,” he explained. And landscapes
deserve trees, which have a cooling effect on
the garden and the ground loses less water to
evaporation, he added. The one-gallon buckets
work best and come with advantages over the
larger five-gallon sized plants that admittedly
are more mature. “A one-gallon grows faster
than a five-gallon,” Arney said. “If you go with
California natives, you save on installation
costs on your planting budget.”
Any qualifying project starts with a landscape
plan. The design guides every step of the installation,
including new irrigation, plants, trees,
paved walkways and lighting, Arney noted.
The site plan depends on the look of a home,
whether it’s a World War II-era bungalow or
a modern structure. Three popular types of
landscapes fit the home architecture of the
South Bay, he said. A modern landscape is
one of them, and involves cast concrete pavers
and a narrow selection of plant varieties
throughout the garden. Arney said one to two
types of drought-tolerant plants complement a
modern home’s outdoor features.
A Mediterranean landscape is another local
favorite and features plant varieties for the
South Bay’s coastal climate with moderate
temperatures and mostly sunny days. The
English cottage landscape is popular here too.
In addition to the July 16 landscape conversion
class in Inglewood, other sessions are
planned for August, September and October.
Program details are listed at www.westbasin.
org/grass-replacement as well as the dates and
times of the informational sessions for West
Basin customers interested in converting to a
grass-free exterior.
The loamy soil found in El Segundo, Hawthorne
and Inglewood is easy to work with,
unlike the heavy clay soils found along the
Palos Verdes Peninsula. Those residents incur
higher costs and more labor to excavate grassy
front and back yards because the pieces weigh
more and machinery is needed rather than hand
tools, according to Arney.
Customers who want more curb appeal can
change the exterior look of their home with
landscaping. The money from West Basin goes
almost halfway toward paying a landscape
contractor or making it a DIY project. The
rebates are available on a first-come basis, and
renters may participate with written consent of
their landlords.
See West Basin, page 4