The Rome Water and Sewer Committee agreed Tuesday to ease outdoor watering restrictions in place since the state mandated a Level IV drought response last year.
Public Services Director Kirk Milam said the revised policy can’t go into effect until it is approved by the Rome City Commission in April — but enforcement of the old restrictions is now on hold.
The Floyd County Commission approved the change for its water customers last week.
Under the new rules, hand-watering is allowed for 25 minutes a day between midnight and 10 a.m. Hand-watering means a single person using a garden hose equipped with an automatic shut-off nozzle.
Those with even-numbered addresses can water on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays. Those with odd-numbered addresses can water Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays.
Property owners also will be able to water newly installed landscaping for longer periods, as much as three days a week for 10 consecutive weeks.
A certificate from the Outdoor Water Use Registration Program is required. Applicants will have to watch a presentation on conservation and pass a quiz on the subject.
Online registration is available through the Urban Ag Council’s Web site, with payment of a $4.95 convenience fee. The Floyd County Extension Office, 12 E. Fourth Ave., is offering the program at no charge.
Additionally, the new policy allows existing pools to be filled for the season beginning April 1.
Water and Sewer Director Leigh Ross also updated the committee on departmental projects:
Work has started on Chateau Drive to replace a 6-inch water main with a 12-inch water main. The upgrade will improve fire flow and serve three new motels slated for the area.
Crews are replacing a collapsing sewer main that extends under the ballfields at Darlington School but have run into granite. Tennis courts have been built over a manhole, so workers are trying an alternate route to the pipe.
“We’ve got the same issue behind St. Mary’s Catholic School,” Ross added. “We have the supplies, and we’ll get started there as soon as we get a crew loose.”
A stormwater line under the new town green site next to The Forum must be replaced and the water and sewer lines moved. It could cost as much as $90,000 for an outside firm to do the work, so city crews are expected to take on the job.
The Georgia Department of Transportation has notified Ross that the city will have to move a water line in the path of a storm drain it is installing in conjunction with the widening of Martha Berry Boulevard at John Davenport Drive.
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