Water restrictions in Sioux Falls, SD — also called the watering schedule, outdoor irrigation rules, or drought ordinance — set which days and hours you can run sprinklers or irrigation.
Sioux Falls operates a permanent Stage 1 lawn-watering ordinance: no irrigation between noon and 5 p.m. any day, and lawns may only be watered on calendar dates matching the address parity (odd-address/odd-date, even-address/even-date). Stage 2 cuts watering to one day per week; Stage 3 prohibits all outdoor watering. Hand-watering of shrubs, trees, and gardens with a shut-off nozzle is allowed anytime.
The Lawn Watering Program is administered by Sioux Falls Public Works Water Conservation Division and codified in the city's water utility ordinances (Title 50–52, Code of Ordinances). Under default Stage 1, lawn irrigation is banned during the peak evaporative window of noon to 5:00 p.m. daily. Even-numbered property addresses may sprinkler-irrigate on even-numbered calendar days; odd-numbered addresses may water on odd-numbered calendar days. Hand-watering of vegetation (shrubs, trees, ground covers, vines, vegetable and flower gardens) is permitted any hour with a non-leaking hose equipped with a self-closing hand-held nozzle. Stage 2 (declared based on water-system demand or supply conditions) cuts residential, commercial, industrial, and city-facility watering to one day per week keyed to the last digit of the property address. Stage 3 prohibits all outdoor sprinkler watering. New-lawn permits are issued by Public Works for sod or seed establishment outside the normal schedule.
Enforcement is complaint and patrol based. The city's stated policy is to issue warnings during Stage 1 and to escalate to $100 first-offense citations beginning in Stage 2, with higher penalties for repeat violations. The Public Works director may also disconnect service for chronic violators under utility ordinance authority.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
Sioux Falls, SD
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