MLSD granted temporary water exemption by city council

MOSES LAKE – The Moses Lake City Council unanimously passed Ordinance 3071 during its regular meeting Tuesday. The ordinance grants the Moses Lake School District a temporary exemption from citywide irrigation restrictions, allowing district officials to irrigate sports fields as necessary through Nov. 15.  

"We are grateful to the City of Moses Lake for partnering with us to find a proactive, commonsense solution," said MLSD Superintendent Carol Lewis. "This ordinance reflects a shared commitment to our community’s priorities — fiscal responsibility, student safety and the preservation of public spaces." 

With the region experiencing increasingly dry summer months, the exemption is designed to preserve vital play spaces for students while protecting taxpayer-owned assets, Lewis explained.  

The ordinance emerged from ongoing dialogues between district leaders and city staff. Prior to this agreement, restrictions on watering schedules, which limit irrigation to a three-day schedule per week, posed a significant threat to the health of high-use fields within the school district, according to a statement from the district.  

The district had been at risk of losing approximately $8 million worth of community assets if fields became too dry to sustain student activity, Lewis explained.  

“Without this exemption, the city’s three-day watering schedule risked significant turf loss on high-use fields across the district," Lewis said. 

Under the terms of Ordinance 3071, the school district will be able to prioritize irrigation at key athletic and activity sites, including Park Orchard Elementary, North Elementary, Groff Elementary, Sage Point Elementary, Endeavor Middle School and Larson Heights Elementary. With the exemption in place, district officials will be able to water during cooler hours and utilize zone-based scheduling to minimize waste, thus promoting a responsible approach to irrigation, according to a statement from the district.  

This temporary measure ensures that students will have access to safe and playable fields, allowing them to engage in athletic practices and competitive events throughout the summer months and into the fall. 

"For students, it means we’re going to have fields that they can use, rather than fields that are either unusable or completely gone,” Lewis said.