City may tighten up car wash rules

RALEIGH -- The city's much-criticized car wash certification program will come under review today by a City Council subcommittee.

The Public Works Committee will meet at 4:30 p.m. in the council chambers of City Hall to discuss whether to toughen the requirements for car washes seeking certification from the city.

Under Raleigh's Stage 2 water rules, car washes can remain open if they are certified, but certification does not require a car wash to recycle or reclaim any water. The rules have been in effect since Feb. 15.

A facility has to show only that it uses no more than 55 gallons per basic wash. A car wash can use more than 55 gallons on its premium services. The certification sets no limit for self-serve car washes; they just need to install nozzles that use no more than 3 gallons per minute to qualify.

Residential water customers on Raleigh's system have not been allowed to wash their cars at home for months.

The City Council has set a water consumption goal of 35 gallons per day for residents.

More than 70 of the roughly 100 car washes using Raleigh water have become certified since the City Council adopted the program last summer.

The certification rules were written by the North Carolina chapter of the Southeastern Carwash Association and brought to the council as a citizen task force recommendation.

The City Council referred the program to the Public Works Committee at its meeting last week.

"Needless to say, that's not what the past or the current council had intended," Mayor Charles Meeker has said of the program.