Water

Where Does My Water Come From?

Garden City's water supply comes from a total of seventeen groundwater wells. Seven of these wells are located in the Sand Hills. The other ten wells are located in and around the corporate limits of the city. All but three wells pump from the Ogallala Aquifer. The other wells pump water from the Dakota Sandstone Aquifer. The Water Department also operates wells and water distribution systems at the Garden City Regional Airport and Buffalo Dunes Golf Course. In 2023 the Water Department produced 2.17 billion gallons of water to serve the needs of the community.

Getting Our Water Resource Where It's Needed

Water is transmitted from our wells to our storage facilities. Water is stored in 3 reservoirs and four 500,000-gallon elevated storage tanks. We have capacity to store 9 million gallons of water throughout the city. From the storage facilities, we transmit water through over 861,000 feet of water mains to our customers. The water system has over 8,400 service connections.

Consumer Confidence Report - Your Right to Know

The Water Department delivers the best quality drinking water possible, while also providing an adequate supply for Residential, Business, and Fire Protection. View the 2025 Consumer Confidence Report (PDF). To better understand the Consumer Confidence Report please check out our companion document Understanding the CCR (PDF).

Note: The Water Department monitors for contaminates in our water according to strict standards set by state and federal laws.

Protecting Drinking Water from Cross-Contamination

A dangerous situation occurs when a water supply line is connected to equipment that contains a non-potable substance. The City is required by law to monitor backflow devices that keep contaminants out of the drinking water supply. Backflow Solutions, Inc., or BSI Online is North America's leading cross-connection control/backflow data management and program administration firm. BSI Online has partnered with over 550 water purveyors to develop and manage effective cross-connection control programs to help protect all our water resources. BSI helps water purveyors by sending notifications, assists with customer service inquiries, and manages required data on behalf of the City of Garden City.

The City of Garden City has contracted with BSI Online to assist the city with state-required cross-connection/backflow tracking regulations. BSI Online will serve as the primary point of contact for the program and can be contacted:

• Testing Company Support:
  • Phone: 800-414-4990
  • Fax: 888-414-4990
  • Email Testing Company Support 
  • Testing Company Support Website
• Water Customer Support:
  • Phone: 888-966-6050
  • Email Water Customer Support

Lead & Copper Survey

The City of Garden City will be conducting a Water Service Line Material Survey. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued regulations requiring all public water supply systems to develop an inventory of lead service lines which must be submitted to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment in October of 2024.

The City has not violated the Lead and Copper drinking water standard. However, your assistance in helping us identify these materials ensures we are identifying lead service lines in our community and developing a plan for their removal.

Please complete and return the survey to 301 N 8th Street P.O. Box 998, Garden City, KS 67846 or email it to us.

Contact Us

If you are experiencing problems with your water service do not hesitate to contact the Water Department at 620-276-1291, Monday through Friday from 8 am to 5 pm. For problems occurring after regular hours, please contact the Law Enforcement Center at 620-276-1300.

We Need Your Input!

If you are experiencing a problem with your water please let us know. The water department checks and documents every complaint or service issue we receive. If you have questions about your water quality, available water to your home, questions about your service, or any other issue please call us. Helping you is our pleasure.

We use the information we receive from our customers to help us determine future projects and improvements for the water system. Thanks for your input and feedback!