CityScope: June - July 2020

Operation Back to School

The biggest back-to-school donation drive for Chandler students is back again – with a few changes. Operation Back to School provides Chandler K-12 students with backpacks, school supplies and other items that students are most in need of as they begin the school year.

This year’s event will be held on Saturday, July 18, but will be offered at multiple schools with options such as a seamless drive up service, to ensure safe distancing and reduced crowds. Details about the event are still being finalized. Find more information on how to get involved by calling 480-782-4329. 

Donations are needed to make the campaign successful and ensure students have the supplies they need for success. Donations can be dropped off at the Salvation Army, located at 85 E. Saragosa St, between the hours of 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Check in to see if additional drop off locations become available. You can also donate directly online. 

Only the following items (must be new) can be donated:

"Imagine Your Story" with Chandler Public Libraries

Summer Reading Challenge starts June 1

Even though school may be out for the summer, the Chandler Public Library encourages residents to enjoy its annual Summer Reading Challenge. Readers of all ages can check out books, use Cloud Library, Tumblebooks and books from home, then log the reading online and complete challenges to win prizes. It’s easy to participate: read 20 minutes a day, log your time and enter to win prizes. This year’s theme is “Imagine Your Story,” which encourages everyone to be part of a fun, online, summer reading adventure.

Start logging your summer reading activities for prizes, beginning June 1. Anyone who logs 1,000 points (1 minute of reading = 1 point) can choose a free book from an online marketplace, while supplies last. Compete with family and friends to see who can log the most reading minutes this summer!

The challenge runs through Aug. 1. Find more information about the challenge, events, programs and registration. Information can is also available by calling 480-782-2800.

Financial rewards await homeowners who invest in landscape water conservation measures

The City of Chandler offers financial rewards to eligible homeowners who make a cost-saving investment in their property by altering their landscaping or irrigation system in an effort to reduce water consumption. The City’s Water Conservation Division offers rebates to those who convert all or portions of their turf areas to low-water use landscape, plant low-water-use xeriscape vegetation and install smart irrigation controllers. The rebates are credited to the homeowner’s utility bill and meant to incentivize other residents to make a similar commitment to conserve precious potable water resources. Applying for a rebate is now easier with an online application.

Installing a smart irrigation controller can earn a homeowner up to $250, while xeriscape installation and turf conversion of at least 1,000 square feet can result in a maximum of $3,000 per household, or $200 per 1,000 square feet of grass removed.

The latest generation of smart irrigation controllers use current weather data and information about site conditions such as soil moisture, rain, wind, slope, soil and plant type to apply the right amount of water to the landscape. The use of smart irrigation controllers produces significant water savings; tens of thousands of gallons in some cases.

Xeriscape is a style of landscape design requiring little or no irrigation or other maintenance, used in arid regions like Arizona’s Sonoran Desert. Hundreds of xeriscape plant types of all sizes and shapes are available in area plant nurseries. Many produce beautiful flowers in a variety of colors, attract birds and wildlife and can enhance any yard. Homeowners who convert their grass areas to low-water-use landscaping can see a reduction in their water use by 25 percent or more.

Information about water-saving measures, water audits, the rebate program requirements and the online application is available by email or by calling 480-782-3580. Applications are generally processed within 10 business days.

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