Water Saving in Southern California Literally Celebrates a New ``Holiday''; John Laing Homes' Holiday in Sun City Becomes Latest Development to Show off California Friendly(TM) Landscaping, Water-Saving Features.

TEMECULA, Calif. -- Adding to the list of Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's Day and others, water conservation literally gets its own "Holiday" this weekend.

Opening Saturday, Dec. 10, John Laing Homes' Holiday in Sun City becomes the latest new home development to include California Friendly(TM) water-saving upgrades as standard features. The community will offer the next generation of water-saving wizardry and cutting-edge conservation devices in model and production homes through a partnership with the Metropolitan Water District, Eastern Municipal Water District and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.

"With Holiday, our California Friendly Home program continues to gain momentum throughout Southern California," said Metropolitan board Chairman Wes Bannister. "This marks the eighth new development this year to incorporate California Friendly features in model or production homes in the region."

Seeking to reduce residential water use by presenting the latest conservation technology, Metropolitan and its member agencies, like Eastern, teamed up with the Bureau to offer financial incentives to homebuilders though the California Friendly Home program.

California Friendly homes feature sustainable landscaping that incorporates native and drought-tolerant plants, and state-of-the-art irrigation systems with "smart" timers and precision sprinkler heads. The water-saving theme continues inside the California Friendly home with the latest conservation technology in bathrooms and laundry rooms. Together, California Friendly features save up to 30 percent of the water used in the typical Southland home.

The commitment to the California Friendly initiative is central to Eastern's long-term, water reliability plans, according to Randy Record, EMWD board president and Metropolitan director.

"Over the next 20 years, we can help our customers reduce their per capita water use by 25 percent without significantly impacting rates or the customer's quality of life," Record said. "One of the easiest ways residents and businesses can make that happen is through landscaping that's appropriate to Southern California."

As chair of the Riverside County Water Task Force, a consortium of public agencies, private enterprise and advocacy groups, Record said he believes California Friendly landscaping and building helps water and planning agencies turn potential regulatory requirements into positive policies that address residents' concerns.

"Most residents already realize water conservation makes practical sense," Record said. "And we want to do what we can to further encourage those habits."

John Laing's Holiday, an Inland Empire community for people ages 55 and over, features four California Friendly model homes and will eventually include 57 production homes under the incentive program offered by Metropolitan, Eastern and the Bureau. In addition, John Laing is voluntarily constructing another 117 homes to California Friendly specifications, for a total of 174 production homes.

Holiday ultimately will feature California Friendly landscaping and smart controllers in all front yards and common community areas. All homes also will include dual-flush toilets and offer high-efficiency clothes washers as an option.

"Our customers naturally want landscapes that are beautiful," said Colleen Dyck, vice president of sales and marketing. "And they've also said they want landscaping maintenance to be an infrequent chore. This approach at Holiday in Sun City meets both demands, and saves them money."

Other builders participating in the California Friendly Home program include Centex Homes, K. Hovnanian, Lennar, John Laing and Shea Homes at The Preserve in Chino, a development by Lewis Planned Communities; KB Home's Valdemosa development in Temecula; and Shea Homes "Watermill at Adeline's Farm" project in French Valley.

Most recently, California Friendly landscapes, products and practices, which save at least 20,000 gallons of water per year in new homes, became the definitive residential green building standard throughout the state. Under a partnership with the California Building Industry Association, California Friendly water-saving features developed by Metropolitan have been incorporated into CBIA's voluntary California Green Builder Program.

Photos and information on California Friendly homes and their features are available at www.bewaterwise.com.

The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California is a cooperative of 26 cities and water agencies serving 18 million people in six counties. The district imports water from the Colorado River and Northern California to supplement local supplies, and helps its members to develop increased water conservation, recycling, storage and other water-management programs.

EMWD is the freshwater, wastewater service and recycled water provider to a 555-square mile area from Moreno Valley southward along the I-215 corridor to Temecula and eastward to Hemet and San Jacinto. Approximately 570,000 people live and work in this area. In addition to its own water customers, EMWD supplements water to eight local water agencies and municipalities that have their own water departments. EMWD operates four water reclamation facilities and treats some 40 million gallons of wastewater daily. More information can be found at EMWD's web site www.emwd.org.