The budgeting process for commercial property landscaping, whether during the initial development phase or during on-going operations, should start early enough to collect all necessary data.
Preparation of your initial landscape operating budget should be done cautiously, as should preparation of any budget. Realistic goals and projections should be prepared for the next year.
When it comes to figuring out your commercial landscaping budget for 2016, do your part to include these budgeting ideas to ensure your property’s landscaping gets the best coverage.
Plan For Cost Variables
As part of the initial planning, analyze last year’s budget, don't assume last years costs will be the same for the coming year.
As time progresses, you need to plan for future cost variables. If not, you may be over budget having to pull money from another budget to recover costs.
Plan for the Unexpected
You may have planned for three annual color changes for the calendars year, but what if the plants are damaged by frost, the drought or vandalism?
Its always smart to plan ahead for the unexpected.
Irrigation & Water Management
When you’re having a major landscape renovation, make sure you plan and budget for necessary irrigation upgrades or conversions.
With the drought, there are many alternatives for upgrading irrigation which might include capping irrigation heads, eliminating lawn irrigation, installing smart watering controllers or installing automatic rain devices.
Ramp Up Safety
Safety should always be top priority in commercial office landscaping for eliminating the potential for an accident on your property.
Landscaping upgrades might include eliminating tall bushes that are creating blind spots for vehicles and pedestrians of repairing low areas trip hazards, buckled concrete, or eliminating unsafe trees on a property.
Plan For Additional Landscaping Services
When analyzing your budget, always be sure that you are thinking about the additional services that are available. Some of the more common landscape maintenance services include:
Drainage and Bio Swale Maintenance
Erosion control on a site is important, depending on your site, it may be necessary to include bio-swale and drainage maintenance in your budget. Local regulations may require you to be responsible for maintaining drainage as part of your maintenance.
Depending on regulations, you might need to install special plants or ground covers to allow for the water to filter through in order to manage flooding and mitigate erosion.
Tree Care & Pruning
Some types of trees, especially larger trees require special pruning practices in order to mitigate safety on a property. They may require additional pruning and maintenance care, so please include this in your budget planning.
Its best to plan your tree pruning over a 3 year period. Prioritizing tree pruning might include clearing low hanging branches to clear for pedestrians and vehicles or selectively pruning larger trees to clear buildings, signage and improve overall aesthetics.
Commercial Landscaping Improvements
All living organisms have a life span including plants. Eventually, they decline and must be replaced. If you want to maintain the aesthetics of your commercial property landscaping they need to be updated with new style plants that look vibrant, healthy and attractive.
Your budget should include improving your commercial landscaping.
Irrigation Maintenance and Water Management
Proper water management and maintenance practices can make a big difference in water use — but only if managed. Consider investing a percentage of your budget for improving your irrigation system, including timely repairs and updates.
Just like plants and trees, irrigation components like controllers, remote control valves and sprinkler heads have a life span and can break down over time. You want to be pro-active in your budget planning for future replacements and timely upgrades.
Keeping up with technological advancements — like upgrading to smart watering controllers — flow sensors can improve your irrigation systems efficiency and save you money in the area of utility and water management.
Hollywood Zones
What takes priority with commercial property landscaping will depend on your goals and long term objectives.
Some important zones to consider in a budget might include:
- marque signs
- street frontage landscaping
- court yard areas
- office entrance planters
These are high-impact Hollywood zones that will make a big difference. Developing a priority list is important for short and long term budgeting.
Budget For Commercial Property Landscaping
You need a commercial landscape maintenance company that you can count on for long term guidance and budget planning.
FloraTerra will assist you every step of the way with landscape improvements, water management and tree care — helping you develop a comprehensive budget.
Get started today; our budget planning will help "take the guess work out of the equation". Call us at 408.275.1200 or click below
