New Braunfels is considering a final-reading ordinance that would replace five drought stages with three, make Stage III landscape watering every other week and take effect Oct. 1 if approved.
For NBU customers in New Braunfels, the proposal would keep Stage I and II sprinkler watering at once a week but limit Stage III sprinkler watering to once every other week.
The City Council agenda lists the ordinance as Item 2A for its 6 p.m. Sept. 28 meeting at City Hall. The agenda schedules consideration, so the ordinance remains proposed.
What changes from the current code
The current code uses five numbered stages with J-17 thresholds from 660 to 625 feet and Comal Springs triggers from 225 to 45 cubic feet per second.
The proposal would use J-17 or Comal Springs thresholds of 660 feet or 225 cfs for Stage I, 650 feet or 200 cfs for Stage II, and 640 feet or 150 cfs for Stage III. The first trigger reached would control.
The draft also adds a 15-calendar-day monitoring period after the aquifer and spring-flow measures rise above a stage threshold. NBU staff would monitor conditions before consulting with the mayor about ending that stage.
What residents would notice
The assigned-address schedule would remain Monday for addresses ending in 0 or 1, Tuesday for 2 or 3, Wednesday for 4 or 5, Thursday for 6 or 7 and Friday for 8 or 9. Properties without one street address would use Wednesday. Stage III would apply that schedule every other week beginning on the second Monday after the stage is declared.
The rewrite also says hand-held hoses, soaker hoses that do not spray into the air, drip systems and buckets could be used on any day during Stages II and III. Sprinklers and in-ground irrigation systems would remain tied to the assigned schedule.
Why the ordinance is back
The city says the earlier notices named changes to Divisions 3, 5 and 6; it resubmitted Division 7 as a notice precaution. The item report says the drought amendment was presented Aug. 10 and Aug. 24, and the last amendment to Division 7 was in March 2019.
Comal.News previously reported on the first drought-code proposal in August and included the final-reading item in its full Sept. 28 council guide. The marked ordinance now supplies the trigger table and watering schedule needed to show the household consequence.
What happens next
City Council is scheduled to consider the second and final reading at 6 p.m. Sept. 28; the draft says an approved ordinance would take effect Oct. 1.
The city’s action history, signed ordinance and meeting minutes will document the motion, amendments and vote after the meeting. Readers can use the Item 26-1113 page to inspect the ordinance, clean code text and marked exhibit together.