On Monday, Aug. 10, the Mayo Town Council unanimously adopted an ordinance that will enact the Suwannee River Water Management District’s (SRWMD) year-round water conservation measures and temporary water shortage restrictions. The ordinance also authorizes the town to enforce the measures and hand out penalties for violations.

The restrictions only apply when the SRWMD declares a water shortage or water shortage emergency, meaning there are insufficient water resources to meet the needs of people or to protect the public’s health and safety. Restrictions can be applied to people using water resources for lawn or landscape irrigation or other outdoor water uses like car washing.

Town councilors held the first reading of the ordinance at a town hall meeting on Monday, July 13.

In addition to helping conserve water, the ordinance qualifies the town of Mayo for a $128,000 SRWMD grant planned to alleviate some of the town’s flooding issues. The grant will fund a stormwater drainage project consisting of a series of culverts and ditches along SW San Pedro Ave., starting at SW Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. and ending at Park St.

Also on Aug. 10, councilors discussed installing a donated live Christmas tree in Veterans Park near the gazebo. The idea was tabled for a future town hall meeting due to uncertainty over where the tree might be placed and whether it was necessary to have a permanent tree.