East Texas

WHITEHOUSE — Whitehouse residents were hit today with new, less restrictive, water rationing restrictions.

Under the new order, even numbered addresses can water lawns only on Mondays. Odd numbered addresses can water lawns on only on Thursdays. Outdoor watering is prohibited on other days.

The order says that “hand watering” of plants and shrubs is still allowed.

“Please try to keep your watering to minimum of, no more than 30 minutes if possible,” the restrictive order said. “Optimum watering time is midnight until 6 a.m. in the morning.”

Last month, the city requested residents with even numbered addresses to water on even days and odd addresses on odd days. When that did not ease demand, the city banned all outdoor watering.

“If a large demand is placed back on our system, we will have no choice (but) to revert back to more restrictive measures,” said the copy of the order sent to the Tyler Paper.

The city is dealing with water problems because two new wells expected to have been completed by now are still not on line and the Southside Water Treatment Plant, a new 500,000 storage tank and pump station, is not set to be up and running until next month.

City Manager Ronny Fite has said that once the wells and plant are operating, the city will be in good shape, but until then, water rationing will be required.

The order released today said, “The City of Whitehouse will try to loosen these restrictions even further as we bring on our new wells.”

Water restrictions come at a time when the city has not had significant rainfall for weeks and temperatures are consistently hovering near 100 degrees. Some residents have complained that because the watering restrictions, lawns and landscaping are dying.

“I planted new shrubs and Japanese Maple trees in the spring. Now I risk losing them,” resident Connie Jacobson said in a letter to the Tyler Paper.