Outdoor watering limited to once a week in Wichita as historic drought continues

Wichitans will soon see mandatory restrictions on lawn and flower watering as the city copes with an ongoing drought. City pools also will close earlier than usual.

Officials announced Thursday that the city is entering Stage 2 of its drought response.

When the restrictions go into effect on Monday, Aug. 5, Wichitans will be limited to watering lawns and flower gardens once a week and will be prohibited from watering between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m.

“We must all come together to change our lawn care practices in order to preserve our most precious resource,” City Manager Robert Layton said. “We’re probably going to have to get used to brown lawns in order to make sure that we have safe drinking water for all of our residents.”

Residents are split into four quadrants under the city’s drought ordinance.

• Customers northwest of the Central and Broadway intersection may use outdoor water on Mondays

• Customers northeast of Central and Broadway may use outdoor water on Tuesdays

• Customers southwest of Central and Broadway may use outdoor water on Wednesdays

• Customers southeast of Central and Broadway may use outdoor water on Thursdays

Water levels at Cheney Reservoir have dropped below 62% as of the last reading, a historic low. City officials had previously encouraged Wichitans to reduce water use voluntarily. With the Stage 2 restrictions in effect, residents will now be fined for perpetual violations.

Food-producing gardens are exempt from the restrictions as long as they are watered by irrigation rather than an automatic sprinkler system. Residents who use well water for irrigation are also exempt.

Businesses dependent on water use for operations such as hospitals, car washes and golf courses are exempt from watering restrictions.

Layton said the city would look at residents’ water accounts to determine if they use water outside of the allotted dates or times. The first violation will result in a written warning, the second violation a $50 fine and third and further violations a $100 fine.

The city also announced that swimming pool season will end Aug. 11 and will not continue on weekends through Labor Day. Layton said the risk of evaporation during weekdays was too high to continue normal operation of pools. The city’s splash pads will close on Sept. 29.

The city first established its phased drought response ordinance in 2013. This is the first time Wichita has reached Stage 2 of its drought response.

Layton said the city is “shooting for a 10% reduction in our use of water” over the next two months. Officials recommended residents turn off the faucet when brushing teeth, take shorter showers and only run the dishwasher and clothes washer when full.

Layton also announced the city would not move forward with a proposed tiered rate increase for high-volume water users. Eighteen percent of residential customers are Tier 2 or Tier 3 customers, measured by the difference between summer and winter water consumption.

He said the city was looking for more immediate solutions than a rate increase, which would not have gone into effect until September.

City officials said Stage 3 of drought response could be implemented as early as September 2025 if drought conditions persist. This stage would eliminate all outdoor water use with some exemptions in place for businesses.

Wichitans can visit savewichitawater.com for more recommendations and frequently asked questions.

This story was originally published August 1, 2024 at 12:36 PM.