Indianapolis to cite four violators of water ban - 13 WTHR Indianapolis

It's day four for the mandatory watering ban, and the city is taking it seriously.

The Mayor's Action Center took 287 calls on the new watering restrictions Monday - both from residents with questions about the ban and from people reporting violations.

Not everyone was up to speed on the mandatory ban. We found a sprinkler watering the bushes and sidewalk outside a Lockerbie home, and we asked the homeowner if she knew about the ban.

"I read you can water your gardens," said Deborah McCarty, but added that she'd been on vacation and didn't realize she wasn't supposed to be using the sprinkler. She quickly shut it off after being informed it was not allowed under the ban.

While there's still some confusion about the ban - sprinklers are out, hand watering is in - Citizens Water says usage has dropped dramatically - by around 20 percent - since the ban took effect Friday at noon.

"Last week we were teetering at 200 million gallons a day and as of yesterday we're down to 164 million gallons, so that's a significant decrease," said Sarah Holsapple, Citizens Energy.

But it's still not enough to start watering those scorched lawns.

"We need seven to eight inches of rain for that to be lifted," said Holsapple.

The city began enforcing the ban early Saturday morning. At last report, they had issued four citations. One went to the Eagle Chase Apartments on the northwest side.

When we called to ask about it, management had no comment.

Two strip malls on the south side were cited, including the Franklin Point Shops.

Donna Richards who works at a restaurant in the mall said the sprinklers had been running until recently.

"We didn't think they worked, but then noticed them coming on early in the morning," she said.

Richards said the owner was from Utah and she suspected he was unaware of the ban but had since been notified.

A homeowner on the south side was also cited, but it's the heavy users Code Enforcement is most interested in.

"We're keeping our eyes on a number of properties, making sure they come into compliance and stay in compliance," said Kate Johnson, Department of Code Enforcement.

Three inspectors have been assigned to enforce the ban indefinitely. Johnson said they will be patrolling and responding to complaints that come into the Mayor's Action Center.

See a list of communities under watering restrictions.

She said the difficulty is each violation must be documented.

"We have to see the irrigation system running for someone to be cited," she said.

Both she and Holsapple stressed people can still water flowers, plants, shrubs and trees.

"We encourage people to water all trees, even if they're older. Keep Indianapolis Beautiful says trees need about 15 gallons of water once a week," she said.

Just don't use a sprinkler. She said to use a handheld hose. Soaker hoses are also permitted.

Citizens Water officials say daily water use fell about 40 million gallons from the levels around 200 million gallons a day it was pumping before water use restrictions were put in place Friday because of the area's ongoing drought.

The company began calling for conservation after customers used a record 233 million gallons on June 26.

The utility says it has reduced its releases of water from Morse, Geist and Eagle Creek reservoirs but those must continue to maintain stream flow. Morse Reservoir is nearly 6 feet below its full level. Geist is down nearly two feet and Eagle Creek Reservoir is down over two feet from normal.

Meantime, Indiana American Water says it's starting new construction to bring a new well and 15 percent additional water delivery capacity online by the end of July in Noblesville. The company decided to speed up its project, which was already in the works, due to the drought. The capacity improvements, including a new treatment facility, will be in service by next summer.