We need to conserve water in any way possible.  Also the desert landscaping doesn't die and look bad in the winter like the grass does.  We think it would make the property more attractive while conserving our precious water supply here in AZ!

Makes sense. The Board is empowered to make these kinds of calls on behalf of the residents if the results lead to the betterment of North Ranch (and hold costs down to boot), but it's nice you give us opportunity for input (especially for those of us who have difficulty making Association meetings.)

The reason most people have purchased homes in this development is because of the unique beauty........especially the grass.  I understand the concern of the water issue, however, with the increased costs of monthly dues, this is one issue that is simply not acceptable to do away with.  This is not a retirement village nor a low maintenance.  It is a beautiful neighborhood that we are proud of.  The entrances are simply divine and should stay that way.  The grass areas in the common areas provide that extra "cool off" area for kids and animals and should be kept.!  I believe that the existing grass areas should remain to help increase the value of our homes.

The area suggested is fine for desert landscaping. Anything more than that is ridiculous. We moved here 16 years ago for the beauty of NR. Don't screw it up.

It IS nice to see "green", but if we maintain the entry ways and pools in "green", I think we can have some pretty flowing plants (oleanders, lantana, etc. adding color and beauty to corner areas.  These plants will not consume the amount of water that grass (which was never meant to grow in the desert) does.

Yes and I can already hear the dog owners whining.  But beyond desert landscaping... under any mesquite tree, a combination of pavers and desert landscaping.  Leaves, stems and seed pods are messy and require heavy cleaning two cycles per year. 

And I don't know why the pool area and the entrances are not under consideration.  A combination of grass and desert landscaping should be considered.

Desert landscaping will save NR money that can be used for improvements in other areas, such as playgrounds.

We need to conserve water as best as we can. This is one of the simplest ways to do it.

One of the reasons We moved into NR was because of the landscape. If someone wants to change it, there are many subdivisions with desert landscaping that they can move to. We all bought houses here with the existing landscaping. Why would you want to change it?

The grass is always getting overwhelmed with weeds and the cost of watering it is immense.  I think we should KEEP the grass at the entrances but replace all the grass along cactus canyon. 

I'm all for saving water and money. I feel that grass at the south pool area is the most important to maintain.

And while on the subject- we walk many days and notice that several sprinkler head could use replacing or adjustment but things have improved alot from last year.

Don't ram something down our throats! Do this:

Hire a xeriscape architect to develop a long-range program of landscaping suitable for the Arizona desert. Join Tucson Water in a water conservation program, spearheaded by NRCA common areas and sell it to residents for their own property. Get some POSITIVE publicity which will help keep property values high. This is a WIN-WIN!

I have been a proponent of changing the grass to desert landscape for more than a year.  However changing the grass to desert landscape does not mean adding rocks and stone.  This is a much added expense that is unnecessary.  Just pull up all the grass and plant native desert plants.  Rocks and stone only add to maintenance issues.

By taking this step you will save a lot of water plus the landscapers do not need to maintain these sections as often thereby lowing our maintenance costs.

Grass reminds me of the Midwest...when I moved into North Ranch, grass was an amenity...we should keep it!

While only living here just less than three years, we wondered even at the time we purchased our home why NR had so much grass which is unnatural in the desert, very expensive to maintain, and a major waste of water supplies.  Desert landscaping on Cactus Canyon is a good start toward better conservation of both natural resources and our monies.  Perhaps even parts of the pool areas and entrances could be turned into desert landscaping while retaining some grass, though full desert landscaping in those areas would make a strong statement about our community's stand on conservation. If grass areas are retained, what would be required for us to use reclaimed water to maintain these areas?

It is time to take a stand on water waste in AZ.

Keep the entrances and playgrounds as grass. Playgrounds would include fields such as next to the tennis courts and around the basketball court.   Those of us who moved from greener areas need some to go and sit in or around, walk through, or let our kids enjoy what we used to consider normal. 

This would save North Ranch a lot of money, time. Also some people have allergies to grass.

This is the desert.  I have often wondered why we plant grass, even though it looks good, in a desert. Desert cost less to maintain and looks good longer.

For obvious reasons.  The desert is not a place to have grass and all the water required to keep it green and lush.   Desert landscaping is even more attractive than grass.

I have lived in North Ranch for 12 years. Have to admit, the lush green grass does look great at our entrances. However, I never thought it was practical for desert living.  We need to conserve our water.  I think ALL grass areas need to be eliminated.  Since we don’t use reclaimed water, let’s go for xeriscape landscape, as suggested in a previous comment

sidewalks on main rd would be nice   we dont have hardly any grass now   too much cactus and rats

Since North Ranch is not using reclaim water, putting in desert landscaping would probably save cost to NR, which who mean saving cost to the homeowners for less water use.

With rising costs of everything else, as you say, the cost of water will go up, up and away. With that, the associatin dues will also have to raise as well.  Desert landscaping is a very wise decision in my opinion.

I am afraid that as much as I enjoy the grass areas, common sense dictates that the cost and waste of water, fertilizers, weed control an labor far outweighs the sight and smell of a new mown lawn. If our kids can't play on them, replace them. I hope that the committee can come up with types of desert landscaping that are both attractive and low maintenance.

Though green grass looks nice it is not common to this environment and whatever is more economical is what is best for NR

it is important to save water.  We live in the desert--why not look like it?

One of the main reasons I bought in NR was the grass.  I love the way it looks (when it's being watered) and I WANT to keep it on my corner.  It keeps it cooler during the warmer months and a place to walk the doggies and it just plain looks better throughout the development.  Many of the visitors that come to NR comment on how beautiful the grounds are and how much they enjoy seeing the green grass.  I would  very disappointed if the grass was removed from the corners along Cactus Canyon.  And why isn't NR using reclaimed water?

because we need green grass around this desert landscape. The lush green grass adds zest and value to an otherwise barren look. PLEASE do not get rid of the green grass

Water is a valuable and scarce resource and should not be wasted.

The grass landscaping is what sets us a part from other commmunities.  It looks cleaner and greener...too much desert landscaping begins to look boring and the weeds will over power the rocks! 

Part of the beauty of North Ranch is the small patches of greenery.  The current landscape company needs to get this grass looking as good as it has for the past 13+ years

NCRA should take appropriate steps to conserve this precious commodity and save future expense by using xeriscaping wherever possible.

As long as the desert landscaping will be done in an attractive way, and tended to, we have no objections.

We purchased our home in NR particularly BECAUSE of the lush landscaping. Please stop trying to save money at the expense of the aesthetics in our community. For those who feel that money is a primary consideration, I would suggest the "Countryside" planned community on Camino de Oeste, perhaps that development would be more appropriate for your means.

I believe some of the landscaping could be replaced with desert, But not the main East and West entrances. These entrances are what give North Ranch it's curb appeal. People looking for a home drive by us on their way to places like Dove Mountain, and Rancho Vesto. Almost without exception these places have a GREEN ENTRANCE.

With the current water conservation requests and needs, I think the responsible and economical answer is to replace grass with desert landscape. Desert landscape can be extremely attractive and less upkeep.

North Ranch is a very attractive and inviting community due a lot to the landscaping.  "Desert landscaping" - we can see desert landscaping all over Tucson on vacant land, next to streets, etc.  I don't want to live in the desert!  I want my home to be an oasis in the middle of the desert.  There's just something about grass that makes people smile and feel happy.  And come on, it's not like we can't afford to water it.

The pool area is an oasis largely because of the grass.  As long as we keep the grass in the pool area, I think we could be more energy efficient in other places.

Hello, WE LIVE IN THE DESERT!!

If you want green grass, move to Phoenix.

Please remove ALL grass from subdivision and replace with desert landscaping.

I'm all for cutting cost. Let's do it right! Desert landscaping can look equally or even more attractive than grass. 

Spend some initial money to get some nice plants, that will serve us for many years to come.

Please keep the grass on the Thornydale entrance and around the pool areas.  It dignifies our neighborhood and give children a place to see real grass. All children should know the feeling of running barefoot through green grass in the summer.

The beautiful entrance to North Ranch and the green grass around the pool area was an enticement to purchase a home here. If you can maintain that look along with colorful flowers it seems wise to conserve water.

I don't agree having too much of the desert landscaping. It is nice to see green every now and then. It is nice to visit Phoenix and see grass, trees and flowers all the landscaping we don't have in Tucson. Please don't get rid of the grass.

I am extremely happy to see some sense and citizenship on the part of those who came up with this proposal. There wont be any North Ranches around, sooner than you think, if we don't solve the water situation in Arizona. Three cheers for this idea.

Great idea -- just keep the grass around the south pool area -- that's where most of us enjoy it anyway.  Conserving water and keeping our monthly costs down is a good idea.  For those who like the grassy look at the Thornydale entrance, perhaps the grassed area could be smaller and still give the lush appearance.

Grass not only requires water (that's not free), but requires fertilizer, insecticide, and it takes time to seed and maintain (when pet urine burns it). Besides grass require cutting, trimming, and disposal (that's not free either).

On a health issue: Grass creates pollen, lots of pollen that affects people with asthma and hay fever.

Get rid of as much grass as possible. Grass is expensive. To maintain grass we must burns very expensive gasoline and belch the emissions into the air as well as dumping chemicals and pesticides into our ground water.

Let's accept the fact we live in a desert.

As a desert community, I think we should do what we can to help conserve our water supply. It would however be nice to keep grass around the pool & recreation areas, so our kids have a place to play; other than on rocks & the streets.  The desert has a beauty all it's own & if done right, our entrance can be just as fabulous with desert landscaping. 

I don't believe as an association that we have that much grass to water or maintain.  It is nice to see green in lieu of gravel everywhere as most front yards are already gravel, the blend of the two is a nice contrast in the community.

-Use reclaimed water -

-If you cut the grass to 2" instead of 1", the water evaporation would be half- -Water only in the morning (If the grass can't stand the heat, the roots are not deep enough)- -NO change from summer to winter grass- -prevent water flowing in the street- -Green grass is a plus for the trees and the environment-

Thank you for this opportunity.  I’m not sure however that this will really be interpreted as a vote to "consider" or a vote to "replace," or that "some" won't mean "all" so I voted no for that and the additional reasons:  You have not provided the pros and cons; only stating we'll save water, but there are tradeoffs. There are benefits to grass, for example, it reduces our carbon footprint and reduces the “heat island effect.” So by giving up grass, are you actually making the planet worse off? 

I would recommend you instead look into making us a more sustainable community to help save the planet, and as such, I think your effort is better spent on reducing our communities carbon footprint by getting households to adopt energy efficiency measures.  And as far as how much water we’ll save, my guess is that the water we would save is only a few percent of the total aggregated water use of all Northranch households, and as most of us don't have a grass yard but rather low water use plants, it's nice to see the green in the subdivision here and there; so the sole con you list of grass may be minor when viewing the big picture, and off set by the benefits of having some grass.

I like the grass.  It was one of the reasons we purchased in N.R. If I wanted to conserve water I'd have gone elsewhere.  I don't think we have any obligation to conserve anything.  We have dominion over planet earth and all its resources.  Scarcity and lack are in the mind  and do not exist in reality (in the abundant universe).  Those who believe that they can't take something because it denies someone else that resource haven't read their Bibles closely and show a serious lack of faith in Providence (or in New Haven for that matter). 

Additionally,  if we need to "admit we live in the desert" lets take the houses down as well- they certainly don't belong here. Stop flushing your toilet and just drink one six ounce glass of water a day -that will leave more water for the rest of us. In fact, Xeriscape thyself first if thou feeleth the needeth. Well,...excuse me,..gotta go..its time to pour another glass of ice cold water down the sink - I just love the shimmery way it looks and the splashing sounds it makes...whee!