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HomeMy WebLinkAbout691 Water Shortage EmergencyORDINANCE NO. 691 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF UKIAH ESTABLISHING PROCEDURES IN THE EVENT OF A WATER SHORTAGE EMERGENCY, PROHIBITING NONESSENTIAL USES OF WATER, ALLOCATING AVAILABLE WATER RESOURCES, AND PROVIDING PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS THEREOF BY ADDING ARTICLE 11 TO DIVISION 4 OF THE UKIAH CITY CODE THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF UKIAH does enact as follows: Section 1. Article 11 is hereby added to Division 4 of the Ukiah City Code to read as follows: ARTICLE 11 - WATER SHORTAGE EMERGENCY Section 3600 - Findings The City Council hereby finds and determines that the ordin- ary demands and requirements for water customers of the City of Ukiah may not, from time to time, be satisfied without depleting the water supply to the extent that there would be insufficient water for human consumption, sanitation, and fire protection. This ordinance is intended to prohibit any additional demands on the existing water supply, to prohibit all non-essential uses as defined herein, and to allocate the available water supply during any water shortage emergency to the end that sufficient water will be and remain available for human consumption, sanitation, and fire protection. Section 3601 - Definitions For the purpose of this Article the following terms, phrases, words, and their derivations shall have the meaning given herein. The word "shall" is always mandatory and never directory. a) Customer. The person using water supplied by the City of Ukiah. b) Director. The Director of Public Works of the City of Ukiah or his designated representative. c) Department. The Water Utilities Division of the Department .>i j-, _. handheld and such water used for exterior purposes. e) Irrigate. To water land, whether by channels, by flooding by sprinkling, or any other means whatsoever except hand-watering. fj Water. Only water supplied by the City of Ukiah unless expressly provided otherwise or required by the context. Section 3602 - Declaration of Water Emergency When it appears that the City may be unable to supply the normal demands and requirements of water customers, the City Council may, by resolution, declare a water emergency. The reso- lution shall specify the degree of emergency existing and shall place into effect the appropriate provisions of this ordinance. Section 3603 - Requests for Voluntary Restrictions of Water Use - Stage I Whenever the City Council, by resolution, declares Stage I water emergency to exist, the Mayor shall issue a proclamation t~ging citizens to institute such water conservation measures on a voluntary basis as may be required to reduce water demand to coincide with available supply. --- Section 3604 - Prohibition of Non-essential Water Use - Stage II It is unlawful for any person to use water for any non- essential use as hereinafter defined, whenever the City Council determines by resolution that a Stage II water emergency exists. Section 3605 - Non-essential Uses Defined The following uses of water are non-essential: a) Use of water from public hydrants for any purpose other than fire protection and/or prevention. b) Use of water through any meter when the consumer had been given two days notice to repair one or more leaks and has failed to complete such repairs. c) Use of water by a golf course to irrigate any portion of _" '?f~`) is non-essentil and written notice of such determination shall have been provided. d) Use of water to irrigate grass, lawns, ground cover, shrubbery, vegetable gardens, trees, or other outdoor vegetation. e) Use of water for the construction of any structure, in- eluding such use in dust control. f) Use of water to wash any sidewalk, walkways, driveway, street, parking lot, tennis court, or other hard surfaced area by hosing or by otherwise direct use of water from faucets or other outlets. g) Use of water to wash any motor vehicle, trailer, airplane, or boat by hosing or otherwise using water directly from a faucet or other outlet. h) Use of water to fill or refill any swimming pool. i) Use of water to add to any swimming pool not equipped with and using a pool cover. Section 3606 - Further Non-essential Uses Defined - Stage III In addition to the non-essential uses set forth in Section 3605 - the following additional uses are determined to be non- essential when the Council has, by resolution declared a Stage III emergency. a) Use of water in excess of the daily usage allotment here- inafter set forth: Single family or duplex 50 gallons/per permanent resident (200 cu. ft. per mo.) Multi-Residential Units 45 gallons per permanent resi- (3 or more units) dent (180 cu. ft./mo.) b) All other uses not expressly set forth in Section 3605 •/ average prior water use of similar existing services as shall be determined by the Department from its records. c) Use of water to irrigate, the provisions of Section 3605 above to the contrary, notwithstanding. d) Use of water for hand-watering. Section 3607 - Number of Permanent Residents Each customer in whose name water is supplied to a residence shall upon request of the Director advise him under penalty of perjury the number of permanent residents using water supplied to that residence. If such a residential customer shall fail to so advise the Director, such residence shall be permitted the water allocation herein provided for one permanent resident. Section 3608 - Tampering with Water Meters Prohibited It is unlawful for any person to remove, replace, alter, damage, or otherwise tamper with any water meter or components thereof, including but not limited to the meter face, dials, or -~ other water usage indicators, and any flow-restricting device in- stalled thereon. Section 3609 - Variances The Director may: a) Grant temporary variances for uses of water otherwise pro- hibited; or b) Adjust temporarily any or all consumer's allotment if he finds and determines that due to unusual circumstances to fail to grant such a variance would cause an emergency condition affecting health, sanitation, or fire protection of the applicant or the public; further, he may grant such adjustment in the case of a mixed residential-non-residential use if he finds that such adjust- `~ _' _~ No such variance or adjustment shall be retroactive or other- wise justify any violations of this ordinance occurring prior to - issuance of said temporary variance or adjustment. Section 3610 - Violation of V7ater Use Restrictions; Punishment It is a misdemeanor for any person to use or apply water re- ceived from the City of Ukiah contrary to or in violation of any restriction or prohibition specified in this Article, except both the first and second violations of this ordinance within any one year period shall be infractions. Said punishment may be in lieu of or in addition to any other penalty or method of enforcement provided by law. Any violation of this ordinance permitted to continue after notice, shall be a separate offense and shall be punishable as such hereunder; further, each day such violation continues shall be considered a separate offense. Section 3611 - Purpose and Intent; Statutory Construction It is the purpose and intent of this ordinance to prohbit an increase in the water demand on the City of Ukiah's available water supply, to eliminate all non-essential water usage, and to provide for allocation of existing water resources to insure sufficient water for human consumption, sanitation, and fire pro- tection. This ordinance shall be liberally construed to effectuate such purpose and intent. Section 3612 - Repair; Replacement Notwithstanding any other provisions of this ordinance, no restriction or prohibition is imposed upon the repair or replace- ment of existing water service facilities .in a manner which the Director determines will not materially increase the consumption -"" of water. ,, i ' Section 3614 - Water Services to be Disconnected Water may be shut off by the Department with appropriate notice whenever the Director determines there has been a willful failure to comply with the provisions of this ordinance, any other provisions of this code to the contrary, notwithstanding. Charges for reconnection or restoration of service which has been termin- ated pursuant to this section shall be at the rates and on the con- ditions set by resolution. Section 3615 - Enforcement; Designated Persons a) Each police officer of the City of Ukiah shall in connec- tion with his duties imposed by law diligently enforce the provi- sions of this ordinance. b) The Director and his designated employees shall have the Duty and are hereby authorized to enforce the provisions of this ordinance. Section 3616 - Severability Clause If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this ordinance is for any reason held to be unconstitutional, such decision shall not affect the remaining portions of this ordinance. The City Council declares that it would have passed this ordinance and each section, subsection, sentence, clause, and phrase thereof irrespective of the fact that any one or more such provisions be declared unconstitutional. Section 2. Urgency Ordinance. This ordinance is hereby declared to be necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, and safety and will take effect and be in force upon its adoption by a fourth- fifths vote of the members of the Ukiah City Council. Due to .~ ~ . .; the City Council of the City of Ukiah further declares that if normal water usage were permitted to continue, the available water supply would be depleted below the safe level for human con- sumption, sanitation, and fire protection. This ordinance shall be published in accordance with law within ten days after its adoption. PASSED AND ADOPTED this 15th day of February, 1977 by the following roll call vote: AYES: Councilmen Feibusch, Brannon, Simpson, Mayor Wood NOES: None ABSENT: None Barry Wood MAYOR ATTEST: s/ Hattie M. Tillotson CITY CLERK C1i'Y 6iea:,, CN1 Of U~daA, Cu~ur-~:. ~/ Te Be A 7~w A~ ~it°"` ~~~y~~~ N~,~ pq. Tillotson ONe