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One San Diego couple’s yard is certainly worth admiring: their drought-friendly landscape has just won a big contest. Bonita homeowners Barbara and Nick Amalfitano are the new winners of the Otay Water District’s 2016 landscape contest.

The changes they’ve made to their front and back yards over the years have reduced their water usage by 78 percent, and reduced their maintenance significantly. The couple’s property is three-quarters of an acre and looks more like a park than a model for water efficiency.

As regional leaders fine-tune a half-cent sales tax proposal for the November ballot that would fund public transit and road construction, a coalition to support the divisive measure has started to take shape.

While deep green environmental groups and anti-tax conservatives have opposed the initiative on divergent grounds, land conservationists, the local general contractors association and the San Diego Padres have signaled potential backing if the final ballot wording meets their expectations.

San Diegans went from wastefully using water hoses to clean driveways and sidewalks to becoming a drought-conscience community that used a lot less water than expected in recent years. The low water demand is expected to linger for the next 25 years.

Some might assume lower water usage would mean lower water bills, but that didn’t happen.

In Carlsbad, two parcels of land have caused a number of headaches in recent months.

One is the south shore of the Agua Hedionda Lagoon, which – for those who somehow hadn’t heard – was slated for the development of a luxury mall. The plan to fast-track that project was ultimately defeated by voters.

Less than one mile down Cannon road is the Encina Power Station, which will be demolished when a smaller “peaker” style plant is constructed nearby, starting in 2017.

Swimmers, divers, surfers and others can feel good about the water quality at most of San Diego County’s beaches, according to Heal the Bay’s 26th annual Beach Report Card released Thursday.

While above average rainfall pulled scores in the region down modestly during the past year, 97 percent of the area’s monitored beaches received top marks in summer months — when beach visitorship peaks. At the same time, sewage spills remained a black mark. The county experienced 22 such events in the past year, including four incidents that each spilled at least 10,000 gallons, the report said.