Just last year the Fleiner family moved to Calabasas. The family built a pool and finished landscaping their backyard just last month.
The outdoor upgrades cost them about $150,000, Deena Fleiner told KTLA. Now the local water supplier is telling them they’re using too much water.
Their story is not unlike like many other families at risk of severe restrictions.
The Las Virgenes Municipal Water District, which covers Calabasas, Westlake Village, Agoura Hills and Hidden Hills, says for the first time, they will begin installing water flow restrictors on homes that don’t reduce usage.
“I don’t have an issue cutting back for the drought, I want to be conservative with my water usage, I want to be respectful of the planet,” said Fleiner. “But my yard won’t survive a one-day a week watering. It just won’t.”
The Water District is calling for customers to reduce usage to 80 gallons a day or face fines and have their water restricted to just a trickle.
Ricki Clark of the Las Virgenes Municipal Water District says this is uncharted territory.
“We really need our customers to understand how dire this situation is,” Clark said.
Right next door to the Fleiner’s lush lawn, Jeffrey Goodman admires his drought-resilient yard.
“My water bill is zilch,” Goodman said. The homeowner replaced all of his grass with stone and he says he’s not worried about the restrictions.
Instead, he has a message for others who are on the fence about how to handle the restrictions.
“Change your lawn, get rid of your lawn,” Goodman said. “I think it’s a responsibility… a responsibility to the community.”