The action of two rural water districts may force city officials to consider better ways to control Lawrence's growth.
Lawrence city officials have known for a long time that withholding water meters isn't a good way to control urban sprawl. But because they didn't have the will to control growth any other way, they used what they had; they tried to keep people from building new houses near the city by saying they couldn't tap into a rural water district.
This back-door approach to planning soon may be slammed and it's about time.
Two rural water districts that serve areas southeast and southwest of Lawrence have contracted with the city since the 1970s to supply treated water for their customers. The treatment contracts restrict the annual increase in water meters in each district to 1 percent a year. The restriction was placed on water meters not because their treatment plants couldn't handle the load but because city officials wanted to control the number of new houses being built in suburban areas.
One percent a year clearly is not enough to meet the demands in those developing areas. Rural Water District 5 has a backlog of 232 requests for water service and has quit taking applications. District 4 also has quit taking applications and has 100 people on a waiting list for service. In desperation, the districts are joining with other districts in adjacent counties to look for other sources of treated water.
This is not the first time such a search has been undertaken. If the districts are successful in eliminating their need to obtain water from Lawrence, they may finally force city officials to address the real problems of suburban growth around the city. Without water meters as an arbitrary weapon against growth, city officials may have to look at zoning, platting, annexation and other, more meaningful planning tools. City and county officials may have to work together on development restrictions that might not please some rural residents, but will allow the city to grow in a more controlled and thoughtful manner.
During recent discussions, some city and county officials opposed a proposal to complete the South Lawrence Trafficway on a route south of the Wakarusa River, at least in part, because the city wasn't prepared to deal with the development challenges such a road would present. With or without that road, development south of the Wakarusa needs to be reviewed and perhaps more strictly regulated. It won't be long before Lawrence city limits are creeping south of the river and city officials are trying to figure out ways to extend city services to that area. Planning now could make that transition far less painful.
Limiting water meters to control growth not only is silly, it's ineffective. Water district officials say that when people can't get water meters, they simply dig wells that generally supply lower-quality water.
Instead of counting water meters, city and county officials need to take a serious look at the county's future and decide where and how residential areas should be developed. If water meters no longer can be used as a barrier to growth around Lawrence, maybe officials will show the courage to meet this issue head-on.
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