Residents may soon be able to water their lawns twice a week for seven and a half minutes, as opposed to the once a week, 15-minute watering period currently allowed.
The City Council directed staff to draft an amendment to its drought ordinance that the council would vote on at its next meeting on Sept. 15.
The change in rules was prompted by residents’ complaints that watering their lawns once a week was useless, often resulting in runoff since the parched land was too dry to absorb the water.
“One thing we kept hearing was that with one day a week, it’s very difficult to sustain plant life,” said Public Works Director Tony Olmos.
As of Aug. 31, water use was down by almost 22.8 percent from June through August compared to that same period in 2013 — an improvement from last month, when it was down by 20.5 percent.
As part of its goal to reduce consumption statewide, the state ordered the city to reduce water use by 20 percent compared to its usage in 2013.
Olmos said that given the hottest months had passed and that heavy rainfall is predicted from the current El Nino, he felt comfortable relaxing the rules.
Although Olmos has favored educating residents as opposed to issuing citations, the state has mandated that cities fine violators. With the proposed change to the ordinance, he said that he would increase enforcement to make sure residents were in compliance.
Currently, first-time offenders get a “fix-it ticket,” giving them seven days to correct their violation. If they don’t, they have to pay $100. Those who break the rules twice in a year have to pay $200, and third-time offenders have to pay $500. ER
