New Landscape Saves Water, Money for Arizona Community

Arizona is known for its limited groundwater resources, even requiring new subdivision applicants in one of the five Active Management Areas (AMA) to demonstrate that there is sufficient, adequate-quality water for at least 100 years before being approved.

Within the Phoenix AMA and located 20 miles west of the state’s capital are parcels one and two of the Canyon Trails community. The Board of the Canyon Trails Home Owners Association recognized the enormous water cost it would eventually face and brought in BrightView to assist with its water management.

"The Board at Canyon Trails is comprised of many forward-thinking members who each possess a great vision to make their community water-wise, as well as beautiful,” said Nicolas Galligan, BrightView Account Manager. “BrightView stepped in and gave the board options and a direction and have since worked closely with them to convert two areas from turf to xeriscape.”

An acre and a half of turf in the community was barely being used by residents. BrightView took that area and replaced it with desert cobble and installed low water use plant materials which were tested in the area to ensure their success.

New trails and sitting areas were also added to the area to help connect the two parcels of the community and encourage residents to make use of the outdoor space.

"What we have done so far is beautiful and has created wonderful useful spaces on the property with paths and parks that did not exist just a few years ago,” said Kelly Kessler, a member of the Canyon Trails board.

Xeriscaping has become a trend in arid regions with its style of landscaping designed to require little to no irrigation or other maintenance.

“It has been a pleasure partnering with the board on this phase of their project,” Galligan said. “They are a great group of people who work as a team to make decisions that will benefit the community as a whole. It’s exciting to see the results of our previous efforts and we look forward to seeing this project through to completion.”

With the new xeriscape and a focus on water management, Canyon Trails attracted the attention of the city of Goodyear. A representative was sent to award the community for saving 60 percent of its water through the summer months. The conversion is estimated to save the community more than $12,000 annually.

Arizona State University has expressed interest in using Canyon Trails as a training spot for their water management students.

To date, two areas totaling more than three acres have been converted to xeriscape with additional areas in the planning stages to undergo the same process.

“It is so rewarding to see the board’s wise decision and great vision being recognized by the city of Goodyear,” Galligan said. “For me, the greatest reward has been the appreciation and acknowledgement from the board for a job well done and seeing people from the community outside enjoying the trails and other amenities of the beautiful environments we have created together.”

New Landscape Saves Water, Money for Arizona Community, Green Industry Pros