1. FRIENDS OF BALBOA PARK WATER-WISE SHOWCASE OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Thursday May 23, 2013
Reuben H. Fleet Science Center
SHOWCASE SCHEDULE
4:30 – 5:00 PM Exhibit Hall. Second floor: Project Stations, Hors d’oeuvres & Beverages
5:00 – 6:00 PM Community Room. First floor: Formal Presentations—Agenda Below
6:00 – 7:00 PM Exhibit Hall, Second floor: Project Stations, Hors d’oeuvres & Beverages
6:15 – 6:45 PM Optional Tour of the Plaza de Balboa Smartscape. Meet by the Bea Evenson Fountain in front
of the Reuben H. Fleet at 6:15 PM.
PROGRAM PRESENTATIONS
5:00 – 6:00 PM
Welcome – Betty Peabody, Founder, Friends of Balboa Park
Jim Hughes, Chairman of the Board, Friends of Balboa Park
Program Goals and Strategy – Dr Laurie Broedling, Friends of Balboa Park Water-wise Project Manager
City Perspectives
 Council President Todd Gloria
 Council President Pro Tem Sherri Lightner
 Bruce Martinez, Balboa Park Operations District Manager, San Diego Park and Recreation
Department
 Smart Irrigation Control – Mike Tully, Balboa Park Grounds Maintenance Manager, San Diego Park
and Recreation Department
Water Infrastructure Mapping - Dr. Matt Rahn, San Diego State University, Director, Research and Resource
Management, Field Stations Program and Academic Advisor Environmental Sciences Program
Plaza de Balboa Smartscape and Water Reclamation – Rene Trevino, Architect; Senior Program Manager for
KMEA; Former Executive Director for Navy Region Southwest
1

2. Bird Park Smartscape – Lucy Warren, Co-author of The California Native Landscape: The Homeowner's
Design Guide to Restoring Its Beauty and Balance; Chair of the Horticulture Committee of Friends of Balboa
Park
Center for H2O Experience – Dr. Vinod Sasidharan, San Diego State University, Associate Professor School of
Hospitality and Tourism Management and Advisor, Sustainable Tourism Management Emphasis
Other Projects - Mario Llanos, Balboa Park Horticulturalist, San Diego Park and Recreation Department
Ingredients to Success, Past and Future – Dr. Stanley Maloy, San Diego State University, Dean of the College
of Sciences, Professor of Biology
Call to Action – Ann Wilson, Chair-Elect, Friends of Balboa Park
THANK YOU TO OUR PROJECT PARTNERS AND MAJOR DONORS
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Dick and Dorothea Laub
The Favrot Fund
Dan and Vi McKinney
The Wong Family Foundation
San Diego State University
Office of City Council President Todd Gloria
Balboa Park Cultural Partnership
Balboa Park Conservancy
Reuben H. Fleet Science Center – especially for hosting us
San Diego Chapter - US Green Building Council
San Diego Park and Recreation Department
INTRODUCTION: WHY WATER-WISE AND WHO WE ARE
San Diego’s Balboa Park is located in a semi-arid region but uses a great deal of water for outdoor purposes,
including irrigation, hardscape cleaning, water features. All of this water is expensive drinking water whose
sources are far from San Diego.
Here are some other significant water issues in the Park:






All irrigation delivered by spray irrigation systems or manually, resulting in evaporation and run-off
Sprinklers operated manually until recently
Water infrastructure old, poorly documented, and deteriorated
Degraded flora, soil, hardscape and buildings from run-off and inefficient irrigation
Park flora have not been selected with regard to water use, compatibility with soils, fauna etc.
Water and flora patterns have created safety concerns
Because of this, Water-wise was formed around the kernel of one generous donor who funded the smart
irrigation control system now used in Balboa Park. This project in turn led to the creation of the Water-wise
Community of Practice, and resulted in a long-term plan called The Roadmap, which you can download at the
2

3. website below. The Roadmap is a living document, and today’s Showcase is the first major milestone on that
road: showing you what we’ve accomplished in Year One. A list of the Water-wise Community of Practice
members appears later in this program.
This printed program is intended to serve as an outline and introduction to the Friends’ Water-wise page at
http://w-w.friendsofbalboapark.org/tiki-index.php There you will find more detailed information about the
Water-wise initiative as well as the posters and presentations from the Showcase.
OUR GOALS
1. Optimize water use in the parkland by 2020.
“Water-wise” means optimizing the use of water, thereby making the Park more environmentally sustainable
while keeping it healthy and fit for appropriate human uses. Decisions about the optimal use of water are based
not only on reducing water use but also on the systemic impacts of water use on other natural resources such as
air, energy, soil, re-use/recycling of materials, etc.
2. Contribute significantly toward making Balboa Park an internationally recognized best practice in
water use.
3. Make Balboa Park an internationally recognized best practice in use of the collaborative
Community of Practice model to achieve these goals.
4. Establish and operate the Friends of Balboa Park Center for H2O Experience to support the three
goals above through eco-tourism and eco-education for visitors, students and staff.
HOW WE WILL ACHIEVE THEM
We will use the Living Laboratory approach, applying the latest state-of-the-art knowledge and technology
through field research and evaluation. To achieve goal number one we plan to Smartscape the Park by 2020 by
doing the following:








Grid the park into sections using existing official plans
Study each section of the grid for usage patterns
Assign the purpose(s) for each section, then document existing ecology and water delivery
Designate necessary changes to optimize water use and related ecological features
Design improved water-wise delivery along with improved ecological features
Implement these changes simultaneously
Assess and monitor impacts
Document the resulting water-wise practices to share with visitors students, and staff
This ambitious undertaking means each of these areas will require one or more of the following:







Accurate maps of water infrastructure
Improvements to water infrastructure
Equipment to measure water flow and usage
Improvements to soil, flora & fauna, slopes and drainage
Means to collect and distribute sub-drinking grade water
Treatment technology for this water, if needed
Accurate maps of the new Smartscape
3

4. 
Package the proven water-wise practices into educational programs
MEMBERS OF THE FOBP WATER-WISE COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE
Ravi Bajaj, San Diego U.S. Green Building Council, Project Coordinator
Vanessa Bolles, Nasland Engineering, Design Engineer
Laurie Broedling, Manager, FOBP Water-wise Program; LB Organizational Consulting
Joaquin Dominguez, San Diego State University, Intern
Francesco Dorigo, Advanced Water Recycling, President/Founder
Vicki Estrada, Estrada Land Planning President
Kennedy Gammage, Communications & Media Relations Professional
Bob Gilleskie, Marine Corp Installations West, Regional Energy Manager
Richard Graff, Richard Graff Designs, Owner
Ruth Hayward, Friends of Balboa Park Horticulture Committee Member
Len Hering, California Center for Sustainable Energy, Executive Director
Steve Hill, Councilman Gloria's Office
John Knepp, Advanced Water Recycling, Chief Technical Officer
Douglas Kot, San Diego U.S. Green Building Council, Executive Director
Kalli Legakes, San Diego State University, Intern
Rebecca Lewison, San Diego State University, Conservation Ecologist
Paulina Lis, Sustainable Tourism Consultant, San Diego U.S. Green Building Council
Stanley Maloy, San Diego State University, Dean, College of Sciences
David McGrew, Reuben H. Fleet Science Center, Engineering & Facilities Director
Jennifer McKenzie, AMEC, Senior Program Manager and Federal Energy Account Manager
Kotaro Nakamura, San Diego State University, School of Art, Design, and Art History, Associate Professor
Nima Nekoui, Silver Citrus LLC Technology Consultant
Betty Peabody, Friends of Balboa Park, Founder
Matt Rahn, Environmental Sciences Program, San Diego State University, Director, Research and Resource
Management, Field Stations Program
Jessica Rinaman, Balboa Park Cultural Partnership, Manager, Sustainability
Vinod Sasidharan, San Diego State University, Recreation and Tourism Management Program, Associate
Professor
Alan Sweedler, San Diego State University, Assistant Vice President for International Programs
Robert Thiele, Robert Thiele AIA, Architect
Rene Trevino, KMEA, Senior Program Manager
Clayton Tschudy, Executive Director, Garden Native
Lucy Warren, Friends of Balboa Park Board, Chair of Horticulture Committee
Ann Wilson, Chair-Elect, Friends of Balboa Park Board of Directors
Sue Young, Friends of Balboa Park Horticulture Committee Member
Tom Zink, Soil Ecology and Restoration Group, San Diego State University; Biology Department Faculty
COUNTDOWN TO 2020: PRIME OPPORTUNITIES FOR 2013-2015
Our Water-Wise Program Is Preserving Balboa Park's Parkland One Drop at a Time, but We Need Your Help
to Smartscape the Park by 2020
4

5. At the one year mark, water-wise has already made a difference in our Park. Now that you’re more familiar
with our successes, you can see where your own passions coincide with ours, in the areas of infrastructure,
botany, ecology, the latest water-wise technologies, and more. Together, we can achieve winning outcomes
that will preserve our beloved Balboa Park for future generations.
Your support is needed to smartscape every area of Balboa Park. We have partnered with the Balboa Park
Conservancy to amass the total resources necessary to meet our 2020 goal. In the immediate term, backing is
most needed to move our existing projects into rapid implementation. As soon we’ve tested and streamlined
our approach, it can be expeditiously applied to the rest of the park.
1. Plaza de Balboa Smartscape – Central Mesa
This smartscape will require all of the elements listed in the “How” section above. The smartscape map shows
the exact area, and it consists of several sub-areas, each of which needs to be treated differently because they
are used differently: Plaza/fountain area, Zoro Garden, part of the Prado, the Persian Rug Garden, the parking
lot behind the Fleet, and the strip between Park Blvd and the Fleet and Plaza. In Phase 1 a feasibility study was
done. Phase 2 can include reclaiming several types of water from two adjacent buildings (Fleet and Casa de
Balboa), air conditioning condensate, rainwater, cooling tower water and water by-product from a reverse
osmosis system. Capturing this runoff will stop the damage water runoff is doing to these buildings and
surrounding landscape. Also it can replace potable water for irrigation, and potentially other outdoor
purposes. Concurrently the adjacent landscape will gradually be re-designed to use more drought-tolerant
plants and appropriate soils while optimizing the plant palette for the use of each sub-area. State-of-the-art
irrigation systems will be introduced. Collectively this will improve plant health and reduce maintenance costs.
Phase 2 is limited to what possibly could be accomplished between now and 2015. A Phase 3 will be
conducted in 2016-2017 to install permanent water reclamation and complete the smartscaping.
Donor Opportunities: Phase 2 2013 - 2015:
Water Reclamation Pilot Project: $60,000
Landscape Architecture:
 Plaza de Balboa Courtyard and planters between museums: $300,000
 Persian Water Rug Courtyard: $45,000
 Prado Promenade: $100,000
 Zoro Garden: $170,000
 Lawn area along Park Blvd from Fleet parking entrance to bridge: $200,000
 Canyon brush clear out adjacent to Zoro Garden: $15,000
 Parking areas: $35,000
2. Bird Park Smartscape – East Mesa
This smartscape will require most, but not all, of the elements listed in the “How” section above. The ecology
of this existing park will be changed to emphasize use of native plants, restoration of the original soil, and reestablishment of native fauna (especially birds). Between more use of drought-tolerant plants and
improvements to irrigation technology, water use will drop significantly, maintenance will drop, and plant
health will increase.
Donor Opportunity: Phase 1 through 2015 $130K
3. Mapping our Park’s existing water infrastructure and related features and introducing water
measurement using state-of-the-art technology
5

6. Accurate maps of mains, valves, and backflows are an absolute necessity for a water-wise park. These are now
done for the Central Mesa and available to City staff. These interactive maps display layers of data about the
water infrastructure in the park, and can be used for several important purposes, including locating the closest
valves to fix water main breaks and leaks. The technology that was developed is free, usable by anyone
authorized, and can be accessed on a PC, laptop, tablet, or smartphone. Another need is for better
measurement systems in the park to measure water use and to detect impending problems before they
happen. Long-term goals include:
 Map all aspects of water infrastructure in the Park, adding in irrigation lines and heads, storm drains,
sewer drains, and water meters/sub-meters—more water infrastructure that is now inadequately
documented.
 Add additional layers of information to the map, including soils, slopes, flora and fauna.
 Install state-of-the art water measurement technology to monitor usage and detect issues before they
become problems.
A Phase 2 plan has been developed to do mapping for the smartscapes at Bird Park and Plaza de Balboa as
well as to explore water usage and detection technologies for the Park.
Donor opportunity: Phase 2 2013 – 2014: $100K
4. The Friends of Balboa Park Center for H2O Experience
The Center will be the public face of water-wise in the years and decades to come, offering instruction in
water-wise practices that visitors, students, and staff can employ in their own homes, workplaces, and
communities worldwide - while driving eco-tourists to come to Balboa Park and directly experience cutting
edge water-wise practices. Funding our training programs, videos and other online and hands-on educational
opportunities will make a big difference, spreading the how-to of water-wise to a thirsty planet.
Donors will receive recognition on the Center’s website and in other materials. Significant donors will be
officially designated as sponsors. Sponsors who donate in the next 12 months will be designated as “Founding
Sponsors.” Support is needed for two types of tasks:
 Creating and maintaining the structure of the center, first in its virtual, website form and eventually its
physical structure.
 Development of specific educational programs: During 2013-2014 to teach topics such how to plant
native plants to save water and attract native birds; how to use the new mapping technology; how to
reclaim rainwater and air conditioning condensate for irrigation.
Donor opportunities for 2013 – 2014; a range exists depending on the purpose of the donation: $10,000 –
$175,000
5. Improvements to the Smart Irrigation Control System:
Two additional features would significantly enhance the ability to effectively use this system, furthering
savings in water, improvements in plant health, reduction of runoff and erosion, and damage to buildings. One
is introduction of soil sensors. The other is use of master valves and flow sensors to install just after the back
flows.
Donor Opportunities for Phase 2; 2013-2014:
 Soil sensors – Up to 100 are needed but any amount would be useful: $43,000
 Master valves and flow sensors – Up to 60 are needed but any amount would be useful: $140,000
6. Australian Garden:
6

7. The Australian garden recently received a facelift thanks to The Friends of Balboa Park, California Releaf, City
staff, and several different work groups of students. As part of this horticultural facelift, we planted drought
tolerant Australian native trees and shrubs in the area. By using this carefully selected low water-use plant
palette, we spruced up the area with some very rare Australian plants and did not have to supplement the
existing spray rotor system. We currently water manually and sparingly to acclimate the plant stock. There are
hopes to incorporate drip irrigation throughout the area on an automated system.
Donor Opportunity for 2013-2014: $7,200
7. Median on Park Boulevard
With help from Hunter Irrigation, City staff conducted a water audit on one of our medians on Park Blvd. to
explore the option of switching out the current spray-type nozzles with a type of rotating nozzle that applies
water to the existing turf more efficiently to decrease runoff and improve distribution uniformity. After
swapping out the nozzles from sprays to rotating ones, we found that although the original spray design was
very efficient, we could slightly gain efficiencies in distribution but also greatly reduce the amount of water
used to irrigate and reduce runoff. We are pleased with the trial median results and are now entertaining the
prospect of switching over all remaining Park Blvd. medians to rotating nozzles.
Donor Opportunity for 2013-2014: $12,000
8. Corridor between Prado and Timken Museum
This area is currently irrigated by spray heads down both ends of the corridor. The plant palette in the area
consists of several specimen palms and at one time had smaller shrubs and groundcover. Since the area now
only has large palms, the spray heads are no longer necessary and only promote weed growth in the area.
Staff has cleaned the area and is poised to enhance it with rare and like specimen palms and cycads. The
recommendation is to change to drip irrigation for the existing and proposed specimens. Drip is currently not
used in the park for concerns that pests will chew through drip tubing and a high traffic park setting is not
ideal for drip tubing. However, in this area there is no foot traffic, and the surrounding areas are sufficiently
populated that pests do not seem to be present.
Donor Opportunity for 2013-2014: $4,200
9. Island in South Carousel Lot
At the north end of the South Carousel parking lot there is a recently renovated island in need of new
irrigation and a plant palette. Staff recommends implementing subsurface drip irrigation system (fleece
tubing…not yet used anywhere in the Park) and a drought tolerant plant palette.
Donor Opportunity for 2013-2014: $ 4,800
YOU’VE SEEN THE WATER-WISE FUTURE – AND IT CAN BE SUSTAINABLE, THANKS TO YOU. Please visit us
online at http://w-w.friendsofbalboapark.org/tiki-index.php, contact us at info@friendsofbalboapark.org , or
contact Laurie Broedling, FOBP Water-wise Program Manager, lbroedling@earthlink.net to discuss joining us
on this amazing journey to a water-wise Balboa Park.
Together we will make it happen!
7

8. 8