What you need to know about Leander and Cedar Park's relaxed watering restrictions

Leander lifted its ban on all outdoor watering this week after a pipeline supplying the city's primary source of water from Lake Travis was repaired. The city of Cedar Park also lifted its ban on the use of outdoor sprinkler systems after the pipeline was fixed.

The 36-inch pipeline that supplies both Leander and Cedar Park with raw water from Lake Travis was shut down for repairs since Sept. 21 because of a leak. Restrictions were more severe in Leander than Cedar Park since the pipeline is the primary source of water for Leander but only supplies 20% of Cedar Park's water. Hand-held watering with hoses is permitted at any time in both cities but there are still restrictions on the use of sprinkler systems because of the Central Texas drought.

Leander water customers are allowed to use outdoor sprinkler systems once a week

The city returned to its Phase 2 water conservation measures on Monday which allow irrigation before 10 a.m. or after 7 p.m. based on the ending number of customers' street addresses. Customers whose addresses end in 1, 5 or 9 are allowed to use their sprinkler systems on Fridays.

Residents with addresses ending in 2, 4, 6 or 8 can use their systems on Wednesdays and people with street addresses ending in 0, 3 or 7 can irrigate on Sundays. Commercial businesses with addresses ending in 1, 5 or 9 can use their sprinkler systems on Tuesdays and those businesses with addresses ending in 2, 4, 6 or 8 can irrigate on Saturdays. On Thursdays commercial businesses in Leander can irrigate if they have a street address that ends in 0, 3 or 7.

Leander has also lifted outdoor water restrictions in other areas

Leander resumed on Monday water connections for construction activities, new water meter installation, and approval of pool permits, according to a city news release.

The splash pads at Lakewood and Bledsoe parks will reopen Friday and remain open through Oct. 30, when they will close for the season, the release said.

Leander residents were able to conserve more water during the outdoor water ban than officials had planned

The shutdown reduced Leander's water treatment capacity by more than 50% from 25 million to 9 million gallons per day. Summer water usage had averaged 18 million gallons per day before the shutdown, officials had said. The city banned all outdoor water use on Sept. 8 to start conserving water before the repair began on Sept. 21.

Officials set a goal of getting residents to cut their water usage to 9 million gallons per day during the ban. The residents cut usage even further by averaging 7.2 million gallons per day while the outdoor watering ban was in use, according to the city news release.

“We also appreciate the many Leander residents who stepped up to the challenge to conserve water during this time," Leander City Manager Rick Beverlin said in the release. "We know this affected all residents and are grateful to now move to Phase 2 water conservation.”

More:All outdoor watering prohibited in Leander to conserve water before pipeline repairs

Cedar Park is now allowing outdoor water sprinkling systems to be used twice a week

In Cedar Park, irrigation systems can be used before 10 a.m. or after 7 p.m.

Residents with street addresses ending in odd numbers (1, 3, 5, 7 or 9) are allowed to use sprinkler systems on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Customers in Cedar Park with street addresses ending in even numbers (0, 2, 4, 6, 8) can use sprinklers on Thursdays and Sundays. Commercial businesses are allowed to use irrigation systems on Tuesdays and Fridays.

"The City of Cedar Park thanks all Cedar Park water customers for their patience during the repair process and for their additional water conservation efforts needed during the repair," a city news release said.

Use a hotline to report outdoor usage violations in Cedar Park

Cedar Park has a hotline for reporting outdoor water usage violations at 512-401-5308. Violations can also be reported online at cedarparktexas.gov/report-it.

Cedar Park also offers water-saving tips, information on rebates and resources and a digital metering portal at waterthriftycedarpark.org. The digital metering portal allows customers to monitor water usage in near real-time, set up customized alerts and detect water waste, a city news release said.

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This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: What to know about Leander and Cedar Park's relaxed water restrictions