SIMI VALLEY : City Council Adjusts Fees for Landscaping

In trim, well-kept towns like Simi Valley, somebody has to pay to keep the common lawns watered and the neighborhood trees trimmed.

That somebody is frequently the residents.

The City Council on Monday made its annual adjustment in fees residents pay to landscape their communities beyond their own back yards.

The city is divided into 96 landscaping zones, and the fees differ for each, from $33 to $394 a year.

Fee adjustments for fiscal year 1995-96 range from a 17% increase to an 81% decrease.

Such variations can be caused by a number of factors. If dead trees need to be uprooted, or if other work is required, fees may go up. More rain means less watering is required, so some neighborhoods could see their bills go down.

When setting the rates, the city also takes into account future cost increases.

So, in some zones even if landscaping costs have not increased, the fees are boosted slightly to cushion future rate hikes.

In areas where excess fees were collected last year, the council lowered fees dramatically. For example, residents paid $174 for landscaping at the east end of Fitzgerald Road last year. But because of excess charges last year, residents will only have to pay $33 in the upcoming fiscal year.